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Fleet Data Centers · 11 hours ago

Director, Generation Operations

Mercer Island, WA

Full-time

Hybrid

Director/Executive

$205K/yr - $245K/yr

10+ years exp

Fleet Data Centers designs, builds, and operates mega-scale data center campuses, providing customers with flexible and predictable power generation solutions. The Director of Generation Operations will lead the operational strategy for on-site power generation, ensuring safety, compliance, and reliability across Fleet's campuses while managing vendor performance and internal teams.

Telecommunications

Responsibilities

Help Fleet deliver near-perfect execution on these dimensions by building a generation operations program that is measurable, enforceable, and continuously improving

Own the operating and maintenance for behind-the-meter generation across Fleet campuses (multi-site portfolio management, standards, and governance)

Define operational requirements for reliability (availability targets, start/transfer performance expectations, spares strategy, service coverage, documentation)

Establish KPIs and reporting for fleet performance (availability, forced outage rate, MTTR, maintenance compliance, fuel/consumables usage, cost/MWh or cost/hour, vendor SLA attainment)

Partner with Critical Facilities leadership to ensure operating modes align with site electrical design, protection schemes, and overall uptime objectives

Own operational oversight of leased engine vendors (24/7 response readiness, preventive maintenance execution, corrective maintenance quality, spares availability, and staffing competency)

Establish and run vendor governance: scorecards, QBRs, safety performance reviews, incident/post-incident reviews, and continuous improvement plans

Ensure vendors execute work safely and to Fleet standards (LOTO, NFPA 70E alignment, MOP/SOP discipline, and change/permit-to-work controls)

Coordinate vendor mobilization and site access requirements; ensure clear demarcation of responsibilities between Fleet, vendors, and any EPC/commissioning partners

Build/own the maintenance strategy for generation assets (PM/CM, condition-based maintenance where applicable, lifecycle planning, and spares/critical parts)

Ensure maintenance execution is documented and auditable; integrate work management into Fleet’s CMMS standards (PM plans, job plans, failure coding, and closeout quality)

Own performance troubleshooting and reliability improvement: recurring issue elimination, vendor technical escalation, root cause analysis, and corrective action tracking

Drive 'operational readiness' for new deployments: acceptance criteria, commissioning/turnover requirements, as-builts, O&M manuals, training, and steady-state handoff

Own operational compliance for behind-the-meter generation where applicable: air permitting interfaces, emissions monitoring/reporting requirements, environmental controls, and site inspections (in partnership with internal EHS/legal and external specialists)

Establish emergency response expectations and drills for generation events (failed starts, trips, fuel or exhaust issues, abnormal vibration/temperature, paralleling faults)

Ensure disciplined change management and risk review for generation operational changes (control setpoints, protection settings, maintenance deferrals, operating hours strategy)

Ensure generation telemetry/alarming is correctly integrated into Fleet monitoring (dashboards, alarm priorities, escalation paths, and runbooks) and that incident response roles are clear between vendors, Fleet operations centers, and site teams

Partner with site operations to coordinate switching windows, maintenance outages, and readiness for customer-driven power events

Provide clear internal and customer-facing communications inputs during power events as needed (status updates, ETAs, post-event summaries)

Define the future-state org model for Fleet-operated generation (headcount plan, roles, shift/on-call coverage, training/qualification program)

Recruit and develop internal talent (field technicians/engineers or a hybrid model) as Fleet expands its scope from oversight to direct operation/maintenance

Establish internal technical standards for competency, safety, documentation, and vendor interface

Own the OPEX budget for generation operations oversight (vendor O&M, consumables, spare parts strategy, third-party services, test/inspection costs)

Partner with Finance/Procurement/Legal on operational components of vendor agreements (SOW clarity, SLA/KPI definitions, escalation remedies, reporting requirements, safety requirements)

Drive cost and reliability optimization across the portfolio while maintaining Fleet’s mission-critical service expectations

Qualification

Power generation operationsVendor managementMaintenance strategyCompliance managementData center experienceReliability engineeringOperational readinessFinancial stewardshipAnalytical abilityInfluenceRelationship managementEffective communicationEmotional intelligenceStrategic thinkingCritical thinkingPersuasion

Required

10+ years of experience in power generation operations, O&M, or reliability engineering (reciprocating engines and/or gas turbines preferred), including multi-site fleet oversight or a portfolio role

5+ years of people leadership experience, including building programs, managing vendors, and setting measurable performance standards

Strong knowledge of maintenance programs and reliability practices (PM optimization, failure analysis, parts strategy, vendor performance governance)

Working familiarity with mission-critical environments (data centers, hospitals, industrial plants) and operating discipline (MOP/SOP/EOP, change control, incident management)

Comfort working cross-functionally with site operations, engineering, commissioning, procurement, legal, finance, and EHS

Experience with compliance-heavy operations (safety programs; environmental/emissions compliance exposure is a plus)

Willingness and ability to travel to Fleet sites/vendors as needed