Sr Director, Energy Sustainability & Maintenance Reliability

Americold; Atlanta (GA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

Americold seeks a senior leader to command Energy, Sustainability, and Reliability across the enterprise. You will drive energy programs, asset optimization, and governance, delivering cost reductions and improved asset availability. This role requires deep expertise in EAM, RCM/TPM, and sustainability reporting, with travel up to 60%.

You will partner with Operations, Finance, IT, Legal, and Investor Relations to align strategies with enterprise goals and regulatory requirements.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Environmental Science, Business, Computer Science, Information Science, Mathematics, Economics, or a related field required.
• Minimum 10 years of progressive leadership experience across multi-site energy management, maintenance reliability, asset management, engineering, or sustainability programs.
• Subject matter expertise in enterprise asset management systems, including implementation, stewardship, data management, reporting, and user training.
• Strong working knowledge of reliability centered maintenance, preventive and predictive maintenance, maintenance materials and MRO inventory management, and condition-based monitoring technologies.
• Demonstrated experience with energy and utility budgeting, cost analysis, and energy stewardship.
• Experience leading cross-functional initiatives with Operations, Engineering, Procurement, Finance, Information Technology, Legal, Investor Relations, Treasury, and external agencies.
• Ability to travel approximately 50% to 60%.

Responsibilities

• Lead Americold’s Energy, Sustainability, and Maintenance Reliability strategies to improve asset performance, reduce operating cost and risk, and deliver measurable progress against enterprise objectives.
• Own governance, management routines, standard work, and performance reviews for Energy Excellence and Maintenance Reliability within the operating system.
• Deliver measurable cost reduction, including a 2% energy cost reduction target in 2027 vs 2026 baseline.
• Provide updates to senior leadership on progress, value realization, risks, and regulatory changes.
• Lead global energy conservation, utility budgeting, tariff analysis, and management of energy-related agreements.
• Develop energy cost analyses for new facilities, expansions, and material changes to support investment decisions.
• Lead renewable energy programs, green building programs, water stewardship, and greenhouse gas reduction initiatives.
• Develop tools and reporting to improve energy intensity and track emissions (Scope 1-3).
• Prepare the organization for sustainability regulations and external reporting expectations.
• Lead the enterprise Maintenance Reliability program including RCM, TPM, preventive/predictive maintenance, and condition-based monitoring.
• Own the enterprise asset management operating model across platforms, data integrity, reporting, analytics, training, and continuous improvement.
• Standardize asset hierarchies, bill of materials, spare parts strategy, maintenance workflows, and performance measures.
• Use FMEA and reliability data to reduce failures, improve asset availability, and lower maintenance cost as a % of replacement asset value.
• Lead Early Equipment Management to ensure readiness before equipment goes live.
• Develop and deploy tools and playbooks to strengthen energy management and reliability capability.
• Build site-level networks of energy/reliability expertise and ensure process adoption.
• Publish enterprise communications and performance reporting to drive accountability.

Skills

Energy management

Sustainability

Maintenance reliability

Enterprise asset management

Leadership

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Environmental Science, Business, or related field

Job description

What You’ll Do:

Primary Responsibility
Lead Americold’s global Energy, Sustainability, and Maintenance Reliability strategies to improve asset performance, reduce operating cost and risk, and deliver measurable progress against enterprise financial and environmental objectives. This role integrates energy and utilities management, sustainability programs, enterprise asset management, reliability centered maintenance, autonomous maintenance, and field capability building into a single operating model. The position serves as the senior technical and functional leader for energy excellence and maintenance reliability across the enterprise.

Essential Functions:

Strategy, Value Creation & Governance

• Develop / execute Energy, Sustainability, and Maintenance Reliability strategies aligned with company objectives, operating margin improvement, regulatory readiness, and competitive positioning.


• Own enterprise governance, management routines, standard work, and performance reviews for Energy Excellence and Maintenance Reliability within the Americold Operating System.


• Deliver measurable cost reduction, including the established goal of a 2% energy cost reduction in 2027 versus the 2026 baseline, while improving asset availability and maintenance cost performance.


• Provide updates to senior leadership on progress, value realization, risks, and regulatory changes

Energy Management & Sustainability

• Lead global energy conservation, utility budgeting, tariff and rate analysis, contract negotiation, and management of energy related agreements.


