Design Manager (Data Centers)

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Design Manager (Data Centers)

Company: AECOM

Location: Bogota, Colombia

Job Type: Full-time

Category: Infrastructure Design & Management / Data Center Operations

Date Posted: 2026-02-24

Experience Level: 5-10 Years

Remote Status: On-site

🚀 Role Summary

• Lead the end-to-end design lifecycle for colocation and hyper-scale data center projects, encompassing site due diligence, campus planning, and detailed design through to construction administration.

• Manage and mentor a team of design professionals, fostering a collaborative environment and driving collective ownership of project success.

• Develop and execute robust project and program management plans for multi-site data center initiatives, ensuring strict adherence to budget, schedule, and quality standards.

• Serve as a key point of contact for clients and stakeholders, building strong relationships and proactively communicating project status, changes, and potential challenges.

• Drive the development of technical and financial proposals for new data center design projects, contributing to business development and revenue growth.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role is positioned as a senior management role within AECOM's Enterprise Capabilities division, specifically focusing on the critical and rapidly growing data center sector. The emphasis on both technical design oversight and team leadership, coupled with client-facing responsibilities and proposal development, indicates a strategic position requiring a blend of deep technical expertise and strong people management skills. The requirement for Spanish and English proficiency highlights the international nature of the projects and client base.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Oversee the full spectrum of data center design projects, including civil, structural, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, security, and fire protection for both greenfield developments and existing facility modifications (add/move/change).

• Conduct and manage site due diligence assessments to ensure project feasibility and compliance with client and regulatory requirements.

• Develop and implement comprehensive multi-site project and program management plans, ensuring repeatable quality and adherence to client expectations.

• Administer, oversee, and perform peer reviews and quality checks to maintain AECOM and client design standards.

• Establish and manage the project basis of design and the crucial localization process for international projects.

• Implement and manage a systematic process for identifying, tracking, and resolving scope changes, errors, or inconsistencies throughout the design development phases.

• Lead and facilitate productive meetings with clients, external stakeholders, and internal design teams.

• Foster a strong sense of camaraderie, collective ownership, and collaboration within the AECOM data center design team.

• Proactively manage and communicate project changes, risks, and issues to all internal and external stakeholders.

• Identify potential project challenges early and develop creative, effective solutions to mitigate them.

• Develop compelling technical and financial proposals for new data center design projects, demonstrating AECOM's capabilities and value proposition.

• Cultivate and maintain trusting, long-term relationships with key client stakeholders.

• Oversee the preparation and management of essential project administration documents.

📝 Enhancement Note: The core responsibilities emphasize a holistic approach to data center design management, extending beyond technical execution to include strategic planning, team leadership, client relationship management, and business development through proposal generation. The mention of "repeatable quality" and "multi-site project and program management plans" indicates a need for process standardization and scalable execution, critical in the hyper-scale data center environment.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education:

• Bachelor’s degree in Architecture, Mechanical Engineering, or Electrical Engineering.

Experience:

• Minimum of eight (8) years of relevant experience in data center design and/or project management, or demonstrated equivalent experience and/or education.

• Eight (8) years of experience specifically in colocation and/or hyper-scale data center design management and engineering (Preferred).

Required Skills:

• Proficiency in Data Center Design Principles: Understanding of core and shell design, including civil, structural, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, security, and fire protection systems.

• Project Management Expertise: Proven ability to manage complex, multi-site projects from inception to completion, ensuring budget and schedule adherence.

• Stakeholder Management & Communication: Excellent skills in building relationships, managing expectations, and communicating effectively with clients, internal teams, and external partners.

• Team Leadership & Development: Experience in leading, mentoring, and motivating design teams, fostering a collaborative and high-performing environment.

Preferred Skills:

• PMP Certification: Project Management Professional certification.

• Uptime Institute Accredited Tier Professional: Certification demonstrating expertise in data center facility design and reliability.

• Proposal Development: Experience in crafting compelling technical and financial proposals for large-scale infrastructure projects.

• Site Due Diligence & Campus Planning: Expertise in evaluating potential sites and planning large-scale data center campuses.

📝 Enhancement Note: The qualifications highlight a blend of technical engineering/architecture background and robust project/program management experience. The preferred qualifications, such as PMP and Uptime Institute certification, along with specific experience in colocation/hyper-scale environments, indicate a highly specialized role. The bilingual requirement is a critical, non-negotiable skill for this role based in Colombia, serving potentially diverse client bases.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Demonstrate a track record of successfully managing and delivering complex data center design projects, showcasing the scope, scale, and technical challenges overcome.

