Associate Data Center Capacity Engineer Jobs in Illinois

Equinix is the world’s digital infrastructure company®, shortening the path to connectivity to enable the innovations that enrich our work, life and planet. 

Job Summary
Provides direct supervision to a team of data center operations and infrastructure personnel, ensuring the reliable, safe, and efficient operation of critical facility systems and site infrastructure. Assigns and prioritizes work, monitors performance, manages schedules, and supports the development of team members. Partners with cross-functional teams and vendors to ensure operational excellence, infrastructure reliability, and compliance with company standards

Responsibilities
Management

• Provides day-to-day supervision to a team of technicians, operators, or support personnel within the data center environment

• Assigns tasks, monitors work progress, and ensures adherence to operational procedures, safety standards, and service level expectations

• Manages personnel activities including hiring, onboarding, performance management, coaching, employee development, recognition, and corrective action as needed

• Develops team capabilities through training, mentoring, and succession planning initiatives

• Maintains team schedules and staffing coverage to support business and operational requirements, including after-hours support when necessary

• Promotes a culture of safety, accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement

Project / Infrastructure Site Management

• Plans, coordinates, and executes projects, maintenance activities, and operational initiatives within the data center environment

• Provides oversight of site infrastructure and critical facility systems, including electrical distribution, UPS systems, generators, switchgear, cooling systems, HVAC, fire/life safety systems, and building management systems

• Supports capacity planning activities and helps ensure infrastructure readiness to meet current and future business demands

• Monitors infrastructure performance, identifies risks, and drives corrective actions to maintain operational reliability and uptime

• Provides input into operational budgets, resource planning, and capital improvement initiatives

• Coordinates cross-functional activities with operations, engineering, construction, security, and customer-facing teams

Vendor Management

• Oversees contractors, service providers, and maintenance vendors to ensure work is completed safely, on schedule, and in accordance with company standards and regulatory requirements

• Reviews vendor performance, work quality, and compliance with established maintenance and operational procedures

Testing and Commissioning

• Supports startup, commissioning, and functional testing of facility infrastructure and equipment

• Documents test results, identifies deficiencies, and coordinates remediation activities

• Ensures maintenance and testing records are accurately completed and retained

Incident Management

• Serves as an escalation point during site incidents, outages, and emergency situations

• Coordinates on-site resources and communications to support timely issue resolution and business continuity

• Participates in root cause analysis, incident reviews, and corrective action planning to prevent recurrence

Qualifications
Required

• Bachelor's degree in engineering, Facilities Management, Operations Management, Technical Discipline, or equivalent combination of education and experience

• Minimum 5 years of experience in critical facilities, infrastructure operations, data center operations, industrial facilities, or a related mission-critical environment

• Minimum 2 years of direct people leadership, supervisory, or team lead experience with responsibility for performance management, coaching, and employee development

• Working knowledge of critical infrastructure systems, including electrical power distribution, UPS systems, generators, switchgear, HVAC, cooling systems, building management systems (BMS), and fire/life safety systems

• Experience coordinating maintenance activities, infrastructure projects, and vendor-supported work

• Strong problem-solving, organizational, and decision-making skills in a fast-paced operational environment

• Effective verbal and written communication skills with the ability to collaborate across technical and non-technical teams

Preferred

• Experience in a data center, colocation, mission-critical, telecommunications, manufacturing, or similar 24x7 operations environment

• Working knowledge of capacity planning, change management, incident management, and preventive maintenance programs

• Experience managing multiple priorities, projects, and operational initiatives simultaneously

• Relevant industry certifications such as Certified Data Centre Professional (CDCP), Facilities Management certifications, Electrical/Mechanical certifications, or Project Management credentials

• Familiarity with CMMS, BMS, and other operational monitoring and reporting systems