Area Technical Officer at Airtel

About the Role:

The job purpose is to coordinate, control, manage, support and track day-to-day network operations in the Zone to ensure optimal network availability, coverage, maintaining target network KPIs to deliver plus one network quality; providing local network support for both the Sales and Marketing team in the Zones to ensure that network impacting issues are proactively resolved. 

Responsibilities

Day to day management of all Zonal Network Operations & maintenance strategic partners (SPS) to deliver optimal availability and QoS

• Support the operational interface with both internal and external stakeholders, especially commercial teams, to ensure customer issues are resolved within acceptable KPIs.
• Track the special events calendar with ZBM and marketing functions and ensure best-in-class service delivery during special events within the zone.
• Track zonal network performance across various KPIs and network availability metrics.
• Support periodic audits of all transmission, core, and radio networks, as well as preventive maintenance schedule audits.
• Ensure that special tasks or projects required by HQ Technical are executed within the zone.
• Work closely with the E//MS team to develop processes that prevent or reduce network failures.
• Track and ensure that colo partners deliver on agreed SLAs.
• Ensure SAQ activities are up to date, including rental renewals and lease payments, in collaboration with zonal finance.
• Follow up with various internal functions, managed services (MS) partners, and colo partners on all issues affecting radio network availability, quality, and customer experience.
• Ensure that security and community issues do not delay site closures.
• Advise on and ensure the implementation of preventive measures by MS partners and colo partners to improve network performance.
• Ensure adherence to all applicable regulatory requirements.
• Audit and support zonal spares management to ensure the availability of both critical and non-critical spares in zonal warehouses.
• Analyze network experience by conducting weekly trend analyses of complaint volumes and types.
• Ensure proactive and continuous improvement of customer experience and perception within the zone.
• Ensure power availability for all IBS sites that have not been transferred to the tower company.
• Drive continuous network improvement within the zone by developing improvement plans and following up with relevant network functions.

Prepare and manage the annual Zonal operating plans OPEX (AOPs) for all the active and passive network systems in Airtel Nigeria (Financial)

• Direct the compilation of the annual zonal operating plan for Airtel Nigeria Networks.
• Drive the achievement of annual zonal operating plan targets and all local and group operating expenditure–saving initiatives to ensure optimization of all network investments.
• Ensure key focus on recurring operating expenditure.

Drive end-to-end process documentation and ensure compliance with processes, procedures, and policies for seamless operations across all service providers.

• Establish an SLA measurement framework to ensure all service providers are accurately evaluated, rewarded, and penalized. 
• Identify, document, and implement processes, procedures, and policies to continuously improve operational efficiency. 
• Ensure all network facilities are maintained in line with global best practices.

Regulatory compliance

• Ensure all operations and maintenance activities in the zone comply with applicable regulatory requirements.

Partner Management

• Ensure effective processes for managing service providers. 
• Ensure zonal service provider requirements are adequately supported by both local and central network teams.

Qualifications

Educational Qualifications  

• Bachelor of Electrical /Electronic Engineering or Telecoms Engineering
• Master’s degree in engineering a plus

Relevant Experience  & Functional / Technical Skills

• Minimum of 8 years of varied experience in operation and maintenance in the Telecom industry
• 3-5 years managerial/Supervisory experience in a GSM/mobile company
• Sound knowledge of Mobile Network O&M

Other requirements 

• Analytical and presentation skills
• Strategic negotiation skills 
• Entrepreneurial disposition in decision making and managing resources
• Logical decision making abilities
• Flexible and dedicated
• Ability to innovate and deliver value to business 
• Ability to manage an outsourcing partner to effectively deliver on service level agreements
• Ability to motivate and lead both internal and external partners
• Impeccable integrity and character