[Hiring] Director, Business Operations Support @Cushman & Wakefield

Role Description

Reporting into the Head of Global Data Centers – IFM, this role is accountable for supporting the strategy, operating model, governance, and business management infrastructure required to scale the firm’s data center platform. Serving as a strategic support to leadership, this role converts growth ambitions into disciplined priorities into measurable business outcomes. This role supports cross-functional planning across operations, finance, people, technology, compliance, business intelligence, solutioning, transitions, communications, and pursuits. The role supports platform success, measures performance, and enables execution across a complex matrix organization.

Qualifications

• 12+ years of progressive experience in strategy, business operations, enterprise PMO, platform management, management consulting, or complex operational leadership, including significant experience influencing senior executives.
• Demonstrated success building or transforming operating models in complex, matrixed, multi-account, multi-client, or rapidly scaling environments.
• Strategic planning and business management capability, including portfolio prioritization, resource allocation, performance management, governance design, organizational alignment, and executive decision support.
• Strong commercial and financial acumen, with the ability to connect operating choices to growth, profitability, investment, risk, client value, and long-term enterprise performance.
• Experience within data centers, mission-critical facilities, integrated facilities management, engineering operations, or another highly regulated and operationally complex environment strongly preferred.
• Working knowledge of asset management, maintenance strategy, CMMS platforms, safety, quality, compliance, ISO frameworks, and operational risk; deep technical engineering expertise is not required, but credibility with technical leaders is essential.
• Exceptional executive communication and influence skills, including the ability to synthesize complex information, challenge assumptions, create alignment, and drive decisions across stakeholders with competing priorities.
• Proven ability to lead through ambiguity, establish structure where none exists, and move an organization from concept to repeatable enterprise capability.
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent combination of education and substantial relevant leadership experience required; advanced degree preferred.
• Ability to travel 25%.

Requirements

• Support data center platform leadership to define strategic priorities, annual goals, operating objectives, and platform maturity milestones.
• Support the development of the Data Center IFM roadmap, including near-term operational needs, long-term scalability requirements, growth priorities, and account support models.
• Convert strategy into actionable workstreams, governance routines, deliverables, timelines, and ownership structures.
• Support the development of current-state and the future-state assessments of Data Center vision, including operating model, reporting, technology, staffing, and business enablement needs; define the interventions required to close material gaps.
• Support the collaboration with cross-functional teams (Finance, HR, Sourcing, Account Management, Technical Services, etc) to align strategic planning with pursuit activity, transition planning, account mobilization, client expectations, and operational readiness.
• Track progress against strategic initiatives and provide leadership with clear updates on status, barriers, risks, and recommended next steps.
• Support the development and evolution of the data center platform operating model, including governance routines, account support structure, roles and responsibilities, escalation pathways, and standard ways of working.
• Support accounts to ensure they meet expectations, client commitments, compliance requirements, reporting standards, and internal business processes.
• Create visibility into platform health through executive reporting, management insights, risk indicators, maturity measures, and forward-looking analysis that support timely intervention.
• Support collaboration across Global Occupier Services and enterprise functions, resolving ownership gaps, surfacing systemic barriers, and aligning stakeholders around common business outcomes.
• Support strategic initiatives that improve platform maturity, scalability, account consistency, and operational readiness.
• Track workstreams, risks, owners, deadlines, and dependencies across platform priorities.
• Drive execution across matrixed teams by removing barriers, resolving dependencies, escalating material risks, and maintaining focus on intended business outcomes.
• Assess whether programs are delivering measurable value and recommend acceleration, redesign, consolidation, or termination when results do not justify continued investment.
• Ensure audit readiness, contractual discipline, policy alignment, and operational controls are embedded into the operating model rather than managed as disconnected administrative activities.
• Support Standards & Compliance, Transition and operational leaders to define the controls, evidence, reporting, and escalation mechanisms required for responsible growth and execution.
• Provide senior-level strategic content and operational substantiation for pursuits, client presentations, diligence, and executive discussions; this role is not a proposal-writing or coordination function.
• Support the platform’s growth narrative by articulating the operating model, governance, capabilities, proof points, differentiators, and enterprise support structure that strengthen market credibility.
• Capture lessons from wins, losses, transitions, and account performance to refine the platform strategy, value proposition, and future investment priorities.
• Support the build out of alignment among senior leaders and account teams by translating strategy into a compelling case for change, clear expectations, and practical implications for the business.
• Develop executive-level narratives, board-quality materials, leadership briefings, and strategic communications that clarify direction, performance, decisions, and organizational priorities.
• Act as a trusted advisor and support across diverse technical, operational, commercial, and corporate functions, influencing outcomes without relying on direct authority.

Benefits

• Health, vision, and dental insurance.
• Flexible spending accounts.
• Health savings accounts.
• Retirement savings plans.
• Life and disability insurance programs.
• Paid and unpaid time away from work.
• Competitive pay, which may vary depending on eligibility factors such as geographic location, date of hire, total hours worked, job type, business line, and applicability of collective bargaining agreements.