Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Wireless Network Director

🎯 Role Definition

The Wireless Network Director leads strategy, design, deployment, and lifecycle optimization of mobile wireless networks (2G/3G/4G/LTE and 5G). This senior leader directs multi-disciplinary teams (RF engineering, transport, core, field operations, NOC) to deliver high-performance, secure, and cost-effective wireless infrastructure. Responsibilities span network architecture, capacity planning, vendor and contract management, program delivery, regulatory and spectrum compliance, and continuous improvement using automation and data-driven processes.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Senior RF/Access Network Manager
RAN Program Manager or Head of Radio Planning
Director of Network Operations or Transport Engineering

Advancement To:

VP of Network Engineering
Chief Technology Officer (CTO)
Head of Global Wireless Operations

Lateral Moves:

Director, Network Architecture & Planning
Director, Core Network & Cloud Services

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Own the end-to-end strategy and roadmap for the wireless radio access network (RAN) — including 4G/LTE optimization and 5G buildouts — aligning technical plans with business goals, subscriber growth forecasts, and cost targets.
Lead, mentor and grow cross-functional teams (RF, RAN optimization, transport, field operations, NOC, vendor PMs) to ensure timely delivery of network expansion, modernization and upgrade programs.
Manage RAN capacity planning and performance forecasting by translating traffic models, subscriber growth and service mix into network build and optimization priorities.
Direct RF planning, propagation analysis, and site layout decisions for macro sites, small cells, Distributed Antenna Systems (DAS) and in-building solutions to meet coverage and quality-of-service targets.
Oversee 5G architecture design (NSA/SA), vRAN/cloud RAN (vRAN), and Open RAN evaluation and adoption, ensuring interoperability with existing LTE infrastructure and OSS/BSS systems.
Drive network performance management and KPI governance (e.g., throughput, latency, drop rate, CAS, MOS) using analytics platforms and real-time monitoring to proactively address degradations.
Establish and enforce network quality assurance, acceptance testing procedures, and RF benchmarking during rollouts, vendor factory acceptance tests (FAT), site acceptance tests (SAT), and integration phases.
Lead vendor selection, commercial negotiations, and contract management for RAN equipment, software, services and field contractors to optimize TCO and delivery timelines.
Plan and govern capex and opex budgets for RAN projects, perform ROI/benefit analysis for network investments, and report financial performance to senior leadership.
Coordinate multi-vendor, multi-technology network integration activities with core, transport, cloud and IT teams to ensure seamless service handovers and end-to-end SLA compliance.
Direct network modernization programs including microwave, fiber backhaul upgrades, and edge computing placement to support low-latency 5G services and MEC use cases.
Define, implement and refine change control, release management and maintenance windows to minimize customer impact and ensure robust rollback procedures.
Ensure regulatory compliance for spectrum usage, site permits, electromagnetic exposure (EME) limits and municipal zoning; manage relationships with regulators and industry bodies.
Sponsor automation and CI/CD initiatives for RAN lifecycle management — including automated testing, remote configuration, zero-touch provisioning and fault remediation.
Lead incident, problem and crisis management for major RAN outages, coordinate cross-functional response, root cause analysis, corrective actions and customer communications.
Drive customer experience improvement initiatives tied to network KPIs and field feedback, including targeted campaigns for high-value markets and enterprise customers.
Develop and maintain disaster recovery, business continuity and redundancy strategies for critical RAN elements and cell site infrastructure.
Collaborate with product management and sales to design network-enabled services (IoT connectivity, fixed wireless access, private 5G) and provide technical leadership for go-to-market launches.
Establish metrics, dashboards and executive reporting that quantify network health, project progress, vendor SLAs, and operational efficiencies.
Implement cybersecurity standards for RAN elements and associated management interfaces, coordinating with security teams to remediate vulnerabilities and enforce access controls.
Lead RF optimization programs (drive tests, crowd-sourced analytics, SON tuning) to improve spectral efficiency, capacity utilization and subscriber experience across peak and off-peak periods.
Oversee site acquisition strategy, tower relationships and construction vendor management to accelerate rollouts and control build quality and timelines.
Champion supplier performance management — setting KPIs, conducting scorecards, governance reviews and escalation processes to maintain consistent delivery.
Manage migration planning for technology transitions (e.g., 3G sunsetting, LTE to 5G migrations) including subscriber impact analysis, phased cutovers and legacy decommissioning.
Promote a culture of safety, environmental compliance and quality across field operations and partner crews, enforcing HSE standards at all construction and maintenance sites.

