What This Job Involves
The Data Centre Operations Site Manager is responsible for the safe, secure, and efficient operation of data centre services within a mission‑critical environment. The role ensures continuous availability of infrastructure and operational support while maintaining compliance with applicable local, regional, and international regulations and standards.
The Site Manager provides leadership to a team of shift‑based Data Centre Engineers operating in a 24/7 environment and is accountable for operational excellence, business continuity, risk management, and customer satisfaction across all data centre systems and processes.
Key Duties And Responsibilities
- Lead, manage, and develop a team of Data Centre Engineers operating in a continuous, shift‑based environment.
- Provide technical leadership, coaching, and performance management to support consistent global service standards.
- Oversee the installation, relocation, and decommissioning of data centre infrastructure and IT equipment, including:
- Racks, cabinets, rails, shelves, power distribution units, structured cabling, and customer IT equipment.
- Coordinate hardware‑related activities with internal stakeholders, global teams, and approved third‑party vendors.
- Maintain ownership of operational standards across the data centre, ensuring compliance with:
- Health, Safety, and Environmental (HSE/EHS) requirements
- Physical security and access control policies
- Asset management, configuration control, and documentation standards
- Engineering, cabling, and installation best practices
- Act as the primary escalation point for critical incidents, outages, and complex technical issues.
- Ensure compliance with applicable local regulations, codes of practice, and internationally recognised standards (e.g. ISO, IEC, NFPA‑equivalent standards, and Authority Having Jurisdiction requirements).
- Drive continuous improvement initiatives through operational excellence, process optimisation, and adoption of global best practices.
- Support internal and external audits, inspections, and compliance assessments.
- Participate in a rotating on‑call schedule to support 24/7 business‑critical operations, in line with local labour regulations.
Essential Skills, Knowledge, And Experience
Leadership & Communication
- Demonstrated people management and leadership experience within technical or critical‑environment teams.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills suitable for global and cross‑cultural environments.
- Ability to operate independently with minimal supervision.
- Effective stakeholder engagement skills across technical, operational, and management teams.
- Strong customer and service‑delivery orientation.
Technical & Operational Experience
- Proven experience in data centre operations or comparable mission‑critical environments.
- Strong working knowledge of computer engineering, structured cabling, and data centre infrastructure.
- Experience installing and supporting rack‑mounted server and network equipment from enterprise vendors.
- Hands‑on hardware maintenance experience, including replacement of customer‑replaceable components (e.g. hard drives, power supplies, cache batteries).
- In‑depth understanding of mission‑critical system interdependencies required to maintain high‑availability operations.
Building & Infrastructure Systems
Ability to operate, troubleshoot, maintain, and support critical facilities systems in compliance with applicable local codes, international standards, and manufacturer requirements, including but not limited to:
Electrical Systems
- Uninterruptible Power Supplies (UPS), Automatic and Static Transfer Switches (ATS/STS), Power Distribution Units (PDU)
- Standby generators, generator controls, fuel systems, switchgear, and power distribution systems
- Electrical safety systems and energy efficiency practices
Mechanical Systems
- Chillers, pumps, cooling towers, and water treatment systems
- Air Handling Units (AHU), Computer Room Air Conditioning (CRAC), and Computer Room Air Handlers (CRAH)
- Plumbing and associated mechanical infrastructure
Fire & Life Safety Systems
- Fire detection and alarm systems
- Fire suppression systems (wet pipe, dry pipe, pre‑action, and gaseous suppression)
- Early Warning and Very Early Smoke Detection systems (e.g. VESDA or equivalent)
Environmental & Control Systems
- Building Management Systems (BMS)
- Distributed Digital Control (DDC) systems and environmental monitoring platforms
Facilities & Building Fabric
- General building and fabric maintenance, including doors, locks, walls, ceilings, and finishes
Analysis, Risk & Reliability
- Strong analytical and diagnostic skills with the ability to assess infrastructure health and system performance.
- Ability to interpret alarms, investigate incidents, and implement corrective and preventive actions.
- Experience using Data Centre Infrastructure Management (DCIM) platforms.
- Solid understanding of mission‑critical operations, maintenance methodologies, reliability engineering, and risk management principles.
Preferred Skills, Knowledge, And Experience
- Operating Engineer license or other applicable trade, technical, or professional engineering licenses, as recognised by local authorities.
- Universal CFC (Chlorofluorocarbon) certification or equivalent environmental compliance certification, where required by local regulation.
- Certified Mission Critical Operator (CMCO) certification.
- Three (3) or more years of experience in a technical, mission‑critical, or critical‑environment operations role.
- Experience supporting continuous, high‑availability (24/7) operational environments.
- CDCTP (Certified Data Centre Technical Professional) or equivalent industry certification.
- ITIL certification or equivalent service management framework.
- Flexible and adaptable approach to operational change within a global organisation.
