Lead Scheduler (Data Center Due Diligence and Preconstruction)

Turner & Townsend•San Francisco, CA

59d•Remote

About The Position

Turner & Townsend is seeking a Lead Scheduler to own the schedule review discipline for a confidential hyperscale data center client. This role involves setting the standard for schedule reviews and managing a portfolio of independent schedule reviews. The Lead Scheduler will assess the realism of developer-provided delivery dates and define the methodology for rigorous schedule reviews for the team. This is a working lead role, combining senior reviewer responsibilities with team leadership. The individual will conduct their own schedule reviews, test critical paths and delivery dates, and identify unsupported claims. Additionally, they will establish the review process, including scope, evidence standards, and quality control, and prioritize team efforts based on risk and urgency. This role is distinct from a Program Manager's role, focusing on providing schedule evidence rather than owning the overall risk picture. It is also not purely managerial, as the Lead Scheduler will maintain their own caseload to stay current with tools and standards. The position requires close collaboration with Program Managers and leads of other review disciplines.

Requirements

10 - 15 years of planning and scheduling experience.
Demonstrated ability to independently review and challenge development and construction schedules, not just build them.
Prior experience training, mentoring, or reviewing the work of other schedule or planning professionals.
Working fluency in P6 or equivalent scheduling software, including logic, critical path, and float credibility.
Familiarity with earned value management (EVM) or similar progress-measurement methods to sanity-check reported percent complete against actual schedule progress.
Practical knowledge of long lead equipment timelines, utility and energization sequencing, permitting, and commissioning and testing durations in complex facility construction.
Understanding of acceleration levers in data center construction and the ability to distinguish real from cosmetic options.
Comfort delivering difficult findings directly, professionally, and on deadline, and holding colleagues to the same standard.
Ability to work from incomplete or dated information and state caveats plainly.
Proven ability to manage competing priorities across multiple concurrent projects and a team's workload.
Strong written communication skills for findings that need to be usable by others and feed into client-facing reports.
Technologically proficient, including MS Suite and Google Workspace in addition to scheduling software.

Nice To Haves

Data center or other mission-critical facility delivery experience strongly preferred.
AACE PSP or PMI-SP certification is a plus.

Responsibilities

Assess developer construction schedules from the ground up, including logic, critical path and near-critical activity credibility, float, and sequencing.
Confirm the realism of delivery dates, power connection, and commissioning and testing timelines against client and team benchmarks.
Review equipment and staffing plans behind a schedule, including long lead equipment orders and resource loading, to confirm commitments versus assumptions for labor and materials.
Be precise about knowns versus unknowns, clearly stating whether a number or date is confirmed, estimated, or claimed by the developer, and ensure the team adheres to this standard.
Identify risks hidden in seemingly clean schedules, such as long lead equipment, permitting, utility connections, seasonal weather, and compressed commissioning windows.
Track schedule changes from one review to the next, performing trend and variance analysis to identify material variances and their likely causes.
Assess potential time recovery options when a date is at risk, distinguishing real solutions from cosmetic ones.
Ensure a clear schedule record, detailing confirmed items, assumptions, and open risks, is handed over to the onsite construction team at construction start for all deals reviewed by the team.
Define the standard for a complete and defensible schedule review, including checklists, testing depth, and evidence requirements, and ensure the team adheres to it.
Allocate team resources across a shifting set of deals based on risk and urgency, and manage capacity when demand exceeds resources.
Review higher-stakes findings from the team before they reach the client, identifying gaps or unsupported claims.
Build and maintain a library of schedule benchmarks, including typical durations for long lead equipment, permitting, energization, and commissioning, for team use.
Train new reviewers to the team's standard and develop the judgment of less experienced reviewers.
Develop and refine templates, tools, and checklists for the schedule discipline as the portfolio and team grow.
Adhere to SOX control responsibilities where applicable.