Senior Program Manager, Real Estate Capital Projects, Americas
Vertiv · Westerville
Capital Project Delivery Operating Model
Vertiv's Capital organization serves as the owner-side project management function for real estate and facilities capital investments. Capital professionals are expected to be subject matter experts in project and program management and are accountable for ensuring projects achieve the business requirements, financial objectives, schedule commitments, quality expectations, and risk profile established by Vertiv.
Vertiv generally engages qualified third-party firms to perform detailed project execution, including project management/construction management, architecture, engineering, cost management, scheduling, construction, commissioning, and other technical services. Vertiv owns the project and business outcomes; qualified third parties execute the detailed project delivery activities.
- Business requirements development and validation
- Project objectives, scope, and success criteria
- Business case development and alignment with approved funding
- Owner-level budget, schedule, and milestone oversight
- Governance and stage-gate compliance
- Decision management and escalation
- Risk identification, mitigation, and escalation
- Scope and change control
- Executive and stakeholder reporting
- Cross-functional business coordination
- Commercial oversight and performance management of third-party delivery partners
- Commissioning, transition, and operational handover
Position Summary
The Sr. Program Manager, Real Estate Capital Projects, Americas is a senior owner-side project management professional responsible for leading complex, high-value, and strategically important capital projects and programs.
The role represents Vertiv throughout the project lifecycle and is accountable for integrating business requirements, capital investment objectives, third-party project execution, risk management, decision-making, and leadership governance.
The Sr. Program Manager is expected to independently lead projects where the path to delivery may not be fully defined and where significant business, technical, financial, operational, or stakeholder complexity must be resolved.
The role operates with a high degree of autonomy while maintaining alignment with the applicable regional Major Projects leader and Vertiv's global Capital governance framework.
Total value of assigned CapEx projects will generally range from $50M-$100M. At times may significantly exceed $100M.
Key Responsibilities Program Leadership
- Lead complex capital projects and multi-project programs from initial definition through completion and operational handover.
- Develop comprehensive project strategies aligned with business capacity, manufacturing, engineering, workplace, infrastructure, and real estate requirements.
- Establish project governance, decision rights, escalation protocols, stage gates, and performance expectations.
- Provide leadership across geographically and functionally diverse teams.
- Requirements & Business Integration
- Lead complex requirements-development processes involving senior business and functional stakeholders.
- Challenge requirements to distinguish critical business needs from discretionary scope.
- Ensure requirements are sufficiently defined before major design, procurement, or construction commitments.
- Maintain alignment among the approved business case, scope, capital investment, schedule, and operational objectives.
- Lead resolution of complex business decisions affecting project outcomes.
Owner-Side Delivery Management
- Act as Vertiv's senior owner representative for assigned programs.
- Direct the performance of third-party PM/CM, architecture, engineering, cost management, scheduling, and construction partners.
- Establish clear expectations and hold external suppliers accountable for delivery performance.
- Review and challenge execution strategies, master schedules, cost plans, procurement strategies, and recovery plans.
- Ensure owner decisions are identified, analyzed, and resolved early enough to protect project outcomes.
Financial & Commercial Management
- Maintain strong oversight of budgets, forecasts, contingencies, cash flow, committed costs, and potential exposures.
- Challenge cost growth and validate proposed scope and change requests.
- Partner with Finance and Procurement to maintain appropriate capital controls.
- Participate in sourcing strategy, consultant and contractor selection, contract development, and commercial negotiations.
- Evaluate financial and schedule implications of project alternatives and recommend appropriate actions.
Risk & Performance Management
- Establish disciplined risk-management processes across assigned projects and programs.
- Identify systemic and emerging risks before they impact business commitments.
- Develop mitigation and recovery strategies for cost, schedule, quality, permitting, utilities, procurement, construction, and operational risks.
- Lead intervention and recovery activities when projects materially deviate from approved plans.
- Escalate critical matters through the regional Major Projects leader with clear options and recommendations.
