Director Network Operations

JOB DESCRIPTION

Role: Director Network Operations

Statement of purpose

The Director/ Senior Manager Network Operations, Data Center & Infrastructure Architecture is responsible for providing strategic leadership and operational governance for the organization's global network, data centre, and enterprise infrastructure services. This role leads Architecture, Engineering, Operations, Service Delivery, Compliance, and Infrastructure Transformation initiatives while ensuring high availability, security, scalability, operational excellence, and regulatory compliance across all global locations. The Director serves as the technical and operational leader responsible for defining infrastructure strategy, driving modernization programs, managing business-critical services, and partnering with executive leadership to align technology investments with business objectives.

Infrastructure Architecture: Lead enterprise architecture and technical governance for

Global WAN, SD-WAN, MPLS, Internet, LAN, Wi-Fi, Data Center Networks, Firewalls, VPN, Load Balancers, DNS/DHCP/IPAM, Network Segmentation, Hybrid Cloud Connectivity

Review and approve High Level Designs (HLD), Low Level Designs (LLD), Architecture standards, technical standards, Solution designs and drive standardization across all global sites.

Network Engineering & Operations: Provide leadership for Global Network Operations, Network Engineering Network Monitoring, Major Incident Management, Escalation Management, Capacity Planning, Availability Management, Performance Optimization

Ensure SLA compliance, KPI achievement, Continuous Service Improvement , Operational Excellence

Lead RCA reviews and corrective actions for critical incidents.

Drive proactive monitoring and predictive operations.

Data Center Operations: Provide overall governance for Enterprise Data Centers, Colocation Facilities, Hub Rooms, MDF/IDF Infrastructure, Structured Cabling, Rack Management, Power, Cooling, Physical Security

Ensure High Availability, Disaster Recovery readiness, Business Continuity, Capacity Planning, Infrastructure Standards

Lead Data Center consolidation and modernization programs.

Enterprise Architecture Governance: Review and approve new technology introductions, Infrastructure standards, solution architecture, technical risks, Vendor recommendations

Provide technical leadership across enterprise projects.

Act as Architecture Review Board member.

Compliance, Risk & Governance: Own infrastructure compliance initiatives including PCI DSS, ISO 27001, Internal Audits, External Audits, Regulatory Compliance, Security Governance

Ensure vulnerability remediation, Configuration compliance, Policy adherence, Secure infrastructure designs

Work closely with Information Security teams during audits.

Drive closure of audit findings.

Vendor & Partner Management: Manage strategic relationships with Cisco, Palo Alto, Cloud Providers, Telecom Service Providers, Hardware Vendors, Managed Service Providers

Lead technical evaluations, commercial discussions, escalations, contract reviews, service Improvement Programs

Service Delivery: Ensure 24x7 service availability, Infrastructure stability, Operational governance, Incident response, Change governance, Problem Management

Lead service reviews with business stakeholders.

Define service metrics and operational dashboards.

Project & Program Leadership: Lead enterprise infrastructure projects involving Network refresh, data center migrations, cloud connectivity, SD-WAN deployment, Security transformation, Office expansions, Infrastructure modernization

Ensure scope, Timeline, Budget, Quality, Risk Management

Financial Management: Own infrastructure budgets including CAPEX, OPEX, Vendor renewals, Hardware lifecycle, License management, Telecom costs

Drive optimization initiatives while maintaining service quality.

People Leadership: Lead multidisciplinary teams including Infrastructure Architects, Network Engineering, Network Operations, Data Center Operations, Compliance Teams

Responsibilities include hiring, coaching, mentoring, performance Management, succession planning, Technical Capability Development

Build a high-performance engineering culture.

Operational Governance: Chair regular operations reviews, architecture reviews, change advisory boards, Incident Reviews, Vendor Reviews, Risk Reviews

Drive continuous improvement across all operational processes.

Technical Competencies

Enterprise Networking: Cisco Enterprise Networking, Cisco Nexus, Catalyst, Viptella SD-WAN, MPLS, BGP, OSPF, EIGRP, QoS, Multicast

Security: Palo Alto, Cisco ASA, Global Protect VPN, IPSec, SSL VPN, Network Segmentation, Zero Trust, NAC

Data Center: Spine-Leaf Architecture, Nexus Switching, Load Balancers (F5 preferred) , Structured Cabling, Power & Cooling, Colocation Management

Cloud: Azure Networking, AWS Networking, Google Cloud Networking, Hybrid Connectivity, ExpressRoute, Direct Connect

Monitoring & Automation: Experience with SolarWinds, Nagios, Grafana, ELK, Ansible, Python, Infrastructure Automation, AIOps Platforms

Governance: ITIL, PCI DSS, ISO 27001, Risk Management, Change Management, Service Management

Leadership Competencies: Executive communication, Strategic thinking, Enterprise architecture leadership, Decision making, Financial planning, Vendor negotiations, Stakeholder management, Crisis management, Cross-functional collaboration, Coaching and mentoring, Continuous improvement mindset

Experience

15+ years of progressive experience in Enterprise Infrastructure, Network Engineering, Data Center Operations or Infrastructure Architecture.

Minimum 7+ years leading global infrastructure teams.

Experience managing enterprise-scale network environments supporting mission-critical operations.

Strong experience leading architecture, engineering, operations, compliance and transformation initiatives.

Experience managing geographically distributed teams.

Proven experience working with executive leadership.

Educational Qualifications

Bachelors degree in engineering, Computer Science, Information Technology or equivalent.

Preferred Certifications

CCIE / CCNP Enterprise, PCNSE, ITIL Expert, TOGAF (Preferred)

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Operational Excellence: Network Availability (>99.99%), Data Center Availability, SLA Compliance, MTTR Reduction, Incident Reduction, Problem Resolution Time

Service Delivery: Customer Satisfaction, Change Success Rate, Service Availability, Escalation Reduction

Compliance: Audit Findings Closure, PCI Compliance, ISO Compliance, Vulnerability Remediation SLA, Security Risk Reduction

Financial: Budget Adherence, Cost Optimization, Vendor Performance, License Optimization

Transformation: Automation Adoption, Infrastructure Modernization, Cloud Readiness, AI Operations Adoption, Technical Debt Reduction

Leadership: Employee Engagement, Team Retention, Skill Development, Internal Promotions, Project Delivery Success