Investments Associate

Lightedge; Kansas City (KS); On-site; USD 90,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

LightEdge is seeking an Investments Associate to lead site acquisitions and development project underwriting, reporting to the VP of Strategic Finance. The role centers on building robust financial models, evaluating IRR/ROI, and preparing investment materials for senior leadership and the Board of Directors.

Ideal candidates bring 5+ years in real estate or infrastructure investments, strong Excel/PowerPoint skills, and experience in capital budgeting.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, or equivalent is required.
• 5+ years of experience in real estate or infrastructure investments, investment banking, private equity or corporate development.
• Advanced financial modeling skills, including building project-level and consolidated models from scratch and applying IRR and ROI analysis.
• Experience underwriting development or capital projects and owning capital budgets; data center, industrial or other capital-intensive real asset experience preferred.
• Ability to analyze and interpret property-level information.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to prepare board- and executive-level materials that present complex analysis clearly and concisely.

Responsibilities

• Lead the review of site acquisitions and development projects in support of Lightedge’s five-year plan to deliver 20MW of IT capacity per year across the portfolio.
• Work with internal stakeholders and third parties to qualify and disqualify potential acquisitions and development projects.
• Lead financial modeling and underwriting for land and asset acquisitions, greenfield development and in-place capacity expansions.
• Build and maintain project-level and consolidated return models, including IRR, NPV and yield-on-cost, with sensitivity and scenario analysis on power, cost, timing and absorption.
• Review and own project budgets from initial underwriting through construction completion, tracking committed spend, actuals and forecast-to-complete against approved capital.
• Create investment memos for board approval of projects, including transaction summary, market analysis, underwriting assumptions, returns, key risks and mitigants.
• Build and maintain relationships with brokers in target markets to generate a steady pipeline of site acquisition and development opportunities.
• Support monthly and quarterly board reporting on the development pipeline, capital deployment and project performance versus underwriting.
• Coordinate due diligence with engineering, facilities, sales, legal and third-party consultants.
• Evaluate power availability and utility economics, land basis, entitlements, construction cost and incentive packages as inputs to site selection.
• Research and report on data center market supply, absorption and comparable transactions to expand market knowledge and support pipeline development.

Skills

Financial modeling

IRR analysis

ROI analysis

Excel

PowerPoint

Data analysis

Education

Bachelor's degree in Finance or Accounting

Tools

Microsoft Excel

PowerPoint

Job description

LightEdge Solutions is developing the IT solutions that will propel businesses forward over the next 10 years. Using a combination of shared and private/dedicated platforms, LightEdge has been successful in offering businesses alternatives that streamline operations, improve reliability and reduce costs.

If you are passionate about creating real solutions that help businesses with cutting-edge technology, want to be challenged to think out of the box and be in a position where you can impact change on a daily basis, then LightEdge can offer you a dynamic corporate environment built on teamwork and personal responsibility.

Lightedge is seeking an Investments Associate to lead the review of site acquisitions and development projects. The Investments Associate reports to Vice President of Strategic Finance and plays a key role in Lightedge’s five-year plan to deliver 20MW of IT capacity per year across the portfolio. This role owns the financial modeling and underwriting behind new sites and expansions and prepares the investment materials for senior management and the Board of Directors.

Responsibilities

• Lead the review of site acquisitions and development projects in support of Lightedge’s five-year plan to deliver 20MW of IT capacity per year across the portfolio
• Work with internal stakeholders and third parties to qualify and disqualify potential acquisitions and development projects
• Lead financial modeling and underwriting for land and asset acquisitions, greenfield development and in-place capacity expansions
• Build and maintain project-level and consolidated return models, including IRR, NPV and yield-on-cost, with sensitivity and scenario analysis on power, cost, timing and absorption
• Review and own project budgets from initial underwriting through construction completion, tracking committed spend, actuals and forecast-to-complete against approved capital
• Create investment memos for board approval of projects, including transaction summary, market analysis, underwriting assumptions, returns, key risks and mitigants
• Build and maintain relationships with brokers in target markets to generate a steady pipeline of site acquisition and development opportunities
• Support monthly and quarterly board reporting on the development pipeline, capital deployment and project performance versus underwriting
• Coordinate due diligence with engineering, facilities, sales, legal and third-party consultants
• Evaluate power availability and utility economics, land basis, entitlements, construction cost and incentive packages as inputs to site selection
• Research and report on data center market supply, absorption and comparable transactions to expand market knowledge and support pipeline development
  

Education And Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, or equivalent is required
• 5+ years of experience in real estate or infrastructure investments, investment banking, private equity or corporate development
• Advanced financial modeling skills, including building project-level and consolidated models from scratch and applying IRR and ROI analysis
• Experience underwriting development or capital projects and owning capital budgets; data center, industrial or other capital-intensive real asset experience preferred
• Ability to analyze and interpret property-level information
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to prepare board- and executive-level materials that present complex analysis clearly and concisely
• Strong analytical skills with exceptional attention to detail and accuracy
• Extensive experience in working with large data sets and financial modeling
• Ability to meet deadlines, handle multiple priorities and perform job responsibilities while working in a fast-paced and vibrant environment
• Self-starter attitude with strong interpersonal skills and teamwork ability
• Extensive experience working with Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint

With over 20 years in business, LightEdge offers a full stack of best-in-class IT services delivering flexibility, security, and control. Our solutions include premier colocation across seven purpose-built data centers spanning Des Moines, IA, Kansas City, MO, Omaha, NE, Austin, TX, and Raleigh, NC, industry-leading private Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) and cloud platforms, and the top global security and compliance measures. Our owned and operated facilities, integrated DR solutions, and premium compliant cloud choices make up a true Hybrid Cloud Solution Center. LightEdge annually undergoes third-party audits for ISO 20000-1, ISO 27001, HIPAA, PCI-DSS 3.2, and SSAE 18 SOC 1 Type II, SOC 2 Type II and SOC 3.