Director of Network Operations

AST SpaceMobile•Dallas, TX

About The Position

AST SpaceMobile is building SpaceMobile, a space-based cellular broadband network designed to provide 4G/5G-speed connectivity to standard smartphones around the world. The Director of Network Operations leads the 24/7 network operations organization within Telco Service Assurance and reports to the VP Telco Service Assurance. The role owns Tier 1 and Tier 2 support across technologies and is accountable for escalation, troubleshooting, and resolution of complex incidents across the end-to-end Non-Terrestrial Network, including RAN, satellite gateways, transport, and core. The Director defines the network operations strategy, operating model, and standards; leads managers, team leads, and senior technical staff; and works with executive leadership, engineering, and external partners to ensure network reliability, service quality, and operational excellence. The organization includes the Partner Success Desk and Tier 1 team, serving as the entry point for partners, MNOs, and internal groups, and Tier 2 specialist teams covering ground station (RF/Satcom and TT&C) and telco (RAN, network/infrastructure, and core) competencies. Teams are located in the US, India, and Argentina. Incident Management and Change, Governance & Compliance are separate Service Assurance organizations with which the Director works closely.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Telecommunications, Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related field.
At least 15 years of experience in telecom network operations.
At least 7 years of management experience and 3 years leading managers or multi-team operations organizations.
Broad technical knowledge of mobile networks (4G LTE and 5G NR), transport, IP, and core network architecture.
Proven experience running 24/7 multi-tier operations centers and achieving availability and SLA targets.
Extensive experience leading major incident management at the executive level.
Expert knowledge of ITIL and operational governance frameworks.
Demonstrated experience with budgeting, headcount planning, vendor management, and contract negotiation.
Strong strategic thinking, leadership, and organizational development skills.
Excellent executive communication and stakeholder management skills, including with partner MNOs and key customers.
Ability to lead calmly and decisively during critical and network-wide outages.
Ability to lead and align teams across the US, India, and Argentina and across several functions.
Ability to work in a standard office environment and use a computer for extended periods.
Ability to be reached outside business hours as the executive escalation point for critical outages.
Ability to travel periodically to gateway sites, partner MNOs, and regional teams.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree and an MBA.
Experience with satellite networks, ground segment operations, or Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN), including direct-to-device services.
Experience building, scaling, or transforming NOC organizations in a high-growth environment.
Background in automation, AIOps, and observability platforms such as Grafana, Prometheus, and OSS/NMS suites.
Experience working with multiple partner MNOs and multi-vendor environments across international regions.
Certifications such as ITIL v4 Strategic Leader, PMP, or executive leadership training.

Responsibilities

Define the vision, strategy, and operating model for Tier 1 and Tier 2 network operations in alignment with company objectives and growth plans.
Lead and develop managers, team leads, and senior engineers across Partner Success, Tier 1, ground station, and telco teams in the US, India, and Argentina, ensuring 24/7 coverage with no single points of failure.
Own end-to-end network availability, service quality, and SLA performance, and ensure contractual, regulatory, and partner commitments are met.
Operate the Partner Success Desk as the single entry point for partners, MNOs, and internal groups to assign incidents to the NOC.
Establish boundaries and handoffs between Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 3, engineering, and vendor support, including escalation paths, acknowledgment timeframes, and response targets.
Act as the executive escalation point for critical and network-wide outages, directing incident response and leading communications with senior leadership, partner MNOs, and key customers.
Ensure incidents are created and tracked end to end; partner with Incident Management on escalations, communications, daily pass failure reviews, root cause analysis, and defects to reduce repeat incidents and improve network resilience.
Partner with Change, Governance & Compliance to ensure network changes are risk-assessed, approved, and executed safely.
Define and report organizational KPIs, including availability, MTTR, escalation rates, repeat incidents, and SLA compliance, to executive leadership.
Drive automation, AIOps, observability, and tool strategy, including NetCTRL, the Gateway Dashboard, and Jira Service Management, to improve detection, diagnosis, and resolution times.
Ensure operational readiness for new technologies, sites, and services, including acceptance criteria before handover from engineering and service delivery.
Manage the department budget, headcount planning, vendor contracts, and support agreements.
Build partnerships with engineering, service delivery, security, satellite operations, and external partners.
Develop talent through training programs, career paths, and succession planning, and foster accountability and continuous improvement.