Senior Manager, EHS – Special Projects, NA

Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) Department

The Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) team collaborates closely with Construction, Operations, Contractors, Vendors, and regulatory agencies to ensure health, safety, and environmental risks are effectively managed across Vantage Data Centers. At Vantage, safety is a core value that guides everything we do. By empowering every individual to lean into safety initiatives and executing our executive mandate to place safety at the forefront of all activities, we foster a culture of excellence through planning, training, vigilance, measurement, and partnership—fully aligned with operational and construction goals.

Position Overview

This is an onsite role working from our Santa-Clara, CA OR Ashburn, VA data center. Hybrid or some work from home option may be available pending stakeholder needs.

The Senior Manager, EHS – Special Projects provides strategic EHS leadership and governance for high‑risk remediation and special projects executed in live, operational data center environments across North America.

This role partners closely with Special Projects leadership, Project Managers, Operations, and contractors to ensure work is delivered safely, compliantly, and without disruption to critical operations. The Senior Manager leads through an outward mindset and servant‑leadership approach, enabling teams to succeed while maintaining firm controls where risk demands it.

This role is responsible for translating complex field risk into clear, executive‑level insight, driving consistency across regions, and developing EHS capability and coverage in support of a growing Special Projects portfolio.

Essential Job Functions

• Provide EHS governance, oversight, and risk‑based decision support for Special Projects across North America.

• Serve as a trusted advisor to Special Projects leadership and Project Managers.

• Ensure regulatory compliance related to remediation, construction safety, hazardous materials, and environmental requirements.

• Integrate EHS controls into planning and execution for work performed near live and energized systems.

• Establish and enforce contractor EHS expectations, reviews, and accountability mechanisms.

• Oversee incident prevention strategies, investigations, and corrective action closeout.

• Develop EHS staffing strategies and support the scaling of Special Projects as the business evolves.

• Translate field‑level risk into concise, executive‑ready reporting and insight.

• Coach, mentor, and support EHS Managers assigned to Special Projects.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Report to the Director / Senior Director, EHS (as applicable) and provide regional leadership for Special Projects EHS.

• Partner with EHS leadership to drive standardization and consistent application of policies, procedures, and expectations.

• Provide oversight of high‑risk activities including intrusive work, energized systems, confined spaces, hot work, lifting, and work at height.

• Ensure Special Projects operate beyond minimum regulatory compliance and align with Vantage EHS standards.

• Guide Project and Operations leadership in making sound safety decisions in live‑site environments.

• Review and influence project execution plans where risk to people or uptime is elevated.

• Support and guide incident investigations and root cause analysis to prevent recurrence.

• Analyze safety trends, emerging risks, and performance metrics across regions.

• Present safety‑related topics and metrics to executive leadership as required.

• Drive a predictable, disciplined, and scalable EHS approach across the Vantage portfolio.

• Perform additional duties as assigned by management.

What Success Looks Like

• Serious incidents are prevented, not reacted to.

• Project Managers make strong safety decisions independently.

• Contractors clearly understand expectations and are held accountable.

• Operations teams are confident in Special Projects work near live infrastructure.

• Consistent, predictable execution across regions and sites.

Job Requirements

Experience & Capabilities

• Demonstrated experience leading safety, risk, or operational oversight in construction, remediation, industrial, utilities, mission‑critical, or similarly high‑risk environments
  OR

• Equivalent leadership experience where people safety, operational discipline, and decision‑making under pressure were core to the role.

• Ability to operate confidently in live or operational environments where mistakes have real consequences.

• Strong working knowledge of regulatory frameworks, or the ability to learn and apply them quickly with discipline and curiosity.

• Proven ability to influence senior stakeholders and lead through others.

• Willingness to travel approximately 20% across North America.

Certifications (Preferred, Not Required)

We value sound judgment, leadership under pressure, and the ability to protect people and operations over any single credential. Certifications strengthen the role but do not replace proven experience.

Preferred certifications may include:

• Certified Safety Professional (CSP) or Associate Safety Professional (ASP)

• Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH)

• Construction Health and Safety Technician (CHST)

• Certified Hazardous Materials Manager (CHMM)

• NEBOSH (General or Construction Certificate)

• Project Management Professional (PMP) or equivalent

• Professional Engineer (PE) or equivalent technical license (where applicable)

Equally Valued Backgrounds & Experiences

We intentionally welcome candidates with service‑oriented or non‑traditional paths, including:

• Project Managers with strong safety and risk focus

• Firefighters, EMTs, emergency responders, or military veterans

• Trade professionals who have led crews and owned job‑site safety

• Teachers, trainers, or coaches skilled at influencing behavior

• Operations leaders who have protected people and systems under pressure

What matters most is judgment, care for people, and the ability to lead through others.

Leadership & Mindset Expectations

Successful candidates consistently demonstrate:

• Genuine care for people—not just compliance

• A servant‑leadership mindset

• Strong coaching and mentoring capability

• Calm, confident presence in high‑pressure situations

• Integrity, authenticity, and follow‑through

• A process‑oriented approach that creates clarity and predictability

• Willingness to learn, adapt, and grow as the business evolves

This Role Is a Fit If You:

• Lead by example, even when it’s hard

• Believe safety is built into planning—not inspected later

• Are comfortable challenging decisions respectfully when risk is real

• Take pride in helping others succeed safely

• See safety, operations, and business outcomes as connected—not competing