Job Description

The Head of Commissioning & Engineering Performance owns strategic engineering performance, commissioning governance, and technical delivery standards across multiple data centre design and construction projects. The role provides senior accountability for the end-to-end commissioning lifecycle - from bid and pre-construction through to operational handover, and for specialist ICT and electronic security performance across the portfolio.

This role holds direct line-management accountability for the Commissioning Manager(s) and functional leadership and governance oversight for the Security and ICT Performance Manager(s), ensuring integrated engineering performance, consistent standards, quality assurance, resource deployment, capability development, and stakeholder accountability across all commissioning and specialist technical disciplines.

The Head of Commissioning & Engineering Performance leads coordination with Construction, Programme/Project Management, site-based project teams, in-house management, commercial teams, external consultants, and Operations to deliver engineering performance outcomes on time, to standard, and aligned to contract, client requirements, and Pure DC's strategic objectives.

Core Responsibilities & Deliverables

Strategic Ownership & Governance

• Own and set the strategic direction for engineering performance, commissioning excellence, and technical standards across the data centre portfolio.
• Define, maintain, and assure compliance with commissioning governance frameworks, standards, and methodologies aligned to ASHRAE, NETA ATS, applicable codes, and client/contract requirements.
• Establish and enforce engineering performance KPIs, quality gates, and assurance checkpoints across commissioning, ICT, and security disciplines.
• Drive continuous improvement in engineering performance processes, tools, templates, lessons learned frameworks, and delivery methodologies.

Commissioning Accountability

• Hold strategic accountability for commissioning strategy, programmes, and outcomes across all projects, ensuring alignment to contract, standards, and operational readiness.
• Provide line-management oversight, performance management, and development support to the Commissioning Manager.
• Review, challenge, and approve commissioning strategies, resourcing plans, test frameworks (L1–L5), IST approaches, and handover readiness plans.
• Escalate and resolve commissioning programme risks, resourcing conflicts, contractor performance issues, and stakeholder disputes.
• Assure quality, completeness, and acceptance of commissioning deliverables, including test scripts, dossiers, FAT/SAT outcomes, and CxA coordination.
• Own stakeholder accountability for commissioning performance at senior leadership and client levels.

ICT & Security Performance Accountability

• Hold functional leadership and governance accountability for ICT infrastructure and electronic security commissioning, design standards, and specialist delivery. Provide functional oversight, performance governance, and capability development support to the Security and ICT Performance Manager.
• Review, challenge, and approve ICT and security technical specifications, design outputs, procurement scopes, and commissioning deliverables.
• Ensure ICT and security systems (including air-gapped networks, firewalls, ethernet switching, CCTV, analytics, access control, intruder alarms, PAVA, IRS, and related IP/electronic security systems) are designed, specified, commissioned, and integrated to standard.
• Escalate and resolve ICT and security design, integration, or performance issues impacting programme or quality.
• Own stakeholder accountability for ICT and security performance at senior leadership and client levels

People, Capability & Resource Management

• Own resourcing strategy and deployment across commissioning, ICT, and security disciplines, balancing internal capability, external specialist resources, and project demand.
• Lead capability development, succession planning, skills assessment, training needs identification, and talent development for direct reports and the wider engineering performance function.
• Manage performance, development, and wellbeing of direct reports (Commissioning Manager and Security & ICT Performance Manager).
• Build and sustain a high-performing, collaborative, and accountable engineering performance culture aligned to Pure DC values.

Stakeholder Engagement & Reporting

• Own and manage senior-level relationships across Development, Construction, Programme/Project Management, Design, Commercial, Vendors/Contractors, CxA, and Operations.
• Deliver strategic engineering performance reporting to the Head of Global Technical Operations, senior stakeholders, and clients, providing clear status, risks, mitigations, decisions required, and performance trends.
• Lead governance rhythms (weekly/monthly) with internal stakeholders and external parties to drive alignment, accountability, and issue resolution.
• Represent engineering performance in bid reviews, project gates, client governance forums, and senior leadership decision-making.

