Director of Commissioning

5C Group; United States; Remote; USD 210,000 - 250,000; Full time

Job summary

5C Data Centers seeks a Director of Commissioning to lead the field commissioning function for hyperscale facilities across North America. You will set standards, establish readiness requirements and oversee testing and system performance.

This hands-on leader will develop governance from design to handover, build coverage plans with direct hires and trusted partners, coach teams, and ensure clear acceptance criteria and risk-based testing.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in mechanical or electrical engineering, Construction Management or related discipline, or equivalent relevant experience.
• 10+ years of progressive commissioning experience, including leadership across complex projects and distributed sites.
• Experience delivering commissioning across data centers, mission-critical facilities, or similar infrastructure.
• Ability to create and implement practical processes, conduct field assurance, and scale teams.

Responsibilities

• Establish portfolio commissioning standards, roles, responsibilities, script requirements, acceptance criteria, and escalation paths.
• Oversee priority commissioning activities while developing reusable procedures, templates, tools, and a risk-based roadmap.
• Develop resource triggers based on concurrent sites, complexity, test duration, geographic spread, and specialist requirements.
• Recruit approved hires and manage third-party commissioning providers with clear competency, authority, deliverables, and performance expectations.
• Review commissioning plans, staffing, test procedures, equipment startup responsibilities, and readiness criteria; require deficiencies be corrected before testing proceeds.
• Partner with Engineering and Pre-Construction to review commissioning implications of design, sequences, controls, maintainability, and testability.
• Embed commissioning requirements into design reviews, procurement packages, and project plans.
• Evaluate commissioning providers and contractor capability, mission-critical experience, staffing and methodology.
• Establish system turnover and commissioning-readiness criteria with Operations, including documentation and safety.
• Own the portfolio methodology for functional performance testing and integrated systems testing; witness critical tests and ensure objective evidence supports acceptance.
• Establish risk-based deficiency classification, ownership, due dates, escalation, and closure verification.

Skills

Education & comms

Leadership

Delivery experience

Program building

Education

Bachelor's degree in mechanical or electrical engineering, Construction Management or related discipline

Job description

5C DATA CENTERS

Join the Future of Digital Infrastructure

Are you a passionate Director of Commissioning looking to make a meaningful impact? We're building the next generation of digital infrastructure powering hyperscalers, AI innovation, and high-performance computing across North America.

JOB TITLE: Director of Commissioning

DEPARTMENT: DC Construction

LOCATION: USA

WORK ARRANGEMENT: Remote

TRAVEL REQUIREMENTS: 25-50%

SALARY RANGE: $210,000-250,000 USD

Role Summary

The Director of Commissioning will lead 5C's field commissioning function, reporting directly to the VP of Commissioning & Quality Assurance. Initially the primary dedicated commissioning resource, is a hands‑on leader who establishes portfolio standards, commissioning strategies and readiness requirements; provides independent assurance of testing and system performance; and coaches delivery teams and commissioning providers.

The role will help define portfolio‑wide commissioning governance from design and pre‑construction through construction, energization, functional performance testing, integrated systems testing and handover. As the portfolio scales, the Director develops and implements approved coverage plans using direct hires, third‑party commissioning providers and specialist resources while retaining functional accountability.

How We Work at 5C

Our core values guide how we collaborate, make decisions, support one another, and serve our customers. We're looking for people who embrace them and help us build something great.

What You Will Do

Commissioning Strategy & Governance

• Establish portfolio commissioning standards, roles, responsibilities, script requirements, acceptance criteria, and escalation paths.
• Personally oversee priority commissioning activities while developing reusable procedures, templates, tools, and a risk‑based roadmap.

Scalable Staffing & Third‑Party Resource Management

• Develop resource triggers based on concurrent sites, commissioning complexity, test duration, geographic spread and specialist requirements.
• Recruit approved hires and manage third‑party commissioning providers and specialists with clear competency, authority, deliverables, and performance expectations.

Design & Pre‑construction Integration

• Partner with Engineering and Planning & Pre‑construction to review commissioning implications of design, sequences of operation, controls architecture, maintainability, and testability.
• Embed commissioning requirements, witness points, test boundaries, specialist needs, schedule logic and documentation requirements into design reviews, procurement packages, and project plans.

Contractor & Commissioning Vendor Selection

• Evaluate commissioning providers and contractor commissioning capability, relevant mission‑critical experience, technical depth, staffing and proposed methodology.
• Review commissioning plans, staffing, test procedures, equipment startup responsibilities, and readiness criteria; require deficiencies are corrected before affected testing proceeds.

Construction & Startup Readiness

• Establish system turnover and commissioning‑readiness criteria based on needs of the customer (Operations), including installation completion, quality records, controls readiness, labeling, documentation, and safe access.
• Coordinate with Build Quality and Construction to prevent incomplete installation of systems from entering functional testing.

Functional Performance & Integrated Systems Testing

• Own the portfolio methodology for functional performance testing and integrated systems testing, including failure scenarios, sequence verification, redundancy, controls, and recovery behavior.
• Witness or direct critical tests, challenge assumptions and ensure objective evidence supports acceptance.

Deficiency Management & Corrective Action

• Establish risk‑based deficiency classification, ownership, due dates, escalation, and closure verification.
• Identify systemic or repeat failures and drive root‑cause analysis and corrective action across projects.

Energization, Live‑Site & Operations Interfaces

• Partner with Engineering, Pre‑Construction, Operations and Safety to define testing boundaries, temporary configurations, and operational constraints.
• Ensure operational personnel are engaged in testing, training, documentation review, and phased turnover.

Documentation, Data & Knowledge Management

• Establish the commissioning record as a reliable source of acceptance evidence, including test scripts, results, trends, deficiencies, and final records.
• Use digital platforms and analytics to identify recurring failure modes, schedule risk, and portfolio‑wide improvement opportunities.

Performance, Risk & Executive Reporting

• Report commissioning readiness, critical deficiencies, testing progress, schedule risk, provider performance, and acceptance status to the VP of Commissioning & Quality Assurance.
• Provide clear decisions, owners, and escalation dates rather than activity‑only reporting.

What You Bring

• Education and communication: Bachelor's degree in mechanical or electrical engineering, Construction Management or a related discipline, or equivalent relevant experience; clear field and executive communication.
• Experience: 10+ years of progressive commissioning experience, including leadership across complex projects, multiple contractors, and distributed sites.
• Relevant delivery environment: Demonstrated leadership in data centers, mission‑critical facilities, industrial construction, energy, or similar complex infrastructure.
• Firsthand functional program building: Ability to create and implement practical processes, conduct field assurance, influence senior contractors, and scale employees or third‑party coverage without an established team.

Why Join 5C Data Centers?

At 5C, we believe great people build great companies. You'll build a rewarding career while helping shape the future of digital infrastructure - one of the fastest‑growing industries in the world.

Career Growth

Build a rewarding career in one of the world's fastest‑growing industries.

Industry Leadership

Help power the infrastructure behind AI and high‑performance computing.

Entrepreneurial Culture

Your ideas matter - we empower employees to help shape our future.

Comprehensive Rewards

Competitive pay plus meaningful, lasting impact on the work you do.

Life at 5C

We're more than a workplace - we're a team of builders, innovators, and problem‑solvers united by a shared purpose: creating infrastructure that powers the technologies transforming our world. Your voice matters here, and we encourage fresh ideas at every level.

5C Data Centers is an equal opportunity employer.

We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment where everyone can thrive. 5C evaluates qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, disability status, or any other legally protected characteristic.