Chief Development Officer in London

A rare opportunity to join a well-capitalised data centre platform at a pivotal stage of its growth journey. Backed by substantial financial resources and an experienced leadership team, our client has successfully secured multiple strategic sites and is now entering an accelerated development and construction phase. With ambitious plans to establish a leading presence across the UK and Europe, the business is seeking an exceptional Chief Development Officer to lead the delivery of its next stage of expansion.

The Opportunity

Reporting directly to the CEO and working closely with investors, the Chief Development Officer will assume responsibility for the development strategy, execution and delivery of a growing portfolio of hyperscale and AI-ready data centre assets across Europe. This is a board-level leadership role with responsibility for transforming secured opportunities into operational assets, building and leading a high-performing development organisation, and establishing the platform as a recognised market leader.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the end-to-end development lifecycle from site acquisition handover through planning, permitting, design, construction and delivery.
• Develop and execute the company's European development strategy, identifying and prioritising new market opportunities.
• Build, mentor and lead a multidisciplinary development team across development, construction, technical and project management functions.
• Manage relationships with landowners, utilities, planning authorities, consultants, contractors and key stakeholders.
• Oversee project budgets, schedules, risk management and governance frameworks.
• Drive value creation through strategic development decisions, cost optimisation and programme delivery.
• Support capital raising activities, investment committee presentations and board reporting.
• Establish scalable processes and best-in-class development standards to support rapid European expansion.
• Collaborate closely with hyperscale, cloud and enterprise customers to align development programmes with market demand.

Candidate Profile

The successful candidate will bring a proven track record of delivering large-scale mission-critical, infrastructure, industrial, logistics, energy or data centre developments. We are particularly interested in individuals who can demonstrate:

• Extensive senior leadership experience in data centre development, mission-critical infrastructure or related sectors.
• A strong understanding of planning, permitting, utilities, grid connections and development processes across multiple European jurisdictions.
• Experience managing complex capital projects with values exceeding £100 million.
• A commercial mindset combined with strong technical and operational capability.
• Existing relationships across the European data centre, infrastructure and construction ecosystem.
• The ability to operate effectively in a fast-paced entrepreneurial environment.
• Experience building teams and platforms through periods of significant growth.
• Exceptional stakeholder management, negotiation and leadership skills.

Why Join?

• Opportunity to shape a platform from its formative stages into a leading European developer and operator.
• Secured development pipeline with active projects moving into execution.
• Significant capital backing and long-term investment horizon.
• Direct influence on corporate strategy and growth.
• Highly competitive executive compensation package, including meaningful long-term incentive participation.

For a confidential discussion regarding this opportunity, interested candidates should contact us directly.