Director of Network Operations

ISP Services

Position Overview

The Director of Network Operations owns the live network and the plant under it. Department scope covers core, transport, and service-edge operations; fiber access; wireless plant; the NOC; network implementation and acceptance; outside plant; damage prevention and locates; plant acceptance and integrity; and tower and site operations. That list is the scope of the work, not the org chart under this seat.

The role covers all Stimulus Broadband markets - California, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, and Oregon - on fixed wireless, fiber-to-the-home, and fiber-to-the-business. This seat owns customer installation for fiber or wireless, the plant-defect path, acceptance, and maintenance of the fiber and wireless network. Day-to-day oversight of Field Managers for each market, Network Engineers, and Network Administrator. This role reports to the VP of Broadband Services.

Some Network Operations seats are already filled; others still need to be hired. You will inherit part of the team and build out the rest to match the work. This role is hybrid with occasional travel, it is expected that the successful candidate will work fully remote with occasional travel throughout the Stimulus footprint. You must live within Stimulus's five-state footprint (California, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, and Oregon). Adjacent states may be considered for the right candidate.

What You'll Be Doing

• Run fiber access operations: install, maintain, and escalate issues on the OLT, PON, splitters, network-side ONT management, optical budget, and deep-stack FTTH escalation.
• Run wireless operations: install, maintain, and escalate issues on the AP and sector platform, network-side FWA configuration, and deep-stack FWA escalation.
• Own network implementation and acceptance: turn-up and commission across all technologies; assign IP; configure routing; onboard NMS, inventory, and backups; provision circuits; burn in; develop standards for and certify Release to Production; onboard acquired networks the same way.
• Own the NOC posture: 24x7 surveillance, event correlation and alarm hygiene, incident command, outage declaration, notification and ETR, incident dispatch, on-call, the change calendar and gate, the post-incident loop, and performance and SLA reporting.
• Own damage prevention and locates: 811 ticket management, locate execution and mark quality, damage investigation, claims recovery, and records feedback.
• Own and develop standards for the plant acceptance and integrity gate: as-built and records verification, physical spot inspection and a sampling plan, defect punch and remediation tracking, and contractor workmanship performance on plant.
• Run tower and site operations through maintenance and outage: tower climbing, antenna and radio work, wireless site maintenance and alignment, structural, site power, generators, batteries, HVAC, huts, cabinets and headends, and field hands for active electronics.
• Take plant-defect escalation from Customer Experience and own the deep-stack technical save. Field service delivery on the customer premise still reaches this desk on the plant-side path.
• Partner with Deployment & Construction on acceptance. Construction builds; this role does not release plant to production until the gate is met.
• Partner with Contracts and Compliance so rights, coverage truth, and spectrum or operating authority match the live plant.
• Partner with future Supply Chain and Safety Training groups on test gear, spares, site power kit, climb and OSP safety, and the technical curriculum that keeps this bench current.
• Hire, develop, and hold the people who carry this work - integrating existing team members and filling open seats as the organization grows.
• Travel to markets. Stay close enough that a night outage is not a briefing you hear secondhand.

Success Profile

• Judgment to build a bench that fits the work rather than a box for every function - including knowing which seats to keep, which to fill, and which to redesign.
• Holds a live core, a night outage, and an acceptance gate as one job.
• Comfortable in the NOC and in the field: cabinets, generators, dishes, fiber, and a live core.
• Able to be both the doer and the leader while building the organization and its processes.
• Strong troubleshooting judgment and the discipline to document what was found and what changed.
• Sees a need and fills it: a dirty alarm, a splice that is not on the map, a burn-in that never happened, a locate that was never called in.
• Clear with executive leadership, Customer Experience, Construction, and vendors - including the call that plant is not ready and a truck should not roll.

Required Skills & Qualifications

• Significant senior operations and/or engineering experience in an ISP, WISP, telecommunications carrier, or comparable service-provider environment, including leading small and medium-sized teams.
• Working knowledge of IP core and routing, fiber access, fixed wireless plant, outside plant, and high-availability design. Familiarity with GPON/XGS-PON and RF fundamentals is expected.
• Experience taking new sites or fiber from construction through test, acceptance, and production - and holding the gate.
• Experience with NOC practice: surveillance, incident command, change control, and after-hours escalation.
• Strong project-management and documentation skills.
• Availability for after-hours escalations and emergency outages.
• Ability and willingness to travel throughout Stimulus Technologies' multi-state footprint.
• Adaptability: as the company grows and acquired footprints come online, this role will change. You must adjust the work and clearly communicate those changes to your team.
• Preferred: Juniper, Calix or similar service-provider platforms; optical transport; 811 and damage-prevention practice.

Physical Requirements

• Ability to access data centers, equipment shelters, rooftops, towers, splice points, construction areas, and other network facilities.
• Ability to lift and carry equipment weighing up to 50 pounds.
• Comfort working around active telecommunications and outside-plant environments.
• Ability to stand, walk, bend, kneel, and work at heights or in vaults when the job requires it.

Requirements

• A valid driver's license and acceptable driving record are required.

Alignment with Core Values

At Stimulus Technologies our core values define how we work. The ideal candidate will demonstrate:

• Driven to Grow - Continuously seeks to develop professionally, stays current with industry practices, and pushes to improve processes and outcomes.
• See a Need - Fill a Need - Proactively identifies gaps, obstacles, or opportunities and takes action without waiting to be asked.
• Elevate Others - Mentors teammates, shares knowledge freely, and actively contributes to a positive and collaborative work environment.
• Extreme Ownership - Takes full accountability for results, decisions, and mistakes; does not deflect blame or make excuses.
• Celebrate Success - Recognizes contributions of team members, acknowledges milestones, and fosters a culture where wins are shared.

Alignment with Core Values

At Stimulus Technologies, our core values define how we work. The ideal candidate will demonstrate:

• Driven to Grow - Continuously seeks to develop professionally, stays current with industry practices, and pushes to improve processes and outcomes.
• See a Need - Fill a Need - Proactively identifies gaps, obstacles, or opportunities and takes action without waiting to be asked.
• Elevate Others - Mentors teammates, shares knowledge freely, and actively contributes to a positive and collaborative work environment.
• Extreme Ownership - Takes full accountability for results, decisions, and mistakes; does not deflect blame or make excuses.
• Celebrate Success - Recognizes contributions of team members, acknowledges milestones, and fosters a culture where wins are shared.