116 3rd St SE
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QTS Data Centers CEO to step down
QTS in early stages of building major Cedar Rapids data center facility
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The founder and CEO who grew QTS Data Centers into a $60 billion global company over a 20-year span announced plans to step down April 18.
Chief Executive Officer and Chairman Chad Williams will return to his position as CEO of Quality Group of Companies, a diversified real estate and business services family office investment company from which QTS was originally founded.
Current QTS executives, David Robey, Chief Operating Officer and Tag Greason, Chief Growth Officer, have been appointed Co-CEOs to lead the company, the company said in a press release.
“We’ve been blessed to build the largest data center infrastructure company in the world, powered by people that are mission-minded and purpose-driven. In 2021, we had a unique opportunity to partner with Blackstone, the largest alternative asset manager in the world, and embark on an unprecedented journey of growth together,” Williams said in a statement.
“As I step away from this chapter in my life, I know I leave our 1,600+ QTSers in capable hands with David and Tag to continue to provide important support to our local communities and deliver world-class services to our amazing partners who entrust us with their most important infrastructure globally,” Williams said in a statement.
QTS is in the early stages of building a data center in Cedar Rapids. The project, with an investment of at least $750 million, is the largest project in the city’s history.
Calling him a “true pioneer,” Williams started QTS from scratch and has grown it into a $60 billion global industry leader, said Jon Gray, president and chief operating officer of Blackstone.
“We believe this will be one of the most successful investments in Blackstone’s history and are tremendously thankful for Chad’s entrepreneurship, unwavering dedication and leadership. He’ll be greatly missed,” Gray said. “At the same time, we couldn’t be more excited about the company’s future with one of the largest data center pipelines in the world and exceptional development capabilities.”
Robey and Greason bring nearly 30 years of QTS experience and industry excellence. Robey’s expertise comes in design and development and operation of critical infrastructure, while Greason’s experience comes from partnering with some of the largest tech companies in the world, the company said.
The QTS project is part of a 612-acre campus in southwest Cedar Rapids. The QTS data center, one of two expected to be built in Cedar Rapids, will feature a waterless cooling system, the company has said. As part of the development agreement with the city, QTS plans to invest $18 million over 20 years into a community betterment fund starting after the first phase of construction.
QTS Realty Trust, LLC, based in Overland Park, Kan., is a leading provider of data center solutions across a diverse footprint with over two gigawatts of critical power capacity under customer contract in North America and Europe. The company has 75 data centers operational or under development in the United States and Europe.
QTS was founded in 2003 and was purchased by Blackstone in 2021, according to the company web site. Blackstone is the world’s largest alternative asset manager and has nearly $1 trillion in assets under management.
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