Bid & Pre-Construction Leadership

• Own engineering performance input into bid and pre-construction planning for all opportunities, including commissioning scope, ICT/security scope, assumptions, risks, resourcing, and deliverables.
• Review and approve commissioning and ICT/security technical proposals, resource plans, and commercial inputs.
• Ensure bid commitments are deliverable, resourced, and aligned to Pure DC standards and client expectations.

Compliance, Quality & Safety

• Ensure all engineering performance activities comply with relevant health, safety, quality, and regulatory requirements, including international standards.
• Drive adherence to Quality Management Process, change control, and document management standards.
• Manage and escalate compliance risks, quality non-conformances, and safety incidents within the engineering performance scope.

Operational Alignment, Support & Handover

• Own strategic engagement with the Pure Operations team to ensure handover readiness, training delivery, O&M documentation completeness, and smooth transition to live operations.
• Lead monthly reviews with Operations to capture lessons learned, address defects/issues from current/completed projects, and shape engineering performance requirements for new projects.
• Ensure commissioning and technical outputs enable safe, efficient, and resilient operational performance.
• Lead and/or support operational programmes, platforms, and workstreams as directed by Senior Management.

Provide technical input to initiatives aimed at improving system resilience, availability, and fault tolerance.

Team management responsibilities & key relationships

Direct Reports & Line Management

• Commissioning Manager(s): Provide direct line-management accountability, including performance management, objective-setting, development planning, career progression support, and day-to-day leadership.
• Security and ICT Performance Manager(s): Provide functional leadership and governance oversight, including performance governance, standards enforcement, escalation support, and capability development.

Functional Leadership

• May provide functional leadership, guidance, and governance to commissioning engineers, specialist ICT/security commissioning resources, and other engineering performance personnel (internal and external) depending on project scale, complexity, and organisational structure.

Key Relationships

• Internal: Head of Global Technical Operations, Development, Construction, Programme/Project Management, Design, Commercial, Operations, Finance, HSE, Quality, and other GTO functions.
• External: Clients, Commissioning Agents (CxA), Vendors, Contractors, Suppliers, Consultants, and Third-Party Specialists.
• Governance: Senior Leadership Team, Project Boards, Bid Review Panels, Client Governance Forums, and Steering Committees.

The Head of Engineering Performance is accountable for building, sustaining, and leveraging these relationships to deliver engineering performance outcomes, resolve escalations, secure resources, align priorities, and represent Pure DC's engineering performance capability and reputation

SKILLS, qualifications AND EXPERIENCE (Required = R, Desirable = D)

Skills

Communication:

• Demonstrate advanced capability to engage, influence, and communicate effectively (spoken and written) across diverse stakeholder groups, including senior leadership, clients, contractors, and multidisciplinary teams. (R)

Collaboration:

• Lead collaborative ways of working at strategic and operational levels to deliver outcomes, create team empowerment, and build cross-functional value. (R)

Innovation:

• Drive problem-solving, innovation, and continuous improvement to responsibly enhance ways of working, engineering performance outcomes, and strategic delivery within your scope of influence. (R)

Continuous Improvement:

• Own and role-model continuous development of your skills, experience, and output; actively develop others (direct reports and wider function) to build personal, team, and business value. (R)

Leadership:

• Lead by example at senior level; own your personal impact, accountability, and responsibility; inspire and bring others with you on the journey; create clarity, direction, and confidence in ambiguous or complex situations. (R)

People Management & Development:

• Proven experience in line-managing, developing, and performance-managing technical managers and senior individual contributors. (R)
• Demonstrated capability in building high-performing teams, succession planning, talent identification, and capability development. (R)
• Strong interpersonal, coaching, feedback, and conflict resolution skills. (R)

Strategic & Commercial Acumen:

• Ability to set strategic direction, define standards, and translate business objectives into engineering performance outcomes. (R)
• Strong commercial awareness; ability to balance technical excellence, cost, programme, risk, and client expectations. (R)
• Experience contributing to bids, proposals, and pre-construction planning at senior level. (R)

