Function

Introduction

The energy landscape in Belgium, Germany and across Europe is evolving rapidly, and Elia Group is at the heart of this transformation. As a leading European Transmission System Operator, Elia Belgium and 50Hertz ensure a reliable, sustainable and future-proof electricity supply.

As digitalisation accelerates, resilient and high-performing IT infrastructure becomes increasingly critical. To support this ambition, we are looking for an experienced Data Center Manager who will play a key role in ensuring the reliability, scalability and continuity of our mission-critical data centre environment.

As Data Center Manager, you will be responsible for the overall performance, availability and future development of Elia's Belgian data centres. You will ensure that modern data centre standards and best practices are implemented and continuously improved to support a highly resilient 24/7 operational environment.

You will act as the central point of contact between IT, Facilities, Critical Infrastructure teams, external service providers and management stakeholders. Combining strategic vision with operational expertise, you will drive data centre projects, manage vendor relationships and guarantee the continuity of business-critical services.

Responsibilities

• Lead the operation, performance and continuous improvement of Elia’s Belgian data centres, ensuring maximum availability and resilience.
• Act as the key interface between IT, Facilities, Critical Infrastructure teams, management stakeholders and external service providers.
• Define and oversee governance, maintenance, monitoring, budgeting and capacity planning activities.
• Drive data centre projects from business case and requirements definition through tendering, implementation and service delivery.
• Manage colocation environments, vendor relationships, contracts, SLA/SLO performance and strategic partnerships.
• Design and evolve data centre solutions for Elia’s critical infrastructure, including substation environments.
• Define, implement and test high-availability, redundancy, resilience and disaster recovery strategies.
• Organise and coordinate regular continuity and recovery tests to ensure operational readiness.
• Lead and develop the Data Center team, ensuring reliable 24/7 operations in a mission-critical environment.

Your Profile

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in IT, Engineering or a related field.
• Minimum 5 years of experience managing critical data centre infrastructure in a high-availability environment.
• Strong knowledge of power infrastructure (UPS, generators), cooling systems and modern data centre technologies.
• Experience with disaster recovery, business continuity, redundancy and resilience strategies.
• Proven track record in vendor management, contract negotiations and European tenders/RFP processes.
• Familiarity with mission-critical 24/7 operational environments where service continuity is essential.
• Strong analytical, planning and stakeholder management skills, with experience in capacity planning and risk management.
• Hands-on leader who takes ownership, drives accountability and can work both independently and collaboratively.
• Fluent in English and Dutch or French, with a good command of the other national language. German is a plus.
• Valid driving licence and willingness to travel within Belgium when required.

Offer

• Salary: a competitive salary package, allowance for representation expenses, year-end bonus, double vacation pay, meal vouchers (€10 per working day), eco-vouchers, sport & culture vouchers, bonuses based on individual and group results.
• Insurance: group insurance, hospitalisation insurance, ambulant care insurance for the whole family and also personal accident insurance.
• Vacation: You will be entitled to 20 vacation days and 5 additional vacation days, 6 local days, 4 exempt days (after 1 year of employment) and up to 5 long-service days (1 day for every 3 years in employment).
• Social fund: Year-end vouchers, birth and marriage allowance. We will also cover part of the cost of glasses, a dental prosthesis or similar needs.
• Communication: you will be given an iPhone, a phone subscription (for work and private use) and a laptop with internet reimbursement.
• Discounts: you will enjoy a 30% discount on your gas and electricity bill.
• Mobility: we will offer you a company car and public transport or a mobility budget.
• Elia shares: Elia will give you the opportunity to subscribe to shares with a discount of 16.66% on the average share price.

Location

Avenue de Vilvorde, 126 1000 Brussels.