Chief Development Officer

At Montera, we’re building the future of digital infrastructure. Founder-led with $1.5B backed by Stonepeak, Montera is driven by a future-focused vision: to develop and operate hyperscale data centers essential for tomorrow's technology. Our mission is to deliver strategically located, hyperscale data centers designed for speed, reliability, and scalability. Backed by decades of experience in design, construction, and operations, we don’t just build, we execute with purpose.

Our Values

• Client First Alignment: We align every solution to our clients’ goals.
• Speed with Certainty: Velocity matters. We deliver with urgency and precision.
• Operational Excellence: Decades of experience drive our high standards.
• Safety & Integrity: Safety is non-negotiable. We lead with integrity and transparency.
• Ownership Mentality: We think like owners, because we are.

Position Overview:

The Chief Development Officer (CDevO) is responsible for leading Montera's development organization and overseeing the front end of the hyperscale data center development lifecycle as the company expands its national development platform.

Reporting directly to the Chief Executive Officer and serving as a member of the executive leadership team, this role will own development strategy, market and site selection, land acquisition and control, utility and power strategy, technical due diligence, entitlement, permitting, and overall development readiness through handoff to the delivery organization.

The ideal candidate brings extensive experience developing large-scale data center or other complex infrastructure projects, deep expertise in powered-land development, and a strong understanding of the technical, commercial, and regulatory factors that influence project feasibility. Success in this role means building a scalable development organization, identifying and mitigating risk early in the development lifecycle, and consistently advancing projects from initial opportunity through construction readiness.

This is a hands-on executive leadership opportunity for someone who enjoys building teams and processes while remaining directly involved in high-value development projects and strategic decisions.

Key Responsibilities and Deliverables:

Development Strategy & Market Selection

• Lead Montera's overall development strategy and powered-land pipeline, identifying and prioritizing target markets based on power availability, customer demand, infrastructure, economics, and execution risk.
• Develop and execute strategies for expanding Montera's development portfolio while aligning opportunities with customer requirements and long-term business objectives.
• Establish repeatable processes and evaluation frameworks for moving opportunities from initial market screening through development and construction readiness.
• Champion a data-driven approach to market selection, site prioritization, and development risk assessment.
• Partner with executive leadership to evaluate potential development opportunities, capital commitments, and strategic investment decisions.

Site Origination, Land Acquisition & Development

• Oversee site origination, evaluation, acquisition, and land-control activities across target markets.
• Lead negotiations and development strategies involving landowners, brokers, developers, and other commercial stakeholders.
• Oversee land transactions, purchase and sale agreements, options, easements, title matters, and development agreements.
• Evaluate site constraints, infrastructure availability, development costs, and execution requirements before committing significant capital.
• Establish and maintain senior relationships with landowners, brokers, municipalities, developers, and other stakeholders critical to successful site development.

Power Strategy, Utilities & Infrastructure

• Lead utility engagement, load requests, interconnection strategy, and energization planning for new and existing development opportunities.
• Evaluate power availability, utility capacity, grid constraints, energization timelines, financial requirements, and potential curtailment exposure.
• Develop relationships with utilities, transmission providers, and other infrastructure stakeholders to support reliable and timely power delivery.
• Oversee the evaluation of utility infrastructure requirements, commercial arrangements, and associated development risks.
• Ensure that power availability, infrastructure readiness, and energization schedules are integrated into site selection and development decision-making.

Technical Due Diligence & Development Readiness

• Own the full site due diligence process across environmental, geotechnical, civil, survey, title, water, wastewater, telecommunications, power, and related disciplines.
• Ensure development risks, constraints, costs, schedules, and technical requirements are fully understood before significant capital commitments.
• Partner with Engineering, Product, Technology, and Delivery teams to ensure development sites meet customer specifications and technical requirements.
• Oversee development-stage design coordination, constructability reviews, budget considerations, and schedule risk assessments.
• Ensure fiber connectivity and telecommunications infrastructure requirements are incorporated into site planning and technical evaluations.
• Maintain executive accountability for the technical and commercial readiness of development sites before transitioning projects to the delivery organization.
• Establish clear development-to-delivery handoff standards, ensuring project risks, commitments, budgets, schedules, and outstanding requirements are documented and communicated.

Entitlements, Permitting & Community Engagement

• Lead land-use strategy, zoning, rezoning, annexation, parcelization, easements, entitlement, and development permitting activities.
• Develop and maintain strong relationships with municipalities, counties, regulatory authorities, and authorities having jurisdiction.
• Oversee permitting strategies and regulatory approvals to support project schedules and construction readiness.
• Lead site-level community engagement and government affairs strategies to support successful project development.
• Incorporate sustainability considerations, including energy, water, emissions, waste, land use, and biodiversity, into development planning and decision-making.
• Identify and mitigate regulatory, political, community, and environmental risks that could affect development timelines or project feasibility.