• Develop energy cost analyses for new facilities, expansions, new business, and material operating changes to support investment and commercial decisions.


• Lead renewable energy programs, green building programs, water stewardship, waste reduction, and greenhouse gas reduction initiatives.


• Develop tools and reporting to improve energy intensity and track Scope 1, 2, and 3 greenhouse gas emissions and related sustainability performance.


• Prepare the organization for applicable sustainability regulations and external reporting expectations, and support improvement in recognized environmental, sustainability, and governance ratings.

Maintenance Reliability & Enterprise Asset Management

• Lead the enterprise Maintenance Reliability program, including Reliability Centered Maintenance, Total Productive Maintenance, preventive and predictive maintenance, condition-based monitoring, and maintenance diagnostics.


• Own the enterprise asset management operating model across applicable platforms, configuration, data integrity, reporting, analytics, end-user training, and continuous improvement.


• Standardize asset hierarchies, criticality ranking, bills of material, spare parts strategy, maintenance workflows, planning and scheduling, maintenance plans, and maintenance performance measures.


• Use Failure Mode and Effects Analysis, maintenance plan optimization, comparative analysis, and reliability data to identify bad actors, reduce recurring failures, improve asset availability and performance, and lower maintenance cost as a percentage of replacement asset value.


• Lead Early Equipment Management to ensure commissioning, qualification, validation maintenance plans, spare parts, training, and capability are in place before equipment or technology goes live.

Operating Excellence, Capability & Field Execution

• Develop and deploy practical tools, playbooks, training, and standard routines that strengthen energy management and reliability capability across the facility network.


• Build site level network of energy and reliability expertise and ensure consistent adoption of enterprise processes and standards.


• Publish clear enterprise communications and performance reporting that create accountability, visibility, and sustained field engagement.

Team & Cross-Functional Leadership

• Lead, mentor, and develop Energy, Sustainability, and Reliability organization, with clear accountability for priorities, execution, and professional growth.


• Influence across functions and levels without direct authority, translating technical opportunities into clear business cases, decisions, and action plans.


• Serve as the senior subject matter expert for energy management, sustainability, maintenance reliability, enterprise asset management, and associated operating practices.

What Experience and Education You Need

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Environmental Science, Business, Computer Science, Information Science, Mathematics, Economics, or a related field required.


• Minimum 10 years of progressive leadership experience across multi-site energy management, maintenance reliability, asset management, engineering, or sustainability programs.


• Subject matter expertise in enterprise asset management systems, including implementation, stewardship, data management, reporting, and user training.


• Strong working knowledge of reliability centered maintenance, preventive and predictive maintenance, maintenance materials and MRO inventory management, and condition-based monitoring technologies.


• Demonstrated experience with energy and utility budgeting, cost analysis, and energy stewardship.


• Experience leading cross-functional initiatives with Operations, Engineering, Procurement, Finance, Information Technology, Legal, Investor Relations, Treasury, and external agencies.


• Ability to travel approximately 50% to 60%.

What Could Set You Apart

• Advanced degree preferred.


• Experience supporting a large, distributed facility network strongly preferred.


• Excellent oral, presentation, and written communication skills.


• Professional certifications in reliability, project management, energy, green building, or sustainability are preferred.


• Ability to motivate teams and others while maintaining a persuasive, credible, and approachable presentation style.


• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with process-focused problem analysis resolution.


• Solid decision-making skills.


• Progressive and flexible team-oriented approach desired.


• Demonstrated uncompromising level of integrity and code of ethics.


• Strong computer skills, including Microsoft Word, Excel and Project.


• Requires the use of various electronic tools.


• Ability to reason, negotiate, instruct, persuade, or speak with others, and to respond appropriately to constructive feedback from executive management.


• Ability to relate to others beyond giving and receiving instructions: must partner with colleagues without exhibiting behavioral extremes.


• Works evenings or weekends to complete objectives or to attend meetings.

Physical Requirements

• Requires several hours per day of sitting, getting up and down from chairs, reaching, and/or bending.


• Requires manual dexterity with normal hand and finger movements for typical office work, including the operation of computers, telephones, and similar equipment.


• Requires ability to comprehend and communicate with others, verbally and/or in writing.


• May require travel by automobile and airplane for business.


• May require visits to warehouse operations in temperatures at or below freezing.


• May require the occasional lifting, carrying, positioning, and/or moving of objects weighing up to 20 pounds