Network Access Planner

Job Description Network Access Planner

Position Title: Network Access Planner

Department: Digital Managed Services

Reports To: Head of Service Delivery / Head of Solutions Engineering

Location: South Africa

Position Summary

The Network Access Planner is responsible for designing and validating the end-to-end network access required to deliver enterprise connectivity services across CLIENT’s Digital Managed Services business. The role ensures that customer solutions can be delivered efficiently by determining the optimal connectivity path from the customer’s premises through the last-mile network, metro access, backbone infrastructure and data centre termination.

Working closely with Sales, Product Solutions, Digital Infrastructure, Service Delivery and third-party network providers, the Network Access Planner performs service qualification, access planning, infrastructure feasibility, implementation planning and cost estimation to ensure customer solutions are technically feasible, commercially viable and deliverable within agreed timelines.

The role acts as the technical bridge between Pre-Sales and Delivery, enabling faster proposal turnaround, improved pricing accuracy and successful project implementation.

Key Responsibilities

Network Access Planning

• Design end-to-end network access solutions for enterprise, retail and banking customers.
• Determine the optimal connectivity path from customer premises to CLIENT’s core network and data centres.

• Plan network connectivity across:

• Last-mile fibre and wireless access
• Metro fibre networks
• Carrier interconnection points
• Backbone transport networks
• Data centre connectivity

• Cloud connectivity services where applicable

• Ensure network resilience, redundancy and SLA compliance in all proposed designs.

Service Qualification & Infrastructure Feasibility

• Conduct service qualification for new customer opportunities.
• Validate network availability using CLIENT infrastructure and third-party carrier networks.
• Identify the nearest Point of Presence (PoP), aggregation node and available access options.
• Assess network capacity and routing feasibility.
• Identify infrastructure gaps and recommend appropriate access strategies.

Commercial & Pre-Sales Support

• Support Product Solutions & Pricing teams during solution development.
• Provide technical inputs for customer proposals and quotations.

• Estimate access-related costs including:

• Last-mile connectivity
• Metro access
• Third-party carrier services
• Cross-connects

• Installation costs

• Estimate implementation lead times based on infrastructure availability.
• Participate in customer meetings to explain network access options and implementation approaches.

Digital Infrastructure & Partner Coordination

• Collaborate with CLIENT Digital Infrastructure teams to leverage existing fibre and network assets.
• Coordinate with third-party fibre providers and wholesale carriers where required.
• Compare infrastructure options based on cost, lead time, performance and resilience.
• Ensure the most efficient and commercially viable access strategy is selected.

Delivery Readiness

• Produce implementation-ready network access plans.
• Prepare handover documentation for Service Delivery teams.
• Support project implementation by resolving planning-related issues.
• Validate infrastructure readiness prior to customer deployment.
• Participate in design reviews and implementation planning meetings.

Network Intelligence & Continuous Improvement

• Maintain network access planning documentation and serviceability records.
• Track network coverage, infrastructure availability and supplier capabilities.
• Identify opportunities to improve service qualification processes.
• Contribute to the development of planning standards, templates and automation initiatives.
• Support strategic planning by providing insights into network access trends and infrastructure utilisation.

Key Relationships

Internal

• Enterprise Sales
• Product Management
• Product Solutions & Pricing
• Digital Infrastructure
• Service Delivery
• Network Operations
• Procurement
• Programme Management Office (PMO)

External

• Wholesale fibre providers
• Last-mile access providers
• Data centre operators
• Carrier partners
• Enterprise customers
• Infrastructure vendors

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in Telecommunications, Network Engineering, Ele…