Organizational Leadership, Reporting & Cross-Functional Execution

• Build and scale Montera's Development organization as the project portfolio grows, recruiting and developing a high-performing multidisciplinary team.
• Establish clear accountability, performance expectations, reporting standards, and operating rhythms across the development function.
• Provide executive leadership with consistent visibility into development pipeline status, project risk, schedules, capital requirements, and key decisions.
• Collaborate with Delivery, Engineering, Product, Technology, Finance, and Commercial teams to align development activities with broader company objectives.
• Support customer and leasing discussions as Montera's senior authority on development strategy, project feasibility, and site readiness.
• Develop scalable development processes, governance frameworks, and decision-making tools that support disciplined execution as the organization expands.
• Foster a culture of accountability, collaboration, speed, and operational excellence within the development organization.

Requirements

Qualifications:

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Engineering, Real Estate Development, Business, Planning, Energy, or a related discipline.
• 15+ years of experience in data center development, large-scale infrastructure, energy, real estate development, or comparable environments.
• Significant leadership experience overseeing a development function, multidisciplinary team, or major development portfolio.
• Demonstrated experience taking large-scale development opportunities from site origination through land control, due diligence, entitlement, power/interconnection, permitting, and construction handoff.
• Deep understanding of utility engagement, power availability, interconnection processes, energization schedules, and related commercial considerations.
• Strong experience managing land transactions, purchase and sale agreements, options, easements, title matters, and development agreements.
• Experience leading multidisciplinary technical diligence and translating findings into commercial, investment, and development decisions.
• Strong understanding of zoning, entitlement, permitting, regulatory approvals, and community engagement.
• Demonstrated ability to evaluate complex development risks across power, infrastructure, environmental, technical, commercial, and regulatory disciplines.
• Experience building and scaling teams, processes, and organizational capabilities within a high-growth environment.
• Ability to work effectively with utilities, government officials, landowners, consultants, customers, investors, and executive leadership.
• Strong commercial judgment, executive presence, and excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Willingness and ability to travel regularly throughout the United States to support development activities and strategic business needs.

Preferred Skills:

• Direct experience leading hyperscale data center development or other large-load infrastructure projects.
• Experience building and managing a national or multi-market powered-land development pipeline.
• Established relationships with utilities, landowners, municipalities, developers, and infrastructure stakeholders across key U.S. markets.
• Experience evaluating large-scale power and infrastructure requirements, including utility capacity constraints, interconnection strategies, and energization risks.
• Familiarity with data center design requirements, fiber connectivity, site infrastructure planning, and construction readiness considerations.
• Experience managing community engagement, government affairs, and sustainability considerations for complex infrastructure projects.
• Ability to leverage data, market intelligence, and decision-support tools to evaluate development opportunities and prioritize investments.
• Experience establishing development processes, reporting frameworks, and governance standards within a growing organization.
• A hands-on leadership style that combines executive-level strategy with detailed project execution.
• Ability to operate independently, take ownership of ambiguous problems, and collaborate effectively in a founder-led, high-growth environment.

Work Environment & Physical Demands:

• Remote Work: Montera operates as a remote-first company. Employees are expected to maintain a professional, reliable remote work setup and appropriate availability during working hours.
• Travel Requirements: Regular domestic travel is required for site visits, utility and stakeholder meetings, development activities, and company leadership sessions.
• Physical Demands: This role involves standard office and computer-based work, participation in virtual and in-person meetings, and periodic visits to active development and construction sites, which may involve walking on uneven terrain and working in outdoor environments.
• Montera will provide reasonable accommodations to enable qualified individuals to perform the essential functions of the role, consistent with applicable law.

Benefits

Why Join Montera?

At Montera, you'll shape the next generation of digital infrastructure while being supported by a team that values integrity, collaboration, and long-term partnership. We're a remote-first company that empowers our people with flexibility, ownership, and meaningful rewards.

This position offers the opportunity to build and lead the development function within a rapidly growing hyperscale data center platform. Rather than overseeing a narrow segment of the development lifecycle within a large organization, you'll work directly with the CEO and executive leadership team to shape Montera's development strategy, establish a national powered-land pipeline, and advance complex infrastructure projects from initial market identification through construction readiness.

As Chief Development Officer, you'll have meaningful influence over the company's long-term growth strategy, development investments, organizational capabilities, and execution standards.

Compensation:

At Montera, we believe great work starts with investing in great people. That is why we offer a competitive and thoughtful total compensation package designed to recognize the value each team member brings.

Our compensation ranges are informed by market data and aligned to job level and role. When making hiring and compensation decisions, we consider a variety of factors, including skills, experience, education, training, competencies, and overall business needs.

The reasonable compensation range for this executive role is commensurate with experience and will be discussed during the interview process.

Our Benefits at a Glance:

• Comprehensive Health Coverage: We pay 90% of health premiums for employees and their dependents.
• Generous Time Off: Up to 8 weeks of paid time off per year, which includes holidays, PTO, and sick time.
• Parental Leave: Up to 8 weeks of paid time off after 6 months of employment.
• Financial Security: 401(k) plan with immediate eligibility, no vesting requirement, and employer match contributions up to 6%.
• Learning & Development Reimbursement: Up to $3,500 reimbursed annually for approved courses, certifications, conferences, and professional development opportunities.
• Extra Support: Remote work stipend to help you stay connected.

At Montera, you'll have the autonomy to do great work and the benefits to thrive personally and professionally.

Originally posted on Himalayas