Data Center Operations Lead

Location: On site in Buffalo, NY and Birmingham, AL

Schedule: Full-time, on-site presence required. This role may occasionally support after hours or weekend response during critical infrastructure events.

A rapidly expanding infrastructure organization is building large scale compute environments designed to support advanced data processing and AI workloads. As these environments grow, the organization is seeking a Data Center Operations Lead who can take ownership of daily site operations and ensure infrastructure reliability across power, cooling, networking, and rack level systems.

This role sits at the center of mission critical infrastructure operations. The individual selected will oversee operational readiness, coordinate facility and vendor activities, and lead incident response efforts in high density computing environments. This is an opportunity to play a key role in shaping operational standards and ensuring stable, secure, and efficient data center performance as new capacity comes online.

This Role Offers

• Competitive compensation and benefits package
• Opportunity to influence operational standards in rapidly expanding infrastructure environments
• Direct impact on reliability and performance of large-scale computing facilities
• Collaboration with engineering, infrastructure, and facilities teams across multiple sites
• Exposure to next generation compute environments and high-density infrastructure

Focus

• Oversee daily operational readiness and ongoing operations within data center environments supporting large scale computing infrastructure.
• Coordinate activities related to power distribution, cooling systems, rack deployment, and facility infrastructure.
• Direct and supervise on site vendors, contractors, and technical support resources.
• Support site commissioning activities including testing, validation, and operational transition into production environments.
• Lead operational response during infrastructure events, ensuring rapid triage, communication, and resolution.
• Conduct structured root cause reviews following incidents and ensure corrective actions are implemented.
• Maintain operational documentation including runbooks, procedures, and site standards.
• Ensure safety practices, physical security controls, and operational compliance are consistently followed.
• Collaborate with engineering teams to provide operational feedback that improves reliability and scalability.
• Assist with the deployment of additional infrastructure capacity using repeatable operational processes.

Skill Set

• Ten or more years of experience in data center operations, mission critical facilities, or related infrastructure environments.
• Hands on experience working with electrical distribution systems, backup power infrastructure, and facility level redundancy systems.
• Experience supporting both traditional air-cooled environments and advanced liquid cooling systems.
• Familiarity with both standard density and high-density rack environments.
• Experience managing external service providers, contractors, and facility partners within operational sites.
• Demonstrated ability to lead incident response efforts and conduct structured root cause analysis.
• Experience working within colocation facilities, shared data center environments, or large-scale infrastructure operations.
• Strong communication and coordination skills when working across engineering, facilities, and operations teams.
• Ability to work in fast paced environments where reliability, safety, and operational discipline are critical.

If you are interested in learning more about this opportunity, apply today to connect with our recruiting team.

About Blue Signal:  

Blue Signal is an award-winning, executive search firm specializing in various specialties. Our recruiters have a proven track record of placing top-tier talent across industry verticals, with deep expertise in numerous professional services. Learn more at bit.ly/46Gs4yS