Chief Network Officer

ABOUT THE JOB

fibertime is South Africa's fastest-growing pay-as-you-go fibre network, connecting township communities to fast, affordable internet for as little as R5 a day — no contracts, no limits.

As fibertime scales nationally, the live network must remain 
fast, stable, resilient, measurable, and cost-efficient
 — every day, at scale.

WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR

fibertime is seeking a 
Chief Network Officer (CNO)
 to take 
end-to-end accountability for the performance, reliability, and continuous optimisation of the live network.

The CNO owns the network 
after it is built
 - ensuring engineering standards are sound, operations are disciplined, maintenance is effective, and performance is visible and improving.

Network construction and build execution sit outside this role
, but interface closely with it.

SCOPE OF ACCOUNTABILITY

The Chief Network Officer has end-to-end accountability for:

• Network Engineering
• Network Operations (NOC)
• Network Maintenance & Field Support
• Network Performance, Availability & Quality
• Operational Readiness of all newly built infrastructure

WHAT YOU'LL DO (AND LOVE DOING)

Network Engineering

• Define and own network architecture, standards, and design principles.
• Approve all engineering specifications before any network goes live.
• Ensure consistency across:

o   Core, access, aggregation, and edge layers

o   Hardware, firmware, configuration, and redundancy models

• Own capacity planning, traffic engineering, and performance modelling.
• Translate business growth plans into scalable, resilient network designs.
• Maintain alignment with vendor roadmaps and technology evolution.

Network Operations (NOC)

• Own 24/7 network availability, uptime, and incident response.
• Lead the NOC function, including:

o   Monitoring and alerting

o   Incident management and escalation

o   Root cause analysis and corrective actions

• Define and enforce:

o   SLAs, SLOs, and KPIs

o   Incident severity and response models

o   Change and release governance

• Drive continuous reduction in:

o   Mean Time to Detect (MTTD)

o   Mean Time to Resolve (MTTR)

• Ensure operational discipline through clear runbooks and ownership.

Network Maintenance

• Own preventative and reactive maintenance across the live network.
• Ensure field teams are:

o   Properly tooled

o   Data-driven

o   Measured on outcomes, not activity

• Define maintenance standards for fibre, power, cabinets, OLTs, ONTs, and active equipment.
• Ensure fast fault resolution with minimal customer impact.
• Close the feedback loop between maintenance insights and engineering improvements.

Network Performance & Quality

• Own end-to-end network quality, including:

o   Throughput

o   Latency

o   Packet loss

o   Session stability

• Ensure performance is measured, visible, and explainable.
• Build feedback loops between:

o   Network telemetry

o   Customer experience

o   Product design

• Drive continuous improvement using real-time and historical network data.

Operational Readiness & Handover

• Define handover requirements from Network Construction to Operations.
• Ensure no network goes live without:

o   Engineering sign-off

o   Monitoring and alerting in place

o   Maintenance readiness

o   Complete operational documentation

• Act as the final gatekeeper before customer traffic is carried.

Leadership & Governance

• Build and lead high-performance teams across:

o   Network Engineering

o   NOC

o   Network Maintenance

• Set clear ownership, accountability, and decision rights.
• Partner closely with:

o   Network Construction leadership

o   Product and Customer Operations

o   Finance and capital planning teams

• Own network risk, resilience, and disaster recovery planning.
• Report clearly and credibly to EXCO and the Board on network health, risk, and performance.

WHAT THIS ROLE DOES NOT OWN

The CNO does 
not
 own:

• Physical network construction and build execution
• Contractor build management
• Civil works and rollout scheduling

(These functions interface closely with the CNO but sit outside the role.

WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE

• High and consistent access-level network uptime.
• Stable, predictable network performance at scale.
• Low MTTD and MTTR across incidents.
• No networks going live without full operational readiness.
• Clear visibility of network health, risks, and capacity.
• Continuous improvement driven by real network data.

WHAT YOU BRING TO THE TABLE

Profile & Experience

• Senior leadership experience in large-scale access or carrier networks.
• Deep technical understanding of:

o   Fibre access networks

o   Core and aggregation architecture

o   Network operations and fault management

• Proven experience running live networks at national scale.
• Strong operational mindset with deep engineering credibility.
• Ability to balance speed, quality, and cost in a high-growth environment.
• Clear, confident communicator with technical teams, EXCO, and the Board.

WHY JOIN fibertime?

At fibertime, the network is not just infrastructure - it is the product, the experience, and the promise.

As 
Chief Network Officer
, you will have the opportunity to 
shape and run one of South Africa's most impactful live fibre networks,
connecting millions of people to affordable, reliable internet every day.

• Mission with Meaning:

Play a central role in closing the digital divide by delivering stable, high-performance connectivity to township communities at national scale.
- Real Ownership:

This is a true end-to-end network accountability role - from architecture and standards to uptime, performance, and operational readiness.
- Scale & Complexity:

Lead a rapidly growing, multi-layer access network operating at high volume, with real-world complexity and engineering depth.
- Executive Influence:

Partner directly with EXCO and the Board, shaping network strategy, capital decisions, and long-term resilience.
- Build It Right:

Set the standards, discipline, and operating model that allow fibertime to grow fast 
without sacrificing quality or reliability.
- High-Calibre Teams:

Lead and develop strong engineering, operations, and maintenance teams who care deeply about outcomes.
- Long-Term Impact:

Design systems, governance, and culture that will still be working years from now - not just solving today's incidents.

This role is for a leader who wants 
real accountability, real scale, and real impact
 - not theory, not slideware, but a network that works every day for the people who rely on it.