Secondary Functions

Support cross-functional analysis by providing network capacity and performance data for product, marketing and finance teams to inform promotions, pricing and investment decisions.
Contribute to the organization’s network strategy and technology roadmap by evaluating emerging RAN trends (Open RAN, cloud-native cores, edge MEC) and recommending pilots or scale plans.
Collaborate with procurement, legal and finance to translate technical vendor requirements into contracts, service-level agreements and acceptance criteria.
Participate in executive steering committees, sprint planning and agile ceremonies for RAN modernization squads as needed to accelerate delivery.
Provide mentorship and training programs for RF engineers, field technicians and NOC staff to build in-house expertise and reduce reliance on external consultants.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Radio Access Network (RAN) architecture & design (4G/LTE, 5G NSA/SA) — deep knowledge of air interface, spectrum, and cell planning.
RF planning and propagation tools (Atoll, Planet, Mentum, ICS Telecom) and expertise in drive testing and post-processing of KPI datasets.
Experience with vRAN, cloud-native RAN components, Open RAN principles, and vendor ecosystems (Ericsson, Nokia, Huawei, Samsung, vendors supporting O-RAN).
Core network and transport fundamentals — IP/MPLS, microwave and fiber backhaul design, latency management for MEC/edge services.
OSS/BSS integration experience — network provisioning, inventory, fault/performance management and API-driven automation.
Network performance management and analytics — working with big data, streaming telemetry, Grafana/Prometheus, Splunk, or similar observability platforms.
Capacity planning, traffic modeling and forecasting using statistical and simulation tools to size RAN and transport resources.
RAN optimization techniques — SON tuning, parameter optimization, neighbor relations, interference mitigation and spectral efficiency improvements.
Wireless security controls and standards — securing RAN management interfaces, encryption practices and coordination with SOC teams.
Project and program management — PMP/Prince2 familiarity, Agile delivery for network transformation programs, and multi-vendor coordination.
Vendor and contract negotiation skills — drafting SLAs, SOWs, performance guarantees and structured governance models.
Familiarity with IoT, FWA (Fixed Wireless Access), private networks and enterprise 5G deployment models.

Soft Skills

Strategic leadership and visioning — translate business objectives into actionable network roadmaps.
Strong stakeholder management — communicate effectively with C-level, product, regulatory, vendors and field teams.
Decision-making under ambiguity — prioritize investments and trade-offs in fast-moving technology transitions.
Coaching and talent development — build high-performing engineering teams and succession pipelines.
Problem solving and root cause analysis — systematic approach to complex outage resolution.
Effective written and verbal communication — produce clear executive reports, technical specifications and vendor evaluations.
Change leadership and influence — manage cultural and operational change across large, distributed organizations.
Negotiation and conflict resolution — handle vendor disputes, delivery escalations and cross-functional trade-offs.
Customer-centric mindset — balance network KPIs with real user experience and commercial objectives.
Continuous learning and curiosity — stay current on RAN trends, standards (3GPP), and open-source initiatives.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Telecommunications, Computer Science, or related technical field.

Preferred Education:

Master’s degree (MSc/MEng) in Telecommunications, Wireless Communications, Electrical Engineering, or MBA for combined technical / commercial leadership.

Relevant Fields of Study:

Electrical Engineering
Telecommunications / Wireless Communications
Computer Science / Networking
Radio Frequency Engineering
Business Administration (for senior leadership roles)

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

10+ years in wireless networks with at least 5 years in senior RAN or network leadership roles; proven track record managing national/regional wireless deployments.

Preferred:

Experience leading large-scale 5G rollouts, vendor ecosystems, and cross-functional technical transformation programs.
Prior success with cloud-native network transitions (vRAN/open RAN), automation initiatives and delivering measurable performance and cost improvements.