Senior Project Manager - Program Excellence

A Snapshot 

As the Senior Manager, Development Program Excellence – Japan, reporting to the Development Director based in Tokyo, you will establish and continuously improve AirTrunk Japan's integrated development programme, planning standards and delivery methodology across the entire project portfolio. You will lead the Scheduling and Program Management function, driving schedule certainty, programme optimisation and continuous improvement from site acquisition through operational handover. You will define how AirTrunk plans, governs and continuously improves the delivery of hyperscale data centres in Japan. 

Your Day to Day 

Development Program Governance 

• Lead the Development Program Excellence function for Japan and manage the Scheduling / Program Management team. 
• Establish programme governance frameworks, planning standards and schedule quality requirements. 
• Develop programme KPIs, portfolio metrics and executive reporting standards. 
• Lead programme governance meetings and executive programme reviews. 
• Develop programme management policies, procedures and templates. 

Baseline Programme Development 

• Develop, maintain and continuously improve AirTrunk's integrated baseline development programme from site acquisition through operational handover. 
• Develop programme templates for multiple delivery strategies and project conditions. 
• Develop baseline programmes for Behind the Meter (BTM) on-site power generation facilities. 
• Develop programme models supporting modular, off-site manufactured and containerised delivery. 
• Develop planning assumptions for AI-ready and liquid-cooled hyperscale data centres. 
• Capture lessons learned and continuously improve baseline schedules. 

Programme Optimisation 

• Identify opportunities to shorten project duration while maintaining safety and quality. 
• Recommend alternative sequencing, procurement and construction strategies. 
• Quantify programme benefits from modularisation, prefabrication, factory acceptance testing and industrialised construction. 
• Evaluate impacts of procurement strategies on overall programme. 
• Drive continuous programme optimisation initiatives across the portfolio. 

Contractor Programme Review 

• Present AirTrunk baseline programmes during procurement and pre-construction. 
• Review contractor programmes and perform detailed gap analyses. 
• Challenge contractor assumptions and negotiate programme improvements. 
• Review programmes for modular construction, containerised solutions and BTM infrastructure. 
• Assess factory production schedules, logistics plans and installation sequences. 

Schedule Risk Management 

• Perform Critical Path Method (CPM) analysis. 
• Perform schedule risk analysis and develop mitigation strategies. 
• Develop and monitor recovery programmes. 
• Identify early warning indicators and support project recovery planning. 

Portfolio Planning 

• Maintain portfolio-wide programme visibility. 
• Identify portfolio-level resource constraints, interface risks and milestone conflicts. 
• Support executive decision-making through portfolio analysis and forecasting. 

Digital Programme Management 

• Lead digital programme management initiatives. 
• Promote 4D scheduling, Digital Twin integration and AI-assisted programme optimisation. 
• Develop dashboards and automate programme reporting. 

Lessons Learned & Best Practice 

• Maintain Japan Programme Best Practice Library. 
• Benchmark programme performance across projects. 
• Work with the Construction Innovation team to embed methodology improvements into baseline schedules. 
• Share Japan programme innovations across the APAC portfolio. 

Stakeholder & Executive Support 

• Partner with Design, Procurement, Commercial, Construction, Customer Success and Operations. 
• Prepare executive dashboards, programme reports, and investment papers. 
• Present programme recommendations to senior leadership. 
• Travel domestically and internationally as required. 

Minimum Requirements 

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Construction Management, Project Management or related discipline, or equivalent practical experience. 
• 10+ years' experience in programme management, project controls or planning for major infrastructure, mission-critical or hyperscale data centre developments. 
• Demonstrated experience developing portfolio-level integrated master programmes. 
• Extensive experience performing Critical Path Method (CPM) analysis. 
• Experience performing schedule risk analysis and recovery planning. 
• Strong expertise in programme optimisation and contractor programme review. 
• Hands-on experience with project scheduling software. Oracle Primavera P6 preferred; Microsoft Project acceptable. 
• Experience planning modular industrialised or off-site construction projects. 
• Experience planning Behind the Meter (BTM) power generation or major energy infrastructure is advantageous. 
• Strong stakeholder management, analytical, commercial, and executive communication skills. 
• Fluency in Japanese and English. 

Preferred Qualifications 

• Experience delivering hyperscale data centre developments. 
• Experience leading programme management or programme controls teams. 
• Experience with modular, off-site or containerised infrastructure. 
• Experience with AI-ready or liquid-cooled data centres. 
• Experience with Digital Twin, BIM 4D/5D or AI-enabled planning. 
• Knowledge of Japanese permitting, utilities and construction market. 
• Experience supporting investment committee approvals. 
• Experience working across APAC project portfolios.