Associate Director Cost Manager​/Quantity Surveyor – Data Center Construction

Company Description

Turner & Townsend is a global professional services company with over 22,000 people in more than 60 countries. Working with our clients across real estate, infrastructure, energy and natural resources, we transform together delivering outcomes that improve people’s lives. Working in partnership makes it possible to deliver the world’s most impactful projects and programmes as we turn challenge into opportunity and complexity into success.

Our capabilities include programme, project, cost, asset and commercial management, controls and performance, procurement and supply chain, net zero and digital solutions. We are majority-owned by CBRE Group, Inc., the world’s largest commercial real estate services and investment firm, with our partners holding a significant minority interest. Turner & Townsend and CBRE work together to provide clients with the premier programme, project and cost management offering in markets around the world.

Turner & Townsend is seeking an experienced Associate Director –
Cost Manager / Quantity Surveyor to provide strategic leadership and deliver expert cost management services on a major, mission‑critical hyperscale data center development. This multi‑hundred‑acre greenfield campus is progressing through early planning and pre‑construction, with multiple phases expected over several years and representing a significant long‑term capital investment in new‑build data center capacity.

In this senior, client‑facing leadership role, you will serve as the primary commercial interface, ensuring robust cost governance, commercial rigor, and strategic decision‑making 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 13 miles west of Joliet, in Grundy County. This role offers a hybrid schedule with an expected presence on‑site 2–3 days per week, depending on project phase and client requirements.

• Serve as the primary client‑facing 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 executive‑level commercial updates, recommendations, and strategic insights.
• Lead, mentor, and develop junior and mid‑level team members, fostering a high‑performance, 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, post‑contract 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 trends—including escalation, labor availability, and material pricing—and 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…