M&E Commercial Director

James Lewis Recruitment

Commercial Director – Data Centre Campus

£120,000–£140,000 + car or allowance + bonus + PMI | M&E Design & Build | Hyperscale / AI Data Centres

We’re recruiting a Commercial Director to lead the commercial function on a flagship data centre campus – a multi-phase, high-density site delivering hyperscale/AI-ready facilities. You’ll own commercial strategy from pre-con through delivery and final account, protecting margin and managing risk across major M&E and fit-out packages while working closely with project leadership, client teams and a specialist supply chain.

What you are delivering

*

A clear commercial strategy for a multi-£10m, multi-phase data centre programme.

*

Robust contracts and subcontracts with balanced risk/reward and clear deliverables.

*

Accurate CVRs, forecasting and cashflow that give the board and client confidence.

*

Effective change management, claims and risk control to protect margin and programme.

*

Strong client and supply-chain relationships built on transparency and consistency.

*

A capable commercial team aligned to best-practice processes and project outcomes.

What you will run day to day

*

Own commercial governance: procedures, reporting and approvals across the campus.

*

Shape commercial input to bids and new phases – pricing strategies, contractual positions and risk registers.

*

Lead contract and subcontract negotiation (typically NEC/JCT), ensuring scope clarity and fair risk allocation.

*

Build and manage budgets for M&E plant, power, cooling, civils and commissioning packages.

*

Oversee change control – capture, value and agree variations, EWNs and compensation events.

*

Lead monthly CVRs, cashflow and forecast reviews with clear risk/opportunity commentary.

*

Direct procurement strategies for major packages; negotiate terms and framework agreements.

*

Maintain strong commercial records to avoid disputes and support entitlement where needed.

*

Act as senior commercial point-of-contact for client and internal stakeholders.

*

Line manage QSs/commercial managers – objectives, mentoring, appraisals and development.

What you need knowledge in

*

Commercial management of large, M&E-intensive or data centre / mission-critical projects.

*

NEC and JCT contracts (or similar), including target cost, lump sum and pain/gain mechanisms.

*

Data-centre cost drivers: power distribution, resilience, cooling, generators, UPS, security and controls.

*

Change control, claims, risk management and value engineering on high-capex schemes.

*

CVR methodology, cashflow forecasting and P&L management at project/programme level.

What you need experience in

*

Senior commercial role (Commercial Director / Head of Commercial / Senior Commercial Manager) for a main or M&E contractor.

*

Leading commercial delivery on major projects or programmes (£50m+ total value).

*

Negotiating main contracts and high-value subcontracts, including strategic supplier deals.

*

Demonstrable success in managing change, protecting margin and closing out final accounts.

*

Confident operator with client-side commercial/procurement teams and internal boards.

*

Track record of building and developing high-performing commercial teams.

Interested? Send your CV in confidence and we’ll run you through the campus, role structure and progression in detail