Predevelopment & Preconstruction Sr. Project Manager (Owner's Representative) - Data Center Construction

Responsibilities

The Senior Project Manager serves as the Owner's Representative, leading predevelopment and preconstruction activities for data center sites. They coordinate between stakeholders, manage project schedules and risks, and ensure a structured handoff to onsite execution teams.

Requirements

Candidates must have a bachelor's degree in a relevant field and at least 8 years of experience in large-scale commercial, industrial, or mission-critical projects. Strong expertise in data center development, project management software, and stakeholder coordination is required.

Skills

• Project management
• Preconstruction
• Data center construction
• Owner's representation
• Risk management
• Stakeholder coordination
• Scheduling
• Budgeting
• Permitting
• Procurement
• Construction management
• Engineering
• Executive communication
• Site selection
• Commissioning

Benefits

• Medical insurance
• Dental insurance
• Vision insurance
• Life insurance
• Accident insurance
• Long term disability
• 401(k) retirement plan
• Paid time off
• Paid national holidays
• Reimbursement for professional licenses and certifications

About this role

The Senior Project Manager – Predevelopment & Preconstruction serves as the Owner’s Representative responsible for day-to-day leadership and coordination of predevelopment and preconstruction activities across data center sites. This role drives coordination among the Owner, the Engineer of Record (EOR), the general contractor (GC), power/EPC partners, and suppliers to carry each site from due diligence into execution with a clear plan, accountable owners, and visibility into the decisions needed to proceed. The Senior Project Manager serves as the Owner’s primary point of contact for the engagement, maintains integrated readiness planning and reporting, and delivers a structured handoff to onsite execution teams. The role proactively drives assigned predevelopment and preconstruction workstreams, obtains commitments from responsible parties, follows actions through closure, and presents recommended solutions and clearly defined decisions to the Owner.
This is a remote-based role requiring periodic travel for site assessments, planning workshops, stakeholder meetings, and transition to onsite execution, as required by the assignment.
Minimum Qualifications:
Bachelor’s degree in Construction Management, Engineering, Architecture, or a related field, or applicable trade/superintendent experience.
Minimum 8 years of experience managing large-scale commercial, industrial, mission critical, infrastructure, or data center projects.
Demonstrated experience leading owner-side predevelopment or preconstruction coordination for complex projects. Direct data center experience and experience supporting multiple sites are strongly preferred.
Experience coordinating predevelopment, due diligence, design, permitting, power/utility, procurement, and preconstruction activities through transition to construction.
Strong understanding of data center development and delivery, including OFCI/modular equipment, commissioning, energization, and turnover.
Demonstrated ability to review and evaluate GC schedules, estimates, and delivery plans, and to manage risk, cost exposure, and decision tracking.
Demonstrated ability to coordinate multiple stakeholders, including owner functional leads, design teams, general contractors, EPC partners, and suppliers.
Strong project management, risk management, and executive communication skills.
Proficiency with project management and scheduling software and Microsoft Office applications.
Duties and Responsibilities:
Due Diligence & Site Selection
Interface with Site Selection, attend DD meetings, and review findings for construction and delivery implications.
Track gaps in geotechnical, environmental, entitlement, AHJ, access, utility, and site infrastructure information, and feed risks into the risk register and integrated plan.
Power Planning & Preconstruction
Coordinate Owner Power, Design, Supply Chain, and delivery interfaces; align utility milestones, onsite substations, behind-the-meter solutions, and phased energization with campus needs.
Facilitate EPC onboarding and track design, permitting, procurement, construction, and testing dependencies. The Owner’s Power team continues to lead utility interactions.
GC Engagement & Preconstruction
Support GC onboarding and define preconstruction deliverables; drive planning meetings on constructability, trade/design-assist, early modeling, labor, early procurement, and logistics.
Coordinate site access, grading, drainage, temporary utilities, laydown, and early works packaging.
Design & Permitting
Coordinate with the Owner’s Design Manager and EOR to align design releases and permit packages with procurement and field needs.
Attend design reviews, track constructability and interface actions, and maintain a package release and permit matrix with owners, required dates, and constraints.
OFCI & Modular Delivery
Coordinate with Supply Chain on equipment and modular/prefabricated systems; maintain visibility into quantities, technical release, manufacturing and delivery dates, and receiving/storage plans.
Track interfaces for installation, vendor startup, testing, warranty, and phased turnover.
Integrated Scheduling
Coordinate with Owner Scheduling on high-level and project control schedules using Owner standards; integrate DD, design, permit, power, procurement, construction, commissioning, and turnover milestones.
Review GC logic, sequencing, durations, and resource assumptions; identify critical constraints and drive resolution of schedule gaps.
Cost & Commercial Planning
Coordinate with Owner Cost and the GC on estimates, scope reconciliation, allowances, exclusions, commitments, and cash flow forecasts.
Track cost exposure from unresolved assumptions and scope changes, and identify long-lead or early works commitments needed before closing or full authorization.
Project Controls, Reporting & Readiness
Maintain one coordinated set of site records in the Owner’s platform, including the readiness plan, integrated milestone schedule, risk and DD gap register, and design and procurement trackers.
Issue a weekly site dashboard (progress, forecast changes, top risks, overdue actions, decisions needed), maintain action and decision registers with named owners and dates, and escalate time-sensitive issues.
Lead weekly integrated planning meetings per site and summarize readiness at key checkpoints (site decision/land closing, early works authorization, full execution authorization): what is complete, what is open, who owns it, and the consequence of proceeding.
Identify prerequisites to each authorization milestone, distinguish blocking issues from manageable open items, and recommend mitigation measures, responsible parties, and required completion dates.
Transition to Onsite Execution
Develop the execution staffing recommendation for Owner and KALCON roles and GC/EPC interfaces.
Assemble the handoff package, conduct the transition meeting, confirm ownership of open items, and carry phased commissioning, energization, acceptance, an...

About KALCON

Construction · 201-500 employees · headquartered in Tustin, California · founded 2020