Senior Substation Construction Project Manager

Microsoft•San Jose, CA

19h

About The Position

The Substation Construction Manager provides end-to-end ownership of substation projects, supporting delivery from early design engagement through construction execution and closeout. This role serves as the owner’s construction and execution lead during the design period, participating in performance specification reviews, constructability input, and risk identification. The role supports the request for proposal process and selection of design-build contractors and provides active oversight of the design process, coordinating across civil, structural, electrical, protection and controls, utility, and permitting disciplines to ensure timely design progression. The Substation Construction Manager works closely with local utility providers to coordinate tie-in work, interconnections, and associated enabling or offsite projects. During execution, the role oversees engineering documentation and construction activities to ensure compliance with technical requirements, safety standards, schedule, and budget. The Substation Construction Manager leads procurement oversight for equipment and materials, tracks and reports progress across scope, cost, schedule, and risk, and represents Microsoft in owner, engineer, contractor, and utility coordination forums. This role serves as a safety leader and advocate, proactively managing risk, monitoring contractor performance, and ensuring adherence to contractual, regulatory, and audit requirements.

Requirements

Bachelor's Degree in Construction Project Management, Architecture, Engineering, or related field AND 10+ years related experience OR equivalent experience.
Ability to meet Microsoft, customer and/or government security screening requirements are required for this role. These requirements include but are not limited to the following specialized security screenings: Microsoft Cloud Background Check: This position will be required to pass the Microsoft Cloud background check upon hire/transfer and every two years thereafter.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor's Degree in Construction Project Management, Architecture, Engineering, or related field AND 12+ years related experience OR equivalent experience.
12+ years experience working on data center projects.
Construction QA/QC
Construction Project Coordinator or Project Manager experience
Project Management
Substation Commissioning
Issue identification and resolution management
English Language skills

Responsibilities

Monitors the approved project budget, provides oversight, and suggests necessary adjustments for project controls (e.g., Project Expenditure Request (PERs), Professional Services Request (PSRs), Change Orders, Pay Applications, etc.).
Partners with the Internal Cloud Operations + Innovation (CO+I) and other Microsoft key stakeholders (e.g., Commercial Software Engineering [CSE], and Real Estate & Facilities [RE&F], etc.) and shares updated process flow information with the project team to ensure new processes are being followed that increase program cost savings and improve overall cycle-time and efficiencies.
Attends and advises during scheduled owner/architect/contractor and other project meetings, advocating for safe and secure security-first mindset during project planning.
Facilitates the delivery of metro-based/campus projects (e.g., new construction and/or retrofits) by making timely data-based decisions in partnership with the local project team and key stakeholders. Champions team and project goals, adhering to business processes, engaging vendor relationships when/where applicable, and fostering positive cross-group collaboration efforts aligned to the program strategy, milestone delivery, and core values and priorities (Safety, Security, Quality, Schedule, Cost).
Creates and applies best practices to identify and incorporate cost-effective solutions for the strategic and tactical delivery of a construction project. Applies influence, strategy, and decision-making to drive solutions, schedules, and manages change with clients, sponsors, and vendors.
Collaborates and contributes needed technical knowledge to internal teams (e.g., Engineering, Operations, Center for International Social Science Research [CISSR], Commercial Software Engineering [CSE], Legal, Project Controls, etc.) and General Contractors/Subcontractors to maintain the corporate vision and goals for the project.
Oversees timely execution of all procurement activities associated with resourcing and materials necessary for delivering program(s) on time and within project budget forecasts. Evaluates resources and ensures adequate staffing and materials for job completion.
Drives campus-based delivery solutions (e.g., new or retrofit data center facilities). Analyzes technical information and provides recommendations to support solutions. Assists campus teams in establishing goals for project teams, assigning responsibilities, measuring performance, and seeking and delivering feedback to achieve timely results that prioritize security in documentation, design, and/or execution.
Assists with creating and reporting on project progress regarding scope, schedule, standards, and budget.
Communicates risk mitigation goals and develops metrics, dashboards and/or scorecards to track, communicate, and drive progress. Suggests actions to support organizational and national safety and security goals.
Represents Microsoft as a safety leader and advocate on all Campus/Metro construction programs, ensuring adherence to safety standards and regulatory requirements (e.g., Occupational Safety and Health Administration [OSHA], or equivalent) to ensure compliance and aggressive management of risk. Conducts routine safety program, security, project, and contractor audits, and performs and participates in incident investigations.
Reviews engineering documentation/designs, site, and building plans by examining and analyzing technical information. Identifies potential risks/gaps and provides recommendations to project teams that mitigate risk, and improve overall constructability, ensuring solutions adhere to security core priorities and guidelines. Aligns project/program delivery with execution procedures and standards, and ensures alignment with organizational standards and commitments.
Advises and monitors the performance of vendors and/or contractors, ensuring compliance with security policies, non-disclosure agreements, contracts, and prior audit results. Reviews vendor performance relative to cash flow and budget summaries (with the cost management team) and clarifies those reports in presentations to the delivery and executive teams.
Reviews and approves vendor scope of work, design review of site and building plans, pay-application, and invoices.