Chief Development Officer

Montera • San Francisco, CA

1d • Remote

About The Position

Montera is seeking a Chief Development Officer to lead its development organization and oversee the front end of the hyperscale data center development lifecycle as the company expands its national development platform. Reporting directly to the Chief Executive Officer and serving on the executive leadership team, the CDevO will own development strategy, market and site selection, land acquisition and control, utility and power strategy, technical due diligence, entitlement, permitting, and development readiness through handoff to the delivery organization.

The role calls for an executive with extensive experience developing large-scale data center or other complex infrastructure projects, expertise in powered-land development, and an understanding of the technical, commercial, and regulatory factors that affect project feasibility. The CDevO will build a scalable development organization, identify and mitigate risks early, and advance opportunities from initial identification through construction readiness. This is a hands-on leadership role that combines team and process building with direct involvement in high-value development projects and strategic decisions.

Montera is a remote-first company. The role requires regular travel throughout the United States for site visits, utility and stakeholder meetings, development activities, and leadership sessions. Work includes standard office and computer-based tasks, virtual and in-person meetings, and periodic visits to active development and construction sites, potentially involving uneven terrain and outdoor conditions. Reasonable accommodations will be provided consistent with applicable law.

The compensation range is commensurate with experience and will be discussed during the interview process. The role offers the opportunity to shape Montera's development strategy, investments, national powered-land pipeline, organizational capabilities, and execution standards while working directly with the CEO and executive leadership team.

Requirements

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Engineering, Real Estate Development, Business, Planning, Energy, or a related discipline.
• 15 or more years of experience in data center development, large-scale infrastructure, energy, real estate development, or comparable environments.
• Significant leadership experience overseeing a development function, multidisciplinary team, or major development portfolio.
• Demonstrated experience advancing large-scale development opportunities from site origination through land control, due diligence, entitlement, power/interconnection, permitting, and construction handoff.
• Deep understanding of utility engagement, power availability, interconnection processes, energization schedules, and related commercial considerations.
• Strong experience managing land transactions, purchase and sale agreements, options, easements, title matters, and development agreements.
• Experience leading multidisciplinary technical diligence and translating findings into commercial, investment, and development decisions.
• Strong understanding of zoning, entitlement, permitting, regulatory approvals, and community engagement.
• Demonstrated ability to evaluate complex development risks across power, infrastructure, environmental, technical, commercial, and regulatory disciplines.
• Experience building and scaling teams, processes, and organizational capabilities in a high-growth environment.
• Ability to work effectively with utilities, government officials, landowners, consultants, customers, investors, and executive leadership.
• Strong commercial judgment, executive presence, and excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Willingness and ability to travel regularly throughout the United States.

Nice To Haves

• Direct experience leading hyperscale data center development or other large-load infrastructure projects.
• Experience building and managing a national or multi-market powered-land development pipeline.
• Established relationships with utilities, landowners, municipalities, developers, and infrastructure stakeholders across key U.S. markets.
• Experience evaluating large-scale power and infrastructure requirements, including utility capacity constraints, interconnection strategies, and energization risks.
• Familiarity with data center design requirements, fiber connectivity, site infrastructure planning, and construction readiness considerations.
• Experience managing community engagement, government affairs, and sustainability considerations for complex infrastructure projects.
• Ability to use data, market intelligence, and decision-support tools to evaluate development opportunities and prioritize investments.
• Experience establishing development processes, reporting frameworks, and governance standards within a growing organization.
• Hands-on leadership style combining executive-level strategy with detailed project execution.
• Ability to operate independently, take ownership of ambiguous problems, and collaborate effectively in a founder-led, high-growth environment.

Responsibilities

• Lead Montera's development strategy and powered-land pipeline, prioritizing target markets based on power availability, customer demand, infrastructure, economics, and execution risk.
• Develop strategies to expand the development portfolio in alignment with customer requirements and long-term business objectives.
• Establish repeatable processes and evaluation frameworks for advancing opportunities from market screening through development and construction readiness.
• Use data-driven approaches to market selection, site prioritization, and development risk assessment.
• Partner with executive leadership to evaluate development opportunities, capital commitments, and strategic investments.
• Oversee site origination, evaluation, acquisition, and land-control activities across target markets.
• Lead negotiations and development strategies with landowners, brokers, developers, and other commercial stakeholders.
• Oversee land transactions, purchase and sale agreements, options, easements, title matters, and development agreements.
• Evaluate site constraints, infrastructure availability, development costs, and execution requirements before significant capital commitments.
• Build and maintain senior relationships with landowners, brokers, municipalities, developers, and other stakeholders critical to site development.
• Lead utility engagement, load requests, interconnection strategy, and energization planning for development opportunities.
• Evaluate power availability, utility capacity, grid constraints, energization timelines, financial requirements, and potential curtailment exposure.
• Develop relationships with utilities, transmission providers, and infrastructure stakeholders to support reliable and timely power delivery.
• Oversee evaluation of utility infrastructure requirements, commercial arrangements, and associated development risks.
• Integrate power availability, infrastructure readiness, and energization schedules into site selection and development decisions.
• Own site due diligence across environmental, geotechnical, civil, survey, title, water, wastewater, telecommunications, power, and related disciplines.
• Ensure development risks, constraints, costs, schedules, and technical requirements are understood before significant capital commitments.
• Partner with Engineering, Product, Technology, and Delivery teams to ensure sites meet customer specifications and technical requirements.
• Oversee development-stage design coordination, constructability reviews, budget considerations, and schedule risk assessments.
• Incorporate fiber connectivity and telecommunications infrastructure requirements into site planning and technical evaluations.
• Maintain executive accountability for technical and commercial readiness before projects transition to the delivery organization.
• Establish development-to-delivery handoff standards and ensure risks, commitments, budgets, schedules, and outstanding requirements are documented and communicated.
• Lead land-use strategy, zoning, rezoning, annexation, parcelization, easements, entitlement, and development permitting activities.
• Build and maintain relationships with municipalities, counties, regulatory authorities, and authorities having jurisdiction.
• Oversee permitting strategies and regulatory approvals to support project schedules and construction readiness.
• Lead site-level community engagement and government affairs strategies.
• Incorporate sustainability considerations, including energy, water, emissions, waste, land use, and biodiversity, into development planning and decisions.
• Identify and mitigate regulatory, political, community, and environmental risks that could affect development timelines or feasibility.
• Build and scale the Development organization, recruiting and developing a high-performing multidisciplinary team.
• Establish accountability, performance expectations, reporting standards, and operating rhythms across the development function.
• Provide executive leadership with visibility into pipeline status, project risk, schedules, capital requirements, and key decisions.
• Collaborate with Delivery, Engineering, Product, Technology, Finance, and Commercial teams to align development activities with company objectives.
• Support customer and leasing discussions as the senior authority on development strategy, project feasibility, and site readiness.
• Develop scalable development processes, governance frameworks, and decision-making tools for disciplined execution as the organization grows.
• Foster accountability, collaboration, speed, and operational excellence within the development organization.
• Travel regularly throughout the United States to support development activities and strategic business needs.

Benefits

• The company pays 90% of health premiums for employees and their dependents.
• Up to 8 weeks of paid time off per year, including holidays, PTO, and sick time.
• Up to 8 weeks of paid parental leave after 6 months of employment.
• 401(k) plan with immediate eligibility, no vesting requirement, and employer match contributions up to 6%.
• Up to $3,500 reimbursed annually for approved courses, certifications, conferences, and professional development opportunities.
• Remote work stipend.
• Competitive total compensation; compensation for this executive role is commensurate with experience and discussed during the interview process.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Executive