Vice President, Project Controls & Cost

5C Group; Springfield (OH); Remote; USD 180,000 - 300,000; Full time

Job summary

5C Data Centers is seeking a Vice President, Project Controls & Cost to lead portfolio-wide schedule and cost governance from development through closeout, reporting to the Chief Development Officer. You will build a scalable controls organization, oversee budgets, baselines and risk management, and partner with construction, procurement and finance to deliver credible results across North America.

This senior leadership role requires deep experience in data-center programs, proficiency with

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent senior-level experience.
• 15+ years in project controls, cost engineering, construction or capital-program leadership.
• Experience on multi-hundred-million-dollar projects or major multi-project programs in data centers or comparable infrastructure.
• Hands-on experience with Primavera P6 and Procore, Power BI and database management is a strong asset.
• Strong command of CPM scheduling, baselines, progress measurement, ETC/EAC, cash flow, change, contingency, risk and earned value.
• Proven ability to build functions and develop leaders in a scaling organization, challenge assumptions constructively and align peer functions.
• Ability to clearly explain technical, commercial and capital tradeoffs to executive audiences.

Responsibilities

• Define the controls operating model, including charter and decision rights.
• Lead, coach and scale leaders across project controls and cost control.
• Oversee schedule governance for L1–L5 activities from design to turnover.
• Manage budgets, actuals, accruals and forecasts with clear variance explanations.
• Establish assurance reviews reconciling progress with field conditions and procurement status.
• Drive risk management, contingency reviews and recovery options with documentation.
• Collaborate with Planning, Development and Pre-Construction to validate scope and readiness.
• Embed schedule, cost and reporting requirements in contracts with procurement and construction partners.
• Coordinate cash-flow forecasts and payment assurance with Finance.
• Deliver concise senior-level reporting and decision support for the CDO and boards.
• Set data governance and automation roadmaps for PMIS and reporting.
• Closeout and benchmarking to feed future estimates and standards.

Skills

PM leadership

CPM scheduling

Executive communication

Cost engineering

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Primavera P6

Procore

Power BI

Database management

Job description

5C DATA CENTERS

Join the Future of Digital Infrastructure

Are you a passionate Vice President, Project Controls & Cost 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 Vice President, Project Controls & Cost

DEPARTMENT DC Construction

LOCATION USA

WORK ARRANGEMENT Remote

TRAVEL REQUIREMENTS 25-50%

Role Summary

As Vice President, Project Controls & Cost, you will lead portfolio-wide schedule and cost governance from early development and pre-construction through construction, commissioning, customer handover and closeout.

Reporting to the Chief Development Officer and leading the Senior Directors of Project Controls and Cost Control, you will build a scalable controls organization that protects our capital and customer commitments through credible schedules, reliable forecasts and early warning.

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

Controls strategy and governance: Define the controls operating model, including charter, functional boundaries, decision rights, stage-gate requirements, approval pathways, reporting cadence and escalation thresholds; align work and cost breakdown structures, baseline rules and risk/change methods across both functions.

Organization build-out and leadership: Lead, coach and hold the Senior Directors of Project Controls and Cost Control accountable for performance, forecast credibility and succession; scale Project Controls Managers, Schedulers, Cost Managers and specialist support in line with workload, complexity and risk.

Integrated schedule and baseline governance: Oversee aligned L1–L5 schedules covering power, permits, design, procurement, construction, energization, commissioning, integrated systems testing (IST) and turnover; govern baseline approvals, rebaselines and recovery reviews, and challenge unsupported dates, float and recovery assumptions.

Cost forecasting and capital discipline: Oversee budgets, commitments, actuals and accruals, ETC/EAC, change exposure, contingency and final-account forecasts across contractor and owner-direct scope; require evidence-based explanations of variance, funding gaps, escalation, claims and commissioning exposure.

Progress measurement and performance assurance: Establish assurance reviews that reconcile reported progress and forecasts with field conditions, procurement status, quantities, productivity and system completion; apply consistent measurement rules, earned value and scenario analysis where practical.

Change, risk, contingency and recovery: Drive joint schedule and cost assessment of changes, risks and recovery options with documented assumptions and no double counting; lead material-exposure reviews, assign accountable owners and deadlines, and escalate unresolved issues to the CDO.

Planning, pre-construction and readiness gates: Partner with Planning & Development and Pre-Construction to validate scope, power availability, permits, design readiness, procurement timing and funding before commitments; set controls readiness criteria for funding, procurement release, mobilization, commissioning and customer handover.

Procurement, contractor and vendor controls: Partner with Procurement, Commercial and Construction to embed schedule, cost, progress, change and reporting requirements in delivery contracts; ensure integrated visibility of GC/trade work, owner-furnished equipment, manufacturing, factory testing, logistics and utility delivery.

Cash flow, payment assurance and Finance partnership: Oversee schedule-linked cash‑flow forecasts and funding inputs; ensure payment positions are validated against contracts and verified progress, and reconcile commitments, actuals and accruals with Finance.

Executive reporting and decision support: Own the integrated controls narrative, delivering concise portfolio reporting on commitment health, critical paths, EAC, variance, contingency, change, risk and decisions required; translate analysis into options and tradeoffs for the CDO, executives, customers and board, investor or lender reviews.

Systems, data governance and automation: Set the scheduling, cost, project-management information system and reporting roadmap with clear ownership, common definitions and audit trails; improve data quality, version control and reporting automation, and train teams to remove duplicate administration.

Closeout, benchmarking and continuous improvement: Ensure reconciled final schedules, costs, change and contingency disposition at project closeout; build benchmarks and feed utility, vendor, procurement, productivity and commissioning lessons into future estimates, schedules, contracts and delivery standards.

What You Bring

• Bachelor's degree in a relevant discipline, or equivalent senior-level experience
• 15+ years in project controls, cost engineering, construction or capital-program leadership, including leading managers or functional heads across complex portfolios
• Experience on multi-hundred-million-dollar projects or major multi-project programs in data centers, mission-critical facilities or comparable infrastructure
• Hands‑on experience with Primavera P6 and Procore, Power BI and database management experience is a strong asset
• Strong command of CPM scheduling, baselines, progress measurement, ETC/EAC, cash flow, change, contingency, risk and earned value
• Proven ability to build functions and develop leaders in a scaling organization, challenge assumptions constructively and align peer functions
• Ability to clearly explain technical, commercial and capital tradeoffs to executive audiences.

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.

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