Director, Data Center Contracts & Commercial Strategy

Director, Data Center Contracts & Commercial Strategy

Lambda is the superintelligence cloud, providing AI infrastructure to thousands of customers worldwide—from researchers to enterprises and hyperscalers. Founded in 2012 with over 500 employees, Lambda has built a platform designed to make computing as accessible as electricity. The company is backed by leading investors including NVIDIA, ARK Invest, In-Q-Tel, and others, and continues expanding rapidly to meet growing demand for GPU and high-performance computing capacity.

This role leads Lambda's commercial and contracting strategy for securing data center capacity. You'll own negotiations for the company's most critical infrastructure agreements, from current leased and colocation arrangements to future owned greenfield builds. Your work directly enables Lambda's ability to scale compute delivery to meet customer demand in a competitive market.

What you'll do

• Lead all data center capacity negotiations with landlords, colocation providers, and developers, setting strategy and managing agreements from initial proposals through execution and service orders

• Personally negotiate Lambda's largest infrastructure deals, balancing commercial terms across rent, power pricing, delivery timelines, expansion rights, and performance requirements

• Manage the existing portfolio of leases and colocation agreements, handling renewals, expansions, amendments, restructurings, and exits while tracking obligations and critical dates

• Build contracting strategies for owned capacity builds, including selecting delivery models such as guaranteed maximum price, cost-plus, and fixed lump sum arrangements with design firms, engineers, and general contractors

• Run competitive bidding processes and requests for proposals for leases, equipment, and construction, then evaluate and recommend awards

• Negotiate and execute master agreements with key providers, equipment manufacturers, designers, and contractors to secure favorable terms across multiple sites

• Establish contracting standards including term sheets, negotiation guardrails, templates, approval workflows, and governance frameworks that support organizational growth

• Protect delivery schedules through contract terms covering ready-for-service dates, delay credits, step-in rights, and service level agreements, holding partners accountable

• Partner with Data Center Development, Construction, Design, Capacity Planning, Finance, Legal, and Operations teams to deliver executive briefings on deal strategy, risks, and contingencies

What you'll bring

• Ten or more years of experience in data center or infrastructure contracting, commercial real estate leasing, strategic sourcing, or procurement

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Finance, Real Estate, Supply Chain Management, Engineering, or related field, or equivalent professional experience

• Demonstrated track record as a lead negotiator who has personally closed complex, large-scale agreements typically valued at $100 million or more

• Direct experience negotiating data center leases or colocation agreements with understanding of how capacity is priced, structured, and delivered

• Understanding of data center lifecycle stages—land acquisition, power and utilities, design, equipment procurement, construction, and commissioning—and how each impacts delivery

• Experience managing contracts post-signature, including renewals, amendments, change orders, claims, and project closeout

• Ability to establish process, policy, or governance standards that organizations adopt and scale

• Comfortable briefing senior executives, building compelling business cases, and persuading leadership on strategic decisions

• Capability to operate effectively amid ambiguity, compressed timelines, and parallel negotiations in supply-constrained environments

Nice to have

• Experience securing capacity for hyperscalers, AI clouds, or large-scale GPU and high-performance computing deployments

• Prior experience working for landlords, developers, colocation providers, or construction contractors

• Experience managing complex construction programs in semiconductor, energy, or similar sectors

• Track record building contracting or sourcing functions from limited existing infrastructure

What they offer

• Competitive cash and equity compensation

• Health, dental, and vision coverage for you and your dependents

• Wellness and commuter stipends for eligible roles

• 401k plan with 2 percent company match for US employees

• Flexible paid time off

The position is based in our San Francisco office on Fremont Street and operates on a hybrid schedule, requiring office presence four days per week with Tuesday designated as the remote work day.