Lead - Wholesale & Carrier at Safaricom Kenya

Responsibilities
Key accountabilities and decision ownership:

Wholesale Revenue Growth & Portfolio Optimization

• Deliver annual revenue and gross margin targets across interconnect, roaming, capacity, and international voice/data streams.
• Develop multi-year wholesale growth plans aligned to traffic trends, network evolution, and competitive dynamics.
• Optimize revenue mix across inbound and outbound traffic to maximize margin contribution.
• Identify new wholesale monetization opportunities including infrastructure sharing and cross-border capacity sales.
• Drive traffic growth strategies leveraging bilateral and multilateral carrier agreements.
• Monitor performance against budget and implement corrective actions to protect profitability.

Carrier Partnership Strategy & Relationship Management

• Develop and manage strategic relationships with domestic and international carrier partners.
• Negotiate bilateral agreements covering roaming, interconnect, and international traffic exchange.
• Conduct regular business reviews with key carrier partners to align commercial performance and traffic targets.
• Identify partnership expansion opportunities across regional and global markets.
• Manage partner performance scorecards including revenue realization and settlement accuracy.
• Safeguard long-term partnership sustainability through transparent governance and dispute resolution mechanisms.

Interconnect & Roaming Governance

• Oversee interconnect frameworks ensuring regulatory compliance and financial integrity.
• Manage roaming agreements including pricing, clearing, and settlement structures.
• Ensure accurate traffic measurement, rating, and reconciliation processes.
• Monitor inbound and outbound roaming performance and margin contribution.
• Lead dispute management processes with domestic and international operators.
• Continuously optimize interconnect pricing structures aligned to regulatory guardrails.

International Voice & Data Monetization

• Develop competitive routing strategies to maximize international voice margins.
• Negotiate international termination and transit rates to protect cost position.
• Monitor traffic flows to detect fraud, leakage, or routing inefficiencies.
• Optimize international data capacity utilization and cross-border bandwidth sales.
• Partner with Technology teams to align network capacity planning with commercial demand forecasts.
• Drive margin improvement initiatives through cost optimization and traffic rebalancing.

Capacity & Infrastructure Commercialization

• Monetize fiber, subsea cable, and infrastructure capacity through structured commercial agreements.
• Develop capacity pricing models aligned to market demand and competitive benchmarks.
• Partner with Technology to forecast infrastructure expansion opportunities.
• Lead infrastructure-sharing agreements and related commercial negotiations.
• Monitor utilization rates and drive initiatives to improve asset yield.
• Evaluate new infrastructure investment opportunities from a wholesale commercial perspective.

Regulatory & Compliance Oversight (In Collaboration with Corporate & External Affairs)

• Ensure adherence to national and international telecom regulations governing interconnect and roaming.
• Maintain compliance with cross-border settlement standards and industry clearing frameworks.
• Partner with External Affairs to monitor regulatory changes impacting wholesale economics.
• Ensure alignment with competition law and anti-trust provisions in carrier agreements.
• Support audit processes related to wholesale settlements and traffic reporting.
• Embed risk mitigation frameworks for regulatory and contractual exposure.

Financial Settlement & Risk Governance

• Oversee traffic billing, reconciliation, and settlement accuracy across all wholesale streams.
• Monitor and reduce revenue leakage risks through structured controls.
• Partner with Finance to ensure timely settlement of receivables and payables.
• Improve Days Sales Outstanding (DSO) for wholesale receivables.
• Conduct periodic margin and profitability analysis for wholesale portfolio.
• Maintain a wholesale risk register covering financial, regulatory, and operational risks

Leadership & Talent Development

• Coach, mentor, and empower the leadership team to drive strategic excellence, collaboration, and disruptive thinking. 
• Drive diversity, inclusion, and leadership bench strength, ensuring succession readiness for pivotal roles within the function.
• Build critical capabilities through targeted hiring and continuous learning programs. 
• Institutionalize a functional Academy - develop playbooks, methodologies, and training for execution, and digital-first innovation models.
• Embed OKRs and a performance-driven culture, aligning incentives to strategic impact, and innovation. 
• Champion cross-functional collaboration across Safaricom to ensure integrated delivery of products.
• Lead change management for major shifts (new operating models, and innovation platforms) with clear narratives, stakeholder engagement, and adoption tracking. 
• Foster a culture of agility and experimentation, encouraging teams to pilot emerging technologies, new business models, and disruptive solutions.
• Model ethical leadership and values, reinforcing integrity, transparency, and responsible innovation in all strategic decisions. 
• Ensure governance and compliance in all initiatives, safeguarding organizational reputation and stakeholder trust.
• Champion adoption of emerging technologies (AI, IoT, cloud, blockchain) to enable disruptive innovation and digital transformation.

Qualifications
Must have technical / professional qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Telecommunications Engineering, Electrical Engineering, ICT, Computer Science, Business Administration, Economics, or a related field from a recognized institution
• Master’s degree in Business Administration (MBA), Telecommunications Management, Finance, or Strategic Management is an added advantage
• Minimum of 10–12 years’ progressive experience in wholesale telecommunications, carrier business, interconnect, roaming, or international voice and data operations within a telecom or ICT environment
• Demonstrated experience managing wholesale and carrier revenue streams including interconnect, roaming, capacity, international voice, and international data services
• Strong commercial acumen with proven experience in bilateral carrier negotiations, pricing frameworks, settlement governance, and margin optimization
• Proven experience in managing cross-border carrier partnerships and international traffic routing strategies
• Strong understanding of telecommunications regulatory frameworks, interconnect 
• obligations, roaming standards, and competition law within regulated markets
• Demonstrated experience in traffic billing, reconciliation processes, settlement systems, and revenue assurance controls
• Professional certification in telecommunications, project management, or commercial management such as PMP, PRINCE2, ITIL, or equivalent will be an added advantage
• Strong knowledge of telecom network architecture, international routing models, subsea capacity commercialization, and infrastructure sharing frameworks
• Experience working in highly matrixed environments collaborating with Network/Technology, Finance, Risk, Regulatory & External Affairs, and Legal teams
• Proven ability to embed financial controls, compliance frameworks, and risk mitigation mechanisms in wholesale operations
• Strong analytical capability with proficiency in financial modeling, traffic analytics tools, settlement platforms, and enterprise reporting systems
• Member in good standing of a recognized professional body relevant to telecommunications, engineering, or commercial leadership
• Demonstrated commitment to integrity, regulatory compliance, and responsible commercial conduct in alignment with Safaricom’s Code of Conduct and industry standards