Sectors | Data centre development and construction
Data centre construction leadership search, from land and power to handover.
Developers, hyperscalers and their contractors are building faster than they can name the people to run the build. I run retained searches for the development, construction and commissioning leadership: the programme director, the head of construction, the commissioning lead who signs the hall off. In the GCC, the UK and Europe, and the US.
Seats like these open quietly. If you lead data centre development and construction work and would consider a move, including into or out of the Gulf, talk to me in confidence.
Not ready to brief? Get a pay benchmark for your open seats
A benchmark of your open seats carries no fee. A full compensation study is a fixed-fee piece, credited against a search.
Last reviewed , the date of the market facts on this page.
Looking at your next move? See this page for leaders
Hiring for one of these seats? See this page for clients
The seats
- Head of development, land and power acquisition
- VP and director of construction, programme director (campus and multi-site)
- Project directors for EPC and design-and-build contractors
- Head of commissioning and integrated systems testing
- Head of design and MEP engineering
- Commercial and contracts director, head of supply chain for long-lead equipment
- Country head for a developer's first Gulf campus
What is driving hiring, and the timelines
- The US build is at a record pace. Private data centre construction ran at a USD 84.95bn annual pace in August 2026, up 73% on a year earlier, and passed office construction for the first time in December 2025 (US Census Bureau, via Bloomberg Government and iRecruit, 6 October 2026).
- Saudi Arabia is awarding and building. A USD 200m HUMAIN and Center3 phase 1 was awarded in Riyadh on 6 October 2026 (MEED). HUMAIN's USD 1bn, 100MW Al-Saad EPC tender closes on 8 November 2026 (Utilities Middle East).
- Delivery leaders are the scarce people. Project directors and contracts leaders "remained difficult to secure" in Q3 2026 (Cooper Fitch Q3 index, via The National, 20 October 2026).
Where I find them
The UK, Irish, Nordic and US hyperscale and colocation build teams, the EPC and design-and-build contractors that deliver for them, and the Gulf's own delivery teams. My background is executive search in energy and EPC across the Middle East, and data centre delivery search since.
What I don't do here
Site, trades and technician seats. I run the leadership and the hard specialist seats only.
Why clients use me here
- Searches filled across the GCC, Europe and North America
- Executive search in energy and EPC across the Middle East
- Retained mandates for multinational engineering groups, through their subsidiaries
- Recruitment teams built and trained
- Your search page, live from day one
- A shortlist in 10 working days, in writing
How a retained search runs
Map
Who has delivered this scope, where they sit, what they cost.
Shortlist
People who have agreed to be introduced, with a written assessment of each, within 10 working days on a retained or engaged search.
Start date
Offer, notice and relocation handled through to day one.
How retained search works, and when engaged search fits better
Questions clients ask
- Do you work for the owner or the contractor?
- Both, never on the same project at once. Owners hire the programme leadership; contractors hire project directors and the named key people for a bid.
- Can you name key personnel for a tender?
- Yes. I map and approach the people, with their consent to be named, before the submission date.
Terms
Retained or engaged, with a fee on signing. Retained: three stages, on signing, on the shortlist and at the start date. Engaged: a fee on signing, credited in full against the final fee. Both exclusive, both with a shortlist within 10 working days. How the terms work
Brief me on a data centre development and construction seat
The more you tell me, the more useful my first reply. I'll come back within one working day.
Thank you.
I'll be in touch within one working day. If it's urgent, call me on +971 58 585 2790.
Other seats open? Get a pay benchmark for them while you wait.
Seats I search for in this family
- Head of development, land and power acquisition
- VP and director of construction, programme director (campus and multi-site)
- Project directors for EPC and design-and-build contractors
- Head of commissioning and integrated systems testing
- Head of design and MEP engineering
- Commercial and contracts director, head of supply chain for long-lead equipment
- Country head for a developer's first Gulf campus
Most of these searches are confidential and never advertised. Published ones are on the careers page.
What they pay
| Seat | Published pay | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Data centre project director, Riyadh | USD 280,000 to 285,000 a year, plus housing, transport and relocation | Published figure: Energi People, job advert |
| Senior project director, UAE | AED 60,000 to 90,000 a month | Published figure: Guildhall, GCC salary benchmarks 2026 |
| Data centre project manager, UK | GBP 75,000 to 110,000 a year | Published figure: CV-Library |
| Data centre commissioning manager, US | USD 156,000 to 200,000 base (average USD 178,000) | Published figure: dcgeeks salary survey 2026 |
Published figures from the sources named, not my own data. Base pay unless stated; Gulf packages usually add housing, transport and schooling. For your own seat, ask for a confidential market check.
How a confidential conversation works
- A call, not a form. What you run today, what you would move for, and what you would not.
- Nothing shared without your say-so. Your profile goes to a client only with your permission for that one role.
- The real package, in writing, before you interview: base, housing, schooling, bonus and relocation.
- The move handled: notice, visas and family questions, into or out of the Gulf.
- You never pay a fee.
Register and share your CV
I read every profile myself. If a data centre development and construction seat fits, I'll call you; if not, I'll keep you in mind, only with your permission.
Thank you. You're in the talent network.
I'll read your details myself. If there's a role that fits now, I'll call you, usually within a week. If not, I'll keep you in mind for the next one.
Want to know what your seat pays elsewhere? Ask for a confidential market check.
Confidential by default. Your profile is never shared with a client, or described in a way that could identify you, unless you have agreed to that specific role. You can ask what I hold about you, or ask me to delete it, at lloyd@millerandwoodall.com.
Salary guide · Bottleneck index
Sources
- Bloomberg Government, "US construction spending on data centers eclipses USD 50 billion"
- iRecruit, "US data center construction spending jumps", 6 October 2026
- MEED, Hassan Allam and Sterling & Wilson JV wins USD 200m HUMAIN data centre
- Utilities Middle East, HUMAIN tenders Riyadh data centre
- The National, 20 October 2026
A campus phase waiting on one leader?
Tell me the seat and the date. Not ready to brief? Ask for a pay benchmark for your open seats.
Open to the right move?
Register in confidence, or ask what your seat pays elsewhere.