Assistant Director, Data Center Facilities

Assistant Director, Data Center Facilities

Office of Information Technology, Brown University

This role involves supervising a team responsible for maintaining multiple OIT Data Center Facilities located at 115 Waterman St, 180 George St, 121 South Main St, Friedman Hall, OSHEAN Data Center in Springfield, Massachusetts, and additional facilities as needed. The primary focus includes receiving, installing, removing, maintaining, and coordinating equipment and related activities, ensuring timely support for OIT technical teams.

Key responsibilities include:

• Directing staff in monitoring and documenting physical layout and environmental aspects of the facility.
• Assisting staff with equipment racking and stacking.
• Coordinating with Facilities Management and vendors for electrical, mechanical, HVAC, and other systems.
• Cultivating a culture of continuous improvement and exploring automation opportunities.
• Providing secondary support across all areas and cross‑training team members in wiring, racking, monitoring, and automated systems.
• Coordinating a 24‑hour on‑call incident management rotation and acting as primary responder for escalation.

The position is eligible for remote work but requires frequent on‑campus presence based on operational needs.

• Bachelor's degree (preferred). Higher education experience preferred.
• 5‑10 years managing datacenter operations and facility.
• Supervisory experience required.
• Experience in power and cooling management in a high‑performance computing environment.
• Leading small projects required.

• Strong understanding of HVAC/data center cooling systems (CRAC/CRAH, in‑row cooling, rear‑door heat exchangers, chilled water systems).
• Knowledge of power distribution (PDUs, RPPs, UPS, dual power feeds, generator systems).
• Experience with environmental monitoring platforms (temperature, humidity, leak detection, airflow).
• Expertise in rack/stack design and layouts (hot aisle/cold aisle, containment strategies, rack elevations).
• Knowledge of DCIM platforms such as Sunbird.
• Knowledge of hot/cold aisle containment engineering.
• Experience managing vendors for:
  • Electrical/cooling upgrades
  • Cabling projects
  • Data center expansions and colocation services

• Experience with physical security technologies:
  • Badge systems
  • Key/lock systems (e.g., Traka key cabinets)
  • NIST audit requirements
• Familiarity with high‑speed networking standards:
  • 10/25/40/100
    
    GbE
  • QSFP/SFP transceiver standards
  • Fiber types (OM3/OM4/OS2)
• Experience facilitating requests and tasks across technical teams.
• Demonstrated customer service skills.
• Demonstrated organizational skills.
• Ability to adapt to a rapidly changing environment.
• Service‑excellence focus.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Experience leading departmental collaboration.

Information on the Benefits of Working at Brown can be found here.

Please submit an application form for each position for which you believe you are qualified, including a cover letter and resume. Applications are not kept on file for future positions.

Brown University is not eligible for visa sponsorship.

Brown is an E‑Verify Employer.

EEO Statement:
Brown University provides equal opportunity and prohibits discrimination, harassment and retaliation based upon a person's race, color, religion, sex, age, national or ethnic origin, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, or any other characteristic protected under applicable law, in the administration of its policies, programs, and activities.

If you have any questions, please contact employment.