Director of Engineering & Planning

Aureon•West Des Moines, IA

20h

About The Position

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES: Strategic Leadership & Architecture Executive Vision: Provide strategic vision for network architecture and long-term planning across voice, transport, routing, OSP, and managed services. Infrastructure Evolution: Oversee the design and evolution of core elements, including IP/MPLS routing, optical transport (DWDM/OTN), voice platforms (VoIP, SIP), and fiber-optic OSP infrastructure. Innovation & Automation: Champion automation initiatives and SDN/NFV-based virtualization to enable efficient provisioning and management of the network. Cloud Strategy: Direct cloud engineering and operations, including infrastructure provisioning, monitoring, cost optimization, and disaster recovery. Network Operations & Engineering Performance Optimization: Develop and implement strategies to optimize the performance, scalability, and reliability of the network infrastructure. Deployment & Maintenance: Oversee the timely design, deployment, and maintenance of network equipment while adhering to industry best practices. Monitoring & Incident Response: Implement proactive monitoring tools and lead troubleshooting efforts for outages, performing root cause analysis to prevent recurrence. Security & Compliance: Enforce network security policies and ensure compliance with regulatory requirements (e.g., CALEA, FCC, SOC 2). Team & Business Management Direct Supervision: Manage and mentor cross-functional teams, including department managers for Fiber Operations, Switching, Digital Video, and Packet Networks. Financial Oversight: Develop and manage network operations and capital budgets (CAPEX/OPEX), ensuring cost optimization and alignment with business growth. Vendor & Partner Relations: Evaluate vendor proposals, negotiate contracts, and collaborate with affiliated companies and consultants to ensure network compatibility. Client Engagement: Partner with sales and product teams to define managed services offerings, contribute to RFPs, and ensure service delivery meets client expectations.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Electrical, Electronic, or Communications Engineering, Computer Science, or Business Management.
At least 10 years of experience in telecommunications network management, with a minimum of 5 years leading large groups of technical professionals.
Comprehensive knowledge of transmission network design (copper and fiber) and traffic engineering (TDM and Packet).
Proven expertise in IP routing (BGP, OSPF, MPLS), voice services, and OSP infrastructure.
Hands-on experience with cloud engineering (AWS, Azure, or GCP) and automation/DevOps practices.
Strong financial and business acumen with experience in economic analysis and budget management.
Excellent interpersonal, written, and oral communication skills; ability to build relationships with senior leaders and customers
Excellent interpersonal skills to establish and maintain effective relationships with customers, employees, superiors and business contacts in a professional, timely and courteous manner
Excellent written and oral communication skills
Strong relationship builder and communicator with experience leading diverse work teams
Ability to perform a variety of tasks, often changing assignments on short notice
Must be able to work independently with little or no direct supervision and contribute to a team environment.
Ability to make sound decisions using the information at hand
Strong trouble resolution and problem solving skills
Able to think at a strategic level by viewing things from a broader perspective than day-to-day operations
Deals effectively with unexpected situations and issues and is able to be an effective change agent within the company
Must possess a strong financial and business acumen
Required to have very strong work ethic
Ability to develop absolute trust and respect of their staff and other senior leaders
Strong attention to detail and accuracy
Demonstrated knowledge of personal computer applications Microsoft Windows and Microsoft Office, including Microsoft Outlook.
Experience and proficiency with CAD programs, Visio, PowerPoint, and mapping software

Nice To Haves

Master’s or MBA preferred
Certificate of Professional Engineering (PE), or advanced credentials such as CCIE, AWS/Azure Professional, or MEF SDN/NFV.
Advanced accounting and financial analysis skills.
Experience with managed services (EDR/MDR), optical transport planning tools, and monitoring platforms (e.g., ELK, Prometheus).

Responsibilities

Provide strategic vision for network architecture and long-term planning across voice, transport, routing, OSP, and managed services.
Oversee the design and evolution of core elements, including IP/MPLS routing, optical transport (DWDM/OTN), voice platforms (VoIP, SIP), and fiber-optic OSP infrastructure.
Champion automation initiatives and SDN/NFV-based virtualization to enable efficient provisioning and management of the network.
Direct cloud engineering and operations, including infrastructure provisioning, monitoring, cost optimization, and disaster recovery.
Develop and implement strategies to optimize the performance, scalability, and reliability of the network infrastructure.
Oversee the timely design, deployment, and maintenance of network equipment while adhering to industry best practices.
Implement proactive monitoring tools and lead troubleshooting efforts for outages, performing root cause analysis to prevent recurrence.
Enforce network security policies and ensure compliance with regulatory requirements (e.g., CALEA, FCC, SOC 2).
Manage and mentor cross-functional teams, including department managers for Fiber Operations, Switching, Digital Video, and Packet Networks.
Develop and manage network operations and capital budgets (CAPEX/OPEX), ensuring cost optimization and alignment with business growth.
Evaluate vendor proposals, negotiate contracts, and collaborate with affiliated companies and consultants to ensure network compatibility.
Partner with sales and product teams to define managed services offerings, contribute to RFPs, and ensure service delivery meets client expectations.