Knowledge and Skills

Technical Expertise

• Bring significant senior-level technical experience in data centres (Colo to Hyperscale) with a Mechanical/Electrical building services background and recognised depth in commissioning. (R)
• Own and apply excellent technical knowledge of UK and international design codes and standards, in particular ASHRAE, NETA ATS, and relevant commissioning frameworks. (R)
• Maintain strong working knowledge of mechanical, electrical, fire, security, and ICT system commissioning requirements, with the ability to review, challenge, and assure technical outputs across disciplines. (R)
• Demonstrate working knowledge of ICT infrastructure (including air-gapped networks, firewalls, ethernet switching, fibre optics, LAN/WiFi, telecommunications) and electronic security systems (including CCTV, analytics, access control, intruder alarms, PAVA, IRS, GPS/NTP, open systems integration). (D)
• Own a thorough understanding of the construction and commissioning process from pre-construction/tender stages through FAT, SAT, IST, and handover to operations. (R)
• Apply working knowledge of building management systems, controls, HVAC, UPS, gensets, and related M&E systems. (R)

Governance, Standards & Quality

• Drive sustainability through engineering design, commissioning, and operational readiness. (R)
• Own and enforce quality assurance, compliance, and governance frameworks across engineering performance disciplines. (R)
• Ensure adherence to Quality Management Process, change control, and document management standards. (R)
• Maintain awareness of health, safety, and regulatory requirements. (R)

Stakeholder & Programme Management

• Build and sustain strong senior-level relationships with internal and external stakeholders. (R)
• Deliver excellent verbal, written, and presentation skills, including executive-level reporting and governance forums. (R)
• Own and apply strong programme and performance reporting skills, providing clear status, risks, mitigations, and decision-making support. (R)
• Challenge the status quo constructively to improve outcomes and drive accountability. (R)

Systems & Tools

• Use strong IT skills (MS Office, MS Project); maintain a working understanding of CAD (AutoCAD, AutoDESK, REVIT, and other 3D modelling software) as an advantage but not essential. (D)

Qualifications and Experience

Academic & Professional

• Holds a degree in Mechanical, Electrical, or Environmental Engineering, or bring several years' equivalent senior-level experience. (R)
• Maintain professional membership of an appropriate professional body (e.g., CIBSE, IET, IMechE, ASHRAE) – Highly Desirable. (D)
• Hold or be working towards Chartered Engineer (CEng) status or equivalent – Desirable. (D)

Experience

• Bring considerable experience as a senior Commissioning Manager or Head of Commissioning, with proven delivery through managing teams and leading commissioning across data centre projects from Colo to Hyperscale. (R)
• Own and apply experience reviewing designs from a commissionable perspective for data centres, pharmaceutical facilities, hospitals, large distribution centres/warehouses, or similar mission-critical projects. (R)
• Demonstrate successful delivery of commissioning across multiple projects, producing and approving commissioning test scripts and programmes (L1 to L5), FAT/SAT oversight, and IST leadership. (R)
• Lead review of Factory Test method statements; attend, control, and assure Factory Tests and Site Acceptance Tests. (R)
• Bring experience in functional leadership and/or governance of specialist ICT and security commissioning disciplines, with the ability to review, challenge, and approve technical outputs. (D)
• Experience contributing to bid development, pre-construction planning, and commercial scoping at senior level. (R)
• Proven experience in performance management, team development, and building capability in technical teams. (R)
• Demonstrate experience working within a matrix organisation, managing across functional boundaries, and influencing without direct authority. (R)

Other

• Hold a valid driving licence. (D)
• Willingness and ability to undertake occasional international travel to support project delivery, stakeholder engagement, and team leadership. (R)

Note:The successful candidate will be required to complete pre-employment screening to BS7858:2019, or national equivalent. (Covers: Confirmation of identity, legal right to work, financial probity, criminal history and associations with proscribed organisations). It is the policy of Pure DC that all individuals have a responsibility for the security and protection of company’s Information and IT Resources over which they have control, according to their role.