Design Manager - Nordics (Data Centre Design Manager)

Arcadis is the world’s leading company delivering sustainable design, engineering, and consultancy solutions for natural and built assets. We are more than 36,000 people in over 70 countries dedicated to improving quality of life.

Role description

The Data Centre Design Manager is responsible for overseeing the complete design process of data centre projects from preliminary design to construction and as‑built documentation. The role ensures all design packages are developed in line with client procedures, coordinates between multiple stakeholders, manages technical deliverables, and guarantees seamless integration across all project stages. This role will require travel to Norway and Finland—1 week in country and 1 week working from the UK.

Role accountabilities

• Design Package Management:
  • Oversee the full design package, ensuring compliance with client procedures and standards.
  • Coordinate the breakdown and packaging of works between Pads, Utilities, Foundations (PUF), Core & Shell (C&S), and Fit Out (FO).
• Stakeholder Coordination:
  • Lead and participate in design meetings with clients and design teams to ensure scope clarity and no delivery gaps.
  • Engage with the design team and vendors to define technical deliverables during the Draft IFC stage.
  • Ensure delivery of technical submittals via the Construction Submittal Register (CSR).
• Design Review & Quality Assurance:
  • Review preliminary designs before progressing to Draft IFC.
  • Manage BIM team to develop a clash‑free model by Final IFC stage.
  • Oversee delivery and review of Draft and Final IFC documentation.
  • Review constructability in line with the Move In Move Out (MIMO) report.
  • Participate in Risk Review meetings, ensuring all risks are identified and addressed in the design.
  • Ensure closure of all design issues raised by stakeholders.
• Permitting & Compliance:
  • Review and engage in the permit process to secure all necessary permits for construction commencement.
• Construction Phase Support:
  • Ensure contractors provide all required design deliverables per programme schedule.
  • Review contractors’ design submissions for quality and completeness.
  • Implement and manage a robust RFI procedure for timely resolution of design queries.
  • Ensure all construction changes are accurately captured in as‑built drawings and the final BIM model.
• Temporary Works & QA:
  • Oversee design and implementation of temporary works, ensuring robust procedures are in place.
  • Implement and maintain Design QA procedures throughout the project lifecycle.

Qualifications & Experience

• Degree in Architecture, Engineering, or a related field.
• Professional accreditation (e.g., CEng, PE, PMP) preferred.
• Minimum 8 years’ experience in design management for large‑scale data centre or mission‑critical infrastructure projects.
• Proven track record in managing design teams, BIM coordination, and technical submittals.
• Strong understanding of data centre design standards and processes.
• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills.
• Proficient in BIM software and project management systems.
• Ability to review complex technical documentation and ensure compliance.
• Strong problem‑solving and decision‑making capabilities.

Why Arcadis?

We can only achieve our goals when everyone is empowered to be their best. We believe everyone's contribution matters. It’s why we are pioneering a skills‑based approach, where you can harness your unique experience and expertise to carve your career path and maximize the impact we can make together. You’ll do meaningful work and help deliver sustainable solutions for a more prosperous planet.

Our Commitment to Equality, Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging

We want you to be able to bring your best self to work every day which is why we take equality and inclusion seriously and hold ourselves to account for our actions. Our ambition is to be an employer of choice and provide a great place to work for all our people. We believe that by working together diverse people with different experiences develop the most innovative ideas. Equality, diversity and inclusion is at the heart of how we improve quality of life and we work closely with our people across six ED&I Workstreams: Age, Disability, Faith, Gender, LGBT+ and Race.