Associate Director - RAN Cloud

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The Associate Director of Verizon Cloud Platform, Far Edge Planning leads a specialized team responsible for the architectural strategy, deployment, and automation of Verizon’s virtualized Radio Access Network (vRAN) and Cloud Infrastructure (VCP). Serving as a bridge between Planning and Operations, this role oversees the lifecycle of Cloud-native RAN platforms, manages complex multi-vendor ecosystems, and drives AI-driven automation. You will lead highly technical engineers to ensure the performance, reliability, and security of our Cloud Platform, working in a fast-paced environment with cross-functional teams to deliver new network features.

• Program Leadership & Lifecycle Management: Directing end-to-end strategy and deployment of Cloud-native RAN platforms, overseeing FOA rollouts, hardware cutovers, and infrastructure upgrades across thousands of Far Edge nodes.
• Strategic Vendor Governance & Management: Serving as the primary interface for key partners (Samsung, Wind River, Ericsson, Red Hat), holding them accountable for technical roadmaps, deliverables, and SLAs through rigorous triage and patch management.
• Automation & AI Innovation: Spearheading the development and integration of AI‑driven tools and internal software (e.g., Skinny OS, AI Copilots) to automate diagnostics, site pre‑checking, and "Day 2" operational workflows.
• Strategic Planning & Integration: Driving vRAN roadmap planning, ensuring integration of new technologies (e.g., Granite Rapids compute) while maintaining infrastructure consistency and performance metrics.
• Operational Alignment: Facilitating cross‑functional collaboration between Planning, Engineering, Maintenance Engineering (MTCE), and Operations teams to troubleshoot high‑stakes production issues and maintain system stability.
• Team Leadership: Mentoring and developing team members, fostering a culture of high morale and professional excellence, while designating and grooming leads for specific work streams (e.g., SS requirements, E/// requirements).
• Advanced Troubleshooting: Directing high‑stakes technical troubleshooting for complex production issues, including kernel crashes, PTP synchronization failures, and driver‑level conflicts (Intel ICE drivers). Utilize advanced diagnostic tools like so-crates (site debug tool/TCPFlow) to isolate packet‑level issues and expedite resolution during outages.
• Process Improvement: Identifying opportunities for process improvement and driving efficiencies to simplify repeatable tasks.
• Operational Incident Management: Providing coverage for any operational issues. Ensuring platform outages are handled in accordance with predefined guidelines for ticket management, prioritization, documentation, escalation, and resolution.
• Team Performance Management: Ensuring that the performance of the entire staff is maximized by establishing individual and group objectives, providing routine feedback and counseling (when necessary), and conducting yearly performance appraisals.
• Automation Strategy: Identifying opportunities for operational and management automation while performing as a subject matter expert for the technology.

This role can be located in any US based Verizon hub location.

The position will provide technical leadership and/or business-related subject matter expertise on highly visible projects and communicate status and/or updates to executive leadership.

• Bachelor’s degree or four or more years of work experience.
• Eight or more years of relevant…