Data center power and energy executive search

Retained search across power and energy for data centers, from utility strategy and interconnection through on-site generation, electrical engineering and energy procurement. Vice president to C‑suite.

Key roles we place ↓

Overview

What we do in data center power and energy

Metric DCX places senior and executive leaders across power and energy for data centers, covering utility strategy and interconnection, on-site and behind the meter generation, electrical engineering and energy procurement. Searches are retained and run from vice president through C-suite.

Power is the reason most data center projects succeed or stall, and the leadership around it has changed accordingly. What used to be a procurement function now sits close to the board, because the person who can secure capacity determines what the business is able to build.

Roles

The roles we place in data center power and energy

VP Energy Power strategy across a portfolio, from utility relationships to generation.
Head of Interconnection Queue position, studies and utility negotiation.
Director of Electrical Engineering Power train design standards from utility to rack.
Head of Energy Procurement Contracts, hedging and power purchase agreements.
Director of On-Site Generation Behind the meter generation, fuel cells and storage.
Head of Sustainability Carbon strategy, reporting and clean power sourcing.
Grid Strategy Lead Long range utility planning and regulatory engagement.
Chief Operating Officer Operational leadership across a power and energy function.
Director of Critical Power Projects Critical power and electrical project delivery for data center builds.

+ many others

Within this sector

What data center power and energy covers

Utility & Interconnection

Queue strategy, studies and the relationship that secures capacity.

On-Site Generation

Behind the meter generation, storage and fuel cells.

Electrical Engineering

Power train design from the substation to the rack.

Energy Procurement & Sustainability

Contracts, clean power sourcing and carbon reporting.

Market

Hiring in data center power and energy right now

Power availability is now the single biggest constraint on data center growth, and hiring has followed it. Roles that did not exist as standalone jobs until recently, particularly around interconnection and on-site generation, are being filled at vice president level.

The people who can do this work mostly come from utilities and independent power producers rather than from data centers, and they are being hired by hyperscalers, colocation providers and the developers behind both. That is three industries competing for one group of candidates that was never large.

Behind the meter generation has moved from a contingency to a strategy. Fuel cells, gas turbines and storage are being planned into sites from the start, and very few people have delivered that alongside a data center build. Expect to hire for the capability rather than find it ready made.

Common questions

Power and energy hiring questions

The questions clients ask most often before briefing a power or energy search.

How long does a power or energy search take?

We work to seven days to a shortlist on most briefs. How long the search takes after that depends on the role and on notice periods, so we set out a realistic timeline with you at the start.

Do you work retained or contingent?

Retained. Our power and energy consultants have spent years building relationships in this market, so most shortlists start from people we already know, and talent mapping, backed by our marketing reach, covers the rest of the market so nobody credible gets missed. Retained is what lets us give that kind of time to one brief.

Do you place below vice president?

Yes. Most briefs sit at vice president and above, but we regularly run director and senior manager searches where the role carries a market or a design standard. An interconnection lead in a constrained market, or an electrical engineering lead setting a design standard would be typical. What matters is whether it is a hire you cannot afford to get wrong.

Do these people come from the data center industry?

Mostly not, and that is the point. The deepest power and interconnection experience sits in utilities and independent power producers, and we spend a lot of these searches there. They need to learn the data center context, which takes months. Waiting for someone who already has both usually takes longer than that.