Finance Manager, Data Center Development

Big Watt Digital, LLC; Sammamish (WA); On-site; USD 200,000 - 250,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Annual Cash Bonus

Incentive Award Units

Job summary

Big Watt Digital, LLC is seeking a senior Finance professional to drive development economics for data-center projects and strategic capital decisions. You will own financial models covering site acquisition through operations, evaluate IRR, capex per MW, and margins while partnering with cross-functional teams to align pricing, procurement and schedules.

You will translate engineering and construction data into actionable recommendations for senior leadership, build scalable planning processes,

Qualifications

• 5+ years in strategic finance or related fields.
• Strong modeling and investment analysis skills required.
• Experience in data centers, real estate development or infra projects.
• Familiarity with development economics, budgeting and cost-to-complete.
• Ability to translate complex projects into financial decisions.

Responsibilities

• Own financial models for data center development from site to ops.
• Evaluate economics across delivery models: cost, IRR, margins.
• Build investment cases for campuses and capital commitments.
• Partner with Development/Commercial teams on pricing and leases.
• Set budgets, forecasts and cost-to-complete with leaders.
• Monitor procurement, change orders and capital deployment.
• Quantify impact of delays, escalation and scope changes.
• Identify risks and drive corrective actions to protect economics.
• Forecast portfolio performance and align milestones with forecasts.
• Translate engineering data into clear financial recommendations.

Skills

Financial modeling

Investment analysis

Data centers experience

Capital budgeting

Scenario analysis

Valuation

Engage with engineers

Education

Bachelor's degree in Finance, Engineering, Economics

MBA or advanced technical degree

Tools

Excel

Job description

Drive Development Economics and Investment Decisions

• Own financial models for data center development, spanning site acquisition, design, construction, commissioning and stabilized operations.
• Evaluate project economics across powered shell, build-to-suit and turnkey delivery models, including capital cost per MW, IRR, yield on cost and development margins.
• Build investment cases for new campuses, capacity expansion and major capital commitments, assessing trade-offs across cost, schedule, design and customer requirements.
• Partner with Development and Commercial teams to evaluate customer pricing, lease structures and risk-adjusted project returns.

Own Construction Financial Performance

• Partner with Construction and Engineering leaders to establish project budgets, capital forecasts and cost-to-complete estimates.
• Monitor procurement commitments, change orders, contingencies, construction progress and capital deployment against approved plans.
• Quantify the financial impact of schedule delays, cost escalation, scope changes and commissioning risks.
• Identify emerging risks, challenge assumptions and drive corrective actions to protect project economics.

Build Financial Planning and Performance Mechanisms

• Own development planning, forecasting, variance analysis and financial performance reporting across the project portfolio.
• Integrate development milestones, procurement, construction spending, commercial operation dates (COD) and customer delivery commitments into financial forecasts.
• Establish operating metrics including cost per MW, capital deployment, schedule performance, contingency utilization and yield on cost.
• Partner with Accounting and Treasury to align capital commitments, project funding, liquidity requirements and financial reporting.

Partner Strategically and Build for Scale

• Bring Finance upstream into site selection, project design, equipment procurement, contracting and customer negotiations.
• Translate complex engineering, construction and commercial decisions into clear financial recommendations for senior leadership.
• Build scalable financial models, reporting mechanisms and automated processes to support rapid portfolio expansion.
• Navigate ambiguity, challenge decisions constructively and balance financial discipline with the execution speed of a startup.

THE PERSON WHO WILL THRIVE HERE

• 5+ years of experience in strategic finance, FP&A, project finance, infrastructure investing, real estate development finance or a related field.
• Strong financial modeling and investment analysis capabilities, including project-level cash flows, capital allocation, scenario analysis and valuation.
• Experience in data centers, real estate development, construction, energy infrastructure or another capital-intensive industry.
• Familiarity with data center development economics, construction budgeting, cost-to-complete forecasting, capital procurement or commercial lease structures is highly valued.
• Able to engage credibly with engineers, developers and construction leaders, challenge assumptions and translate complex projects into financial decisions.
• Demonstrated ability to influence investment or operating decisions—not simply produce analysis for others.
• Comfortable building financial models, processes and mechanisms from the ground up while delivering against demanding timelines.
• Strong commercial judgment, intellectual curiosity and the ability to distinguish material risks from analytical noise.
• Combines the analytical rigor of a sophisticated infrastructure investor with the ownership, adaptability and execution speed of a startup operator.
• Bachelor's degree in Finance, Engineering, Economics or a related discipline; an MBA or advanced technical degree is a plus.

You understand that the value of Finance is not model precision alone. It is the judgment to determine where capital should go, which risks are worth taking and how development decisions translate into long-term economic value.

At Big Watt Digital, Finance belongs upstream of the investment decision—not downstream of the transaction.

HOW WE WORK

BUILD Create durable systems, not temporary fixes.|EXECUTE Move with urgency and accountability.|PARTNER Work across disciplines and stakeholders.|SCALE Design for the next campus, not just today.

COMPENSATION & BENEFITS

Salary Range for this position is from $200-$250K. In addition to a competitive salary Big Watt Digital offers:

• Annual Cash Bonus
• Incentive Award Units