Director, Operations

Walbridge; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

L5 Mission Critical is seeking a Director of Operations to lead the safe, reliable, and efficient operation of mission-critical facilities across a national portfolio. You will drive uptime, safety, maintenance excellence, and client satisfaction while partnering with cross-functional leaders to establish standards and scalable playbooks.

You will manage budgets, staffing models, business partnerships, and risk across multiple sites, with regular travel to client locations in North America.

Qualifications

• 12+ years of experience in mission critical operations or data center facilities.
• 5+ years leading multi-site or large-scale operations teams.
• Deep knowledge of critical power and cooling infrastructure and their live operation.
• Proven uptime/SLA delivery for hyperscale, colocation, or enterprise clients.
• Experience in incident response, root cause analysis and corrective action.
• Strong financial acumen including budgeting and labor planning.
• Familiarity with NFPA 70E and OSHA safety requirements.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to lead cross-functional teams across multiple sites.
• Willingness to travel across North America.
• Experience in high-growth or outsourced services environments.
• Industry certifications (Uptime Institute, CDCP, CDFOM, CFM) preferred.

Responsibilities

• Own operational performance across the site portfolio, including availability, incident response, SLA compliance, and client KPIs.
• Direct the operation and maintenance of critical power, cooling, and building systems.
• Lead incident management and client communication.
• Ensure SOPs/EOPs and change management on every site.
• Drive preventive and predictive maintenance and lifecycle planning.
• Enforce a zero-incident safety culture and site safety protocols.
• Ensure audit readiness and regulatory compliance.
• Manage operating budgets, labor plans, and vendor spend.
• Staff and develop regional and site operations leaders.
• Establish scalable operating standards and governance.
• Track performance and report incidents to executive leadership.

Skills

Leadership of multi-site operations

Incident response

Budget management

Safety & compliance knowledge

Cross-functional collaboration

Client relationship management

Operational performance monitoring

Communication skills

Travel readiness

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Operations, Business, or related field

Job description

Overview

The Director, Operations is responsible for the safe, reliable, and efficient operation of the mission critical facilities L5 manages for its clients. This role owns operational performance across a portfolio of sites, including uptime, service level compliance, safety, maintenance excellence, and client satisfaction. The Director leads site and regional operations leaders, sets the operating standards that govern how L5 runs critical infrastructure, and ensures every site is staffed, trained, and equipped to prevent, detect, and respond to incidents. It is a highly cross-functional role, partnering closely with training, safety, human resources, vendor management and procurement, finance, commissioning, project delivery, and executive leadership to deliver consistent results across a fast-growing national platform.

Responsibilities

Operational Performance & Uptime

• Own operational performance across the site portfolio, including availability, incident response, service level agreement (SLA) compliance, and client-defined key performance indicators.
• Direct the operation and maintenance of critical power, cooling, and building systems, including electrical distribution, UPS and battery systems, generators, chillers, and controls.
• Lead incident management and emergency response, including escalation, root cause analysis, corrective action, and client communication.
• Ensure rigorous use of methods of procedure (MOPs), standard and emergency operating procedures (SOPs/EOPs), and change management on every site.
• Drive preventive and predictive maintenance programs, asset management, and capacity and lifecycle planning to extend the life of client infrastructure.

Safety, Compliance & Risk

• Enforce a zero-incident safety culture, including electrical safety, lockout/tagout, work permitting, and site access protocols.
• Ensure sites are audit-ready and compliant with client requirements, regulatory obligations, and industry standards.
• Identify operational risks across the portfolio, set mitigation plans, and escalate issues early with clear recommendations.
• Lead drills, readiness reviews, and post-incident reviews to build operational discipline and improve response.

Client & Financial Management

• Serve as a senior operational contact for clients, building trusted relationships through transparent reporting, regular performance reviews, and proactive communication.
• Manage operating budgets, labor plans, and vendor spend, and deliver site and portfolio financial targets in partnership with finance.
• Manage subcontractors and service providers in partnership with vendor management & procurement, holding them accountable to performance and safety standards.
• Support business development with operating plans, staffing models, transition plans, and risk review for new site mobilizations and pursuits.

People & Process

• Lead, develop, and hold accountable regional and site operations leaders, building a strong bench for growth.
• Partner with talent acquisition and training to staff sites ahead of mobilization and to qualify personnel before they work on critical systems.
• Establish scalable operating standards, playbooks, and governance suited to a fast-growing platform business.
• Track and report operational performance, incident trends, and lessons learned to continuously improve results.
• Serve as a key advisor to executive leadership on operational risk, resourcing, and growth.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Operations, Business, or a related field, or equivalent experience.
• 12+ years of experience in mission critical operations, data center operations, or facilities management, including 5+ years leading multi-site or large-scale operations teams.
• Deep working knowledge of critical power and cooling infrastructure and the procedures used to operate and maintain it in live environments.
• Demonstrated success delivering uptime and SLA performance for demanding clients, including hyperscale, colocation, or enterprise customers.
• Strong experience managing incident response, root cause analysis, and corrective action.
• Strong financial acumen, including budget management, labor planning, and cost control.
• Strong understanding of safety and compliance standards for electrical and mechanical work, such as NFPA 70E and OSHA requirements.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to engage technicians, clients, and executives.
• Proven ability to lead and influence cross-functional teams across multiple sites.
• Willingness to travel regularly to client sites across North America.
• Experience in a high-growth or outsourced services environment preferred.
• Industry certifications, such as Uptime Institute, CDCP, CDFOM, or CFM preferred.
• Experience mobilizing new sites and transitioning operations from clients or prior providers preferred.

What Success Looks Like

• Sites operate safely and reliably, with uptime and SLA targets consistently met or exceeded.
• A repeatable, scalable operating model that supports L5’s national growth.
• Fewer incidents and faster, more disciplined response when issues occur.
• Strong, trusted relationships with clients and across training, safety, human resources, finance, and executive leadership.

EEO/AA Employer M/F/D/V

L5 Mission Critical is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law.