• Include examples of site due diligence reports and campus planning documentation for large-scale infrastructure developments.

• Present case studies that highlight your approach to managing design documentation through conceptual, schematic, detailed design, and construction phases.

• Showcase evidence of implementing rigorous quality control and peer review processes for design deliverables.

Process Documentation:

• Documented processes for managing multi-site project and program execution, emphasizing scalability and repeatability.

• Examples of established workflows for site selection, due diligence, and feasibility studies for data center projects.

• Demonstrated ability to define and enforce project basis of design and localization strategies.

• Evidence of systems and processes for tracking and resolving design errors, omissions, and scope changes effectively.

• Workflows for effective stakeholder communication, meeting management, and progress reporting in complex project environments.

📝 Enhancement Note: For a Design Manager role, a portfolio is crucial. It should not just list projects but demonstrate the candidate's process and management capabilities. This includes how they approach due diligence, plan campuses, manage design phases, control quality, handle changes, and communicate with stakeholders. The focus is on showcasing systematic, repeatable processes that ensure successful execution of data center projects.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range:

Benefits:

• Comprehensive Health Coverage: Medical, Dental, and Vision insurance plans.

• Life & Disability Protection: Life insurance, Accidental Death & Dismemberment (AD&D), and Disability benefits.

• Time Off & Leave: Generous Paid Time Off (PTO) and various Leaves of Absence policies.

• Employee Well-being: Access to voluntary benefits, perks, flexible work options, well-being resources, and an Employee Assistance Program (EAP).

Working Hours:

• Standard full-time position, typically 40 hours per week. However, given the project-driven nature of data center development and potential international client interactions, flexibility may be required to meet project deadlines and stakeholder availability.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary estimate is based on a combination of AECOM's known compensation practices for similar roles globally, industry standards for specialized engineering and design management in the data center sector, and adjusted for the Bogota market. The comprehensive list of benefits provided by AECOM is a significant part of the total compensation package and should be a key consideration for candidates.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Infrastructure Consulting & Engineering. AECOM operates globally, providing a wide range of professional services for infrastructure development, including transportation, water, environment, energy, and buildings. Their involvement in data centers positions them at the forefront of digital infrastructure growth.

Company Size: AECOM is a large, publicly traded company with over 50,000 employees worldwide, indicating a robust organizational structure, extensive resources, and global reach.

Founded: AECOM has a long history, tracing its roots back over 90 years, signifying stability, extensive experience, and a deep understanding of the infrastructure sector.

Team Structure:

• The role is within AECOM's "Enterprise Capabilities" division, likely a central group providing specialized expertise and support across various business lines.

• The Design Manager will lead a team of architects and engineers focused specifically on Data Center projects, potentially drawing resources from various disciplines (civil, structural, MEP, security, fire protection).

Methodology:

• AECOM emphasizes a data-driven approach to problem-solving and project delivery, utilizing advanced digital tools and analytics.

• The company focuses on sustainable and resilient design solutions, aligning with global trends in infrastructure development.

• Emphasis is placed on a collaborative, integrated project delivery model, working closely with clients and partners throughout the project lifecycle.

Company Website: https://www.aecom.com/

📝 Enhancement Note: AECOM's status as a Fortune 500 company and a global leader in infrastructure consulting suggests a professional, structured, and process-oriented work environment. The company's commitment to "delivering a better world" implies a focus on impactful, sustainable projects. For a Design Manager, this means working within established corporate frameworks while contributing to cutting-edge data center development.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This Design Manager role represents a senior position within the technical and project management career paths at AECOM. It's a leadership role focused on a specialized, high-demand sector (Data Centers). The scope includes managing complex projects, leading technical teams, and contributing to business development, positioning it as a critical contributor to the company's success in this market.

Reporting Structure: The Design Manager will likely report to a Director or Vice President within the Enterprise Capabilities or a relevant sector-specific division (e.g., Buildings & Places, or a dedicated Data Center practice). They will, in turn, manage a team of architects, engineers, and potentially junior project staff.

Operations Impact: The Design Manager's impact is substantial. They are responsible for the technical integrity, cost-effectiveness, and timely delivery of data center designs, which directly influence project budgets, construction timelines, operational efficiency, and client satisfaction. Successful project execution in this role contributes directly to AECOM's revenue and reputation in the burgeoning data center market.

Growth Opportunities:

• Technical Specialization: Deepen expertise in hyper-scale data center design, advanced cooling technologies, power distribution, and sustainability integration.

• Program Management: Transition to managing larger, more complex data center programs or portfolios of