Governance & Reporting
- Deliver clear and concise reporting suitable for senior leadership.
- Present project status, financial performance, milestone achievement, risks, decisions, and required actions.
- Provide objective assessments of project health.
- Ensure project reporting accurately reflects underlying conditions.
- Facilitate project governance and investment reviews.
- Leadership & Capability Development
- Provide technical guidance and coaching to Program Managers and other project team members.
- Promote consistent owner-side project management practices.
- Share lessons learned and support continuous improvement.
- Support deployment of global Capital standards and processes.
- Lead or support Major Projects when assigned, operating within the governance established by the applicable regional Major Projects leader.
Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in engineering, construction management, architecture, business, real estate, or related discipline.
- Typically 10+ years of progressive capital project or program management experience.
- Demonstrated experience managing significant and complex construction or capital investment programs.
- Advanced understanding of project controls, cost management, scheduling, procurement, contracting, risk management, and change control.
- Strong experience managing external project management, design, engineering, cost, and construction organizations.
- Ability to operate independently with senior business leaders.
- Strong analytical, written, and executive communication skills.
- Ability to travel based on project requirements.
- Preferred Qualifications
- Experience delivering manufacturing, industrial, mission-critical, R&D, laboratory, warehouse, or technically complex facilities.
- Owner-side project management experience within a multinational corporation.
- Experience managing projects across multiple jurisdictions.
- PMP, CCM, RICS, PE, RA, or comparable professional certification.
- Experience with projects carrying significant operational or business-continuity risk.
Critical Competencies
Strategic project leadership • Owner-side judgment • Executive communication • Financial and commercial acumen • Risk anticipation • Decision management • Supplier leadership • Stakeholder influence • Problem solving • Organizational agility
The successful candidate will embrace Vertiv’s Core Principles & Behaviors to help execute our Strategic Priorities.
OUR CORE PRINCIPLES: Safety. Integrity. Respect. Teamwork. Inclusion.
OUR STRATEGIC PRIORITIES
• High-Performance Culture
• Customer Focus
• Operational Excellence
• Innovation
• Financial Strength
VERTIV BEHAVIORS
• Own it
• Act with urgency
• Foster a customer-first mindset
• Think big and execute
• Lead by example
• Drive continuous improvement
• Learn and seek out development
• Promote transparent & open communication
About Vertiv
Vertiv (NYSE: VRT) brings together hardware, software, analytics and ongoing services to enable its customers’ vital applications to run continuously, perform optimally and grow with their business needs. Vertiv solves the most important challenges facing today’s data centers, communication networks, and commercial and industrial facilities with a portfolio of power, cooling and IT infrastructure solutions and services that extend from the cloud to the edge of the network. Headquartered in Westerville, Ohio, USA, Vertiv employs around 34,000 people and does business in more than 130 countries. Visit Vertiv.com to learn more.
Work Authorization
No calls or agencies please. Vertiv will only employ those who are legally authorized to work in the United States. This is not a position for which sponsorship will be provided. Individuals with temporary visas such as E, F-1, H-1, H-2, L, B, J, or TN or who need sponsorship for work authorization now or in the future, are not eligible for hire.
Equal Opportunity Employer
Vertiv is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer. We promote equal opportunities for all with respect to hiring, terms of employment, mobility, training, compensation, and occupational health, without discrimination as to age, race, color, religion, creed, sex, pregnancy status (including childbirth, breastfeeding, or related medical conditions), marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity / expression (including transgender status or sexual stereotypes), genetic information, citizenship status, national origin, protected veteran status, political affiliation, or disability. If you have a disability and are having difficulty accessing or using this website to apply for a position, you can request help by sending an email to help.join@vertiv.com
The Sr. Program Manager, Real Estate Capital Projects, Americas is a senior owner-side project management professional responsible for leading complex, high-value, and strategically important capital projects and programs. The role represents Vertiv throughout the project lifecycle and is accountable for integrating business requirements, capital investment objectives, third-party project execution, risk management, decision-making, and leadership governance.