Principal, Design Lead

About this role

Over the last 20 years, Ares’ success has been driven by our people and our culture. Today, our team is guided by our core values – Collaborative, Responsible, Entrepreneurial, Self-Aware, Trustworthy – and our purpose to be a catalyst for shared prosperity and a better future. Through our recruitment, career development and employee-focused programming, we are committed to fostering a welcoming and inclusive work environment where high-performance talent of diverse backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives can build careers within this exciting and growing industry.

Job Description Why Join Us:  

This role is an excellent opportunity to join a deeply experienced and high-performing team with the ability to directly   impact   and contribute to Ada’s development program. Our team combines industry-wide experience and in-country   expertise   across all our regions.  

We are committed to collaborating cross-functionally and partnering to drive efficient and effective solutions that meet the needs of our internal and external stakeholders.  

The Team you are joining:  

The Design & Innovation function is part of the Global Design, Development and Delivery organization and   is responsible for   enabling the delivery of scalable, reliable, and sustainable data center infrastructure across Ada's global portfolio .  

The organization   operates   through a collaborative global and regional model :  

• Global   Design & Innovation   – Accountable for design standards, tools, productization, and innovation across all regions;   operates   as a center of excellence (CoE) and provides consultative support to regional teams  

• Regional   Design   – Executes and adapts global standards to local codes, customer requirements, and site-specific conditions while piloting innovations for broader global adoption  

Summary:  

The Design Lead, North America   is responsible for   leading the design execution function across Ada's North American development portfolio. This role ensures global design standards are effectively adapted into buildable, code-compliant, customer-aligned, and site-specific solutions that support delivery excellence across the region.  

Working closely with the Global Design & Innovation team, this leader serves as the primary bridge between global standards and regional execution, ensuring designs are scalable, constructable, cost-effective, and aligned with business   objectives .  

The role is also responsible for building, leading, and developing a high-performing multidisciplinary design organization that supports Ada's continued growth throughout North America.  

Responsibilities:  

• Lead design execution across Ada's North American development portfolio, ensuring alignment with safety, quality, schedule, cost, constructability, and customer requirements  

• Build, lead, and develop a high-performing multidisciplinary design organization foster ing   accountability,   collaboration   and continuous improvement.  

• Direct the   regional and site level   adaptation and implementation of global standards, specifications, and requirements to meet codes, permitting requirements, customer needs, and site-specific conditions  

• Partner closely with Development and Delivery teams to ensure designs are constructable, cost-effective, scalable, and aligned with project objectives  

• Serve as the regional design authority throughout project planning, design, procurement, construction, commissioning, and turnover  

• Establish and   monitor   key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure   regional design performance, quality, schedule   performance of AOR/ EORs ,  budget   alignment, change management, and risk mitigation  

• Collaborate with the Global Design & Innovation team to support continuous improvement of design standards, engineering specifications, and delivery processes through regional feedback and lessons learned  

• Support the evaluation and implementation of   new technologies , engineering approaches, and design innovations that improve performance, efficiency, reliability, and scalability  

• Partner with Supply Chain to align designs with procurement strategies, equipment standardization initiatives, and vendor capabilities  

• Collaborate with Operations and Commissioning teams to ensure designs support long-term operational reliability, maintainability, and lifecycle performance  

• Champion digital engineering, BIM, automation, and data-driven design practices to improve design efficiency and project outcomes  

• Foster relationships with design consultants, engineering partners, equipment manufacturers, and industry stakeholders to   maintain   awareness of emerging trends and best practices  

• Partner with Development & Delivery teams to   p rovide regular executive-level reporting on project performance, resource planning, design risks,   and project level   opportunities  

• Support customer engagements and strategic initiatives as   required , communicating Ada's design capabilities and technical solutions   

Minimum   Requirements:  

• Bachelor's degree in   Design or   Engineering   (Mechanical, Electrical, Civil, Architectural, or related discipline)  

• 12+ years of experience in engineering, design, design management, or technical leadership within data centers, mission-critical infrastructure  

• Demonstrated success building high-performing   team , developing technical talent, and scaling teams through periods of growth  

• Strong understanding of data center systems, including mechanical, electrical, controls, commissioning, and operational considerations  

• Experience leading design execution across multiple projects while balancing quality, schedule, budget, constructability, and customer requirements  

• Experience implementing standardized design approaches while adapting solutions to local codes, permitting requirements, and site-specific conditions  

• Strong commercial and operational acumen

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