Turner & Townsend is seeking an experienced Associate Director â Cost Manager / Quantity Surveyor to provide strategic leadership and deliver expert cost management services on a major, missionâcritical hyperscale data center development. This multiâhundredâacre greenfield campus is progressing through early planning and preâconstruction, with multiple phases expected over several years and representing a significant longâterm capital investment in newâbuild data center capacity.
In this senior, clientâfacing leadership role, you will serve as the primary commercial interface, ensuring robust cost governance, commercial rigor, and strategic decisionâmaking across the project lifecycle. You will lead the development of baseline budgets, direct financial controls, shape procurement and contracting strategies, and drive value, risk, and performance outcomes as the program moves into active development.
Success in this role requires exceptional communication skills, strong commercial acumen, and the ability to influence and collaborate with senior stakeholders while providing leadership to internal teams.
The project site is located approximately 40 miles southwest of Chicago, in Grundy County. This position follows a hybrid model with onâsite presence 2â3 days per week, depending on project phase and client requirements.
Responsibilities:
- Serve as the primary clientâfacing cost leader, providing strategic guidance and ensuring delivery excellence.
- Build and maintain strong relationships with senior client stakeholders, consultants, and delivery partners.
- Prepare and present executiveâlevel commercial updates, recommendations, and strategic insights.
- Lead, mentor, and develop junior and midâlevel team members, fostering a highâperformance, collaborative culture.
- Lead the development and maintenance of detailed cost plans, estimates, and forecasts across design and delivery phases.
- Produce and present monthly cost reports, executive summaries, and financial updates.
- Ensure strong integration of cost, schedule, and scope to support holistic project control and predictability.
- Lead the establishment and implementation of cost governance frameworks and assurance processes.
- Lead procurement strategy development, advising on contracting approaches and commercial positioning.
- Oversee contractor and subcontractor pricing reviews, scope validation, and commercial negotiations.
- Manage and reconcile change orders, claims, postâcontract variations, and final accounts.
- Provide commercial stewardship throughout the lifecycle, ensuring compliance with internal controls and best practices.
- Lead value engineering initiatives and cost optimization strategies across design and delivery.
- Drive cost risk analysis, scenario planning, contingency management, and sensitivity testing.
- Monitor market trendsâincluding escalation, labor availability, and material pricingâand communicate impacts to stakeholders.
- Ensure adherence to Turner & Townsend Business Management Systems and delivery methodologies.
- Champion benchmarking, data integrity, and continuous improvement of cost management tools and processes.
- Track and manage financial performance across commissions, including margin, forecasting, and resource planning.
- Support business development by identifying crossâselling opportunities, contributing to proposals, and expanding market relationships.
- SOX control responsibilities may be part of this role and must be adhered to where applicable.