Vice President, Commercial & Customer Partnerships

Ares Operations•Bellevue, WA

About The Position

Ada Infrastructure, part of Ares Management Corporation’s digital infrastructure platform, develops and operates data center solutions for hyperscale and enterprise customers across North America, Europe, Latin America, and Asia-Pacific. Its Revenue team connects customers with Investments, Legal, Solutions Engineering, Design, Development, Delivery, and Operations. The Vice President, Commercial & Customer Partnerships is a senior commercial leader responsible for strategic hyperscale customer relationships and complex data center transactions, from initial engagement through contracting, development, delivery, and ongoing account management. The role serves as the commercial owner for assigned customers and transactions, coordinating internal teams to develop solutions that meet customer requirements while protecting company economics and managing risk. It combines strategic account leadership with transaction execution and cross-functional influence; it is not a traditional transactional sales role. The position works with senior executives, investors, technical experts, and development leaders to shape commercial strategy and customer relationships during a period of global growth. The role reports to the SVP, Acquisitions & Commercial and requires travel as business needs require.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree required.
12 or more years of relevant experience within the data center industry, including substantial exposure to hyperscale customers and large-scale infrastructure transactions.
Demonstrated success leading complex data center lease negotiations and commercial transactions, with expertise across wholesale, build-to-suit, and hyperscale deployment models.
Strong financial and investment acumen, including experience evaluating project underwriting and investment considerations.
Technical understanding of large-scale data center infrastructure, including power, cooling, connectivity, density, and delivery requirements.
Exceptional commercial judgment and negotiation expertise.
Strong cross-functional leadership and ability to influence senior technical, legal, investment, operational, and executive stakeholders.
Outstanding executive presence, communication, and relationship management skills.
Proven ability to manage multiple complex transactions simultaneously in a dynamic growth environment.
Willingness and ability to travel as business needs require.

Nice To Haves

Advanced degree preferred.

Responsibilities

Serve as senior relationship owner for designated hyperscale and strategic customers, building trusted relationships across customer functions and executive leadership.
Develop customer infrastructure strategies, capacity requirements, procurement processes, technical priorities, and long-term growth plans into strategic account plans.
Coordinate executive engagement, business reviews, and major commercial escalations, maintaining customer relationship continuity from initial engagement through operational delivery.
Provide customer and market intelligence to inform site selection, product strategy, investment decisions, and portfolio planning.
Lead commercial coordination across Investments, Legal, Finance, Development, Engineering, and Delivery, aligning stakeholders on decisions and transaction strategy.
Structure, negotiate, and execute complex hyperscale transactions, including procurement processes, commercial terms, lease agreements, and risk allocation frameworks.
Maintain end-to-end ownership of commercial, contractual, and technical issues throughout the transaction lifecycle.
Balance customer requirements with company economics, delivery capabilities, schedule commitments, and risk profile to ensure transactions are executable and financially sound.
Partner with Investments teams on underwriting and internal approvals, evaluating customer requirements and deal terms for their effects on project economics, capital deployment, risk, and returns.
Support Investment Committee reviews and approvals by presenting transaction structures, assumptions, risks, and strategic rationale.
Collaborate with Solutions Engineering, Design, Development, and Delivery to translate customer requirements into commercially viable technical solutions.
Assess commercial implications of design decisions, power availability, cooling systems, density requirements, phased deployments, and construction delivery strategies.
Travel as business needs require.