Senior Technical Program Manager - Data Center Cybersecurity & Commissioning

We are seeking an experienced Senior Technical Program Manager to lead the planning, coordination, readiness, and execution of complex cybersecurity verification and validation activities across large-scale data center construction and commissioning programs.

This is a highly technical program leadership role positioned at the intersection of data center construction, commissioning, controls engineering, operational technology, networking, cybersecurity, facility operations, and OEM/vendor management.

The Technical Program Manager will coordinate activities across construction teams, commissioning organizations, data center operations, controls and automation teams, OEMs, system integrators, network teams, cybersecurity specialists, and independent Cybersecurity Commissioning Agents.

The successful candidate must be capable of understanding both the construction/commissioning lifecycle and the underlying technical systems being validated. This is not a general administrative project-management position.

Key Responsibilities

1. Program & Multi-Site Delivery Management

• Lead technical program coordination across multiple concurrent data center projects.
• Align all sites with integrated program plans covering cybersecurity verification and validation, construction, commissioning, operational readiness, and technical dependencies.
• Coordinate activities across multiple geographic regions, sites, delivery teams, and Cybersecurity commissioning agents.
• Maintain visibility of site readiness, schedules, dependencies, risks, constraints, and required technical resources.

• Maintain program-level schedule, effort, resource utilization, budget, and financial health tracking.

• Own and coordinate program and site-level prerequisites required for successful execution.
• Develop standardized governance and execution processes that can scale across a large multi-site portfolio.
• Coordinate work allocation and execution across multiple cybersecurity assurance vendors while maintaining consistent program expectations.

2. Construction & Commissioning Integration

• Integrate cybersecurity V&V activities into the overall data center construction and commissioning lifecycle.
• Understand and coordinate dependencies between construction completion, equipment installation, controls integration, functional testing, commissioning, and cybersecurity validation.
• Work with General Contractors, commissioning teams, system integrators, technical PMOs, and site teams to determine when systems are sufficiently ready for cybersecurity activities.
• Prevent premature mobilization by establishing clear technical and operational readiness criteria.
• Coordinate cybersecurity activities around critical project milestones without unnecessarily affecting construction or commissioning progress.

3. Controls / Data Center Engineering / OT Systems Coordination

Provide technical coordination across data center control and monitoring environments, including systems such as:

• Building Management Systems (BMS)
• Power Management Systems (PMS)
• SCADA
• DCS and industrial control platforms
• PLCs and industrial controllers
• RTUs, gateways, meters, relays, and IEDs
• EPMS and electrical monitoring systems
• Environmental and mechanical controls
• Industrial networking infrastructure
• Engineering workstations and management platforms
• Associated servers, applications, interfaces, and communications infrastructure
• Maintain sufficient technical knowledge of controls and OT platforms to understand system architecture, ownership, technical dependencies, testing prerequisites, and escalation requirements.

 4. Data Center Operations Integration

• Establish strong coordination between project delivery teams and Data Center Operations.
• Ensure cybersecurity verification activities consider operational constraints and production-readiness requirements.
• Coordinate technical handover requirements between construction/commissioning teams and operations.
• Track ownership of systems, credentials, documentation, configurations, software, and technical artifacts necessary for validation.
• Help resolve gaps between global program objectives and actual site execution conditions.

5. OEM, Vendor & System Integrator Coordination

• Serve as the program-level coordination point for OEMs, system integrators, contractors, controls vendors, and Cybersecurity Commissioning Agent organizations.
• Identify the correct technical owner for equipment and systems requiring verification.
• Coordinate vendor availability during testing windows.
• Ensure required engineering software, documentation, configurations, credentials, access, technical SMEs, and testing support are available.
• Escalate unresolved vendor or technical dependencies before they affect execution.
• Coordinate common requirements across OEMs rather than repeatedly resolving the same issues independently at each site.

6. Technical Logistics & Readiness

Own the technical-readiness process covering:

• Site access
• Assessment workstations
• Network connectivity
• Engineering system access
• Required documentation
• Network and controls architecture
• Asset inventories
• Configuration documentation
• OEM technical resources
• System integrator resources
• Cybersecurity commissioning agent requirements
• Testing windows
• Evidence collection
• Technical repositories
• Finding and workflow-management systems

Establish a formal readiness gate before site mobilization.

7. Cybersecurity Verification & Validation Program Coordination

• Coordinate execution between program stakeholders and independent Cybersecurity Commissioning Agents.
• Translate program objectives into executable site-level technical activities.
• Maintain consistent V&V expectations, evidence requirements, acceptance criteria, and reporting across multiple providers.
• Coordinate testing activities involving OT devices, controls platforms, industrial networks, applications, and supporting infrastructure.
• Track systemic findings and recurring issues across the portfolio.
• Facilitate escalation of findings requiring program-level rather than site-level resolution.
• Support integration of lessons learned into future design, procurement, commissioning, and operational requirements.

