Overview
Senior Data Center Site Selection Lead Jobs in San Francisco Bay Area at ECL
Title: Senior Data Center Site Selection Lead
Company: ECL
Location: San Francisco Bay Area
Company: ECL Location: Bay Area, CA with 40-50% Travel. No remote or hybrid option.
About ECL
At ECL, we are fundamentally redefining the future of data centers. We build and operate high-density, fully modular, and sustainable data centers designed for the AI era. Powered by our proprietary, fuel-agnostic ECL FlexGrid™ platform and utilizing advanced closed-loop liquid cooling, our facilities are capable of operating entirely off-grid using hydrogen fuel cells and other sustainable energy sources. We are expanding rapidly to meet massive upcoming demand specifically in the AI Inference and are looking for a highly strategic Senior Site Selection Lead to drive our real estate acquisition and site development forward.
The Role
As the Senior Site Selection Lead, you will own the end-to-end process of identifying, evaluating, and securing land and facilities for ECL’s next generation of data centers. You will play a critical role in our aggressive capacity roadmap, specifically targeting immediate and mid-term expansion with focus across the US and Canada.
You will work closely with our executive team, in-house General Contracting, and engineering groups to ensure selected sites align with our unique power, cooling, and modular architectural requirements.
Key Responsibilities
- Market Strategy & Pipeline Development: Identify and evaluate potential data center sites, land acquisitions, and facility leases across key target markets focused on the US market to meet rigorous capacity demands.
- Comprehensive Due Diligence: Lead site evaluations focusing on zoning, environmental impact, fiber connectivity, and unique utility/power profiles, keeping in mind our off-grid and alternative energy capabilities.
- Deal Structuring & Negotiation: Draft, negotiate, and execute Letters of Intent (LOIs), purchase agreements, and complex commercial leases. Manage lease lifecycles, renewals, and landlord relations.
- Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner with ECL’s in-house construction and infrastructure engineering teams to validate site feasibility for ultra-high-density deployments, heavy liquid-cooling infrastructure, and localized power generation.
- Incentive & Regulatory Navigation: Engage with local municipalities, economic development councils, and city teams to secure entitlements, permits, and financial incentives.
Qualifications
- Experience: 7+ years of progressive experience in commercial real estate, specifically focused on data center site selection, land acquisition, or industrial real estate development.
- Domain Expertise: Deep understanding of the data center industry, including power constraints, fiber routing, and zoning challenges. Familiarity with alternative energy models (e.g., hydrogen, natural gas, fuel cells) is a massive plus.
- Deal-Making: Proven track record of successfully negotiating complex, multi-megawatt facility leases and large-scale land acquisitions.
- Project Management: Ability to manage multiple, overlapping site developments simultaneously in a fast-paced, high-growth environment.
- Communication: Exceptional executive-level presentation skills with the ability to distill complex site matrices into clear business decisions.
Why Join ECL?
- Be at the forefront of the sustainable, high-density data center revolution.
- Directly impact the deployment of groundbreaking, off-grid infrastructure.
- Work alongside industry veterans to scale a rapidly growing company with top-tier enterprise and global technology partners.
- Have fun