8. Program Governance & Reporting

• Maintain integrated RAID logs covering risks, actions, issues, dependencies, and decisions.
• Develop program dashboards covering readiness, execution status, testing progress, findings, dependencies, and blockers.
• Facilitate technical program reviews and readiness meetings.
• Maintain clear RACI across site teams, operations, controls teams, OEMs, integrators, Cybersecurity Commissioning Agents, and other stakeholders.
• Escalate systemic issues requiring enterprise or program-level decisions.
• Drive consistent methods across sites while accommodating genuine technical differences between facilities.

Mandatory Experience

Candidates must demonstrate relevant experience across all of the following areas. These requirements represent the core technical and program-management capabilities necessary for the role.

Data Center Experience

• Significant experience delivering technical programs within hyperscale, colocation, mission-critical, or similarly complex data center environments.
• Demonstrated understanding of data center construction, commissioning, operational readiness, and handover.

Construction Experience

• Demonstrated experience working within major construction or infrastructure delivery programs.
• Strong understanding of construction schedules, contractor dependencies, site readiness, commissioning gates, and project controls.

Controls / OT Experience

• Strong working knowledge of building automation, industrial control, power-management, SCADA/DCS, PLC, and related cyber-physical systems.
• Ability to interpret controls architecture, network diagrams, system interfaces, and technical dependencies.

Networking Experience

Working understanding of:

• TCP/IP
• VLANs
• Routing and switching
• Firewalls
• Network segmentation
• Industrial Ethernet
• Remote access
• IT/OT integration

Demonstrated ability to engage effectively understand and interact with network engineering teams on architecture, segmentation, routing, switching, firewall, remote-access, and IT/OT integration requirements.

Cybersecurity Experience

• Experience leading or coordinating cybersecurity programs involving OT, industrial systems, critical infrastructure, or cyber-physical systems.
• Understanding of cybersecurity verification, validation, assessment, risk management, remediation, and technical assurance.
• Ability to translate cybersecurity requirements into activities that engineering and commissioning organizations can execute.

Commissioning Experience

• Direct experience working with commissioning organizations or commissioning programs.
• Understanding of FAT, SAT, functional testing, integrated systems testing, commissioning, acceptance, turnover, and operational readiness.
• Demonstrated ability to integrate additional assurance requirements into an active commissioning environment.

Program Management Experience

• Demonstrated experience coordinating complex, multi-site technical programs.
• Experience managing multiple contractors, vendors, engineering organizations, and technical workstreams simultaneously.
• Strong dependency, escalation, risk, schedule, and stakeholder-management capabilities.

Experience Level

12+ years of overall relevant industry experience, including substantial experience across data center construction/commissioning and technical infrastructure programs.

Preferred Qualifications

• Electrical, Controls, Automation, Mechanical, Network, Computer, Systems, or related engineering degree.
• PMP or PgMP.
• Commissioning credentials such as CxA, CCP, CBCP, or equivalent experience.
• CISSP, GICSP, IEC 62443, or comparable cybersecurity certification.
• Experience with controls ecosystems from Schneider Electric, Siemens, Rockwell Automation, ABB, Honeywell, Johnson Controls, or similar OEMs.
• Experience with mission-critical electrical and mechanical infrastructure.
• Experience coordinating third-party testing, assurance, validation, inspection, or commissioning organizations.
• Experience supporting global programs spanning multiple regions and delivery organizations.

Critical Competencies

Technical credibility

Demonstrates sufficient technical depth to actively lead discussions with controls engineers, network engineers, commissioning teams, cybersecurity specialists, and data center operations personnel.

Construction fluency

Demonstrates strong understanding of construction execution, commissioning sequences, schedule pressures, project dependencies, and operational-readiness milestones.

Systems and Safety thinking

Identifies cross-functional dependencies affecting cybersecurity execution, including OEM contracts, construction schedules, controls integration, configurations, credentials, network readiness, technical ownership, and operational constraints.

Execution discipline

Turns program requirements into owners, dependencies, readiness gates, dates, escalation paths, and measurable outcomes.

Vendor orchestration

Can coordinate multiple Cybersecurity Commissioning Agents and technical vendors without allowing delivery methodology or quality to fragment between sites.

Executive communication

Can convert complex construction, OT, commissioning, cyber, and vendor issues into concise program-level decisions.

Technical curiosity

Demonstrates strong root-cause analysis and technical problem-solving skills to identify and resolve underlying readiness and execution constraints