Sr. Director of Network Infrastructure and Planning

At Alaska Communications, we’re committed to putting our team first, always being customer focused, having a can-do attitude, owning our results and always acting with integrity. This is what we hire for and what our team members exhibit each day. We’re unable to support remote international applicants or routinely sponsor work visas. The compensation range for this job is: $161,475.00 - $215,299.00.

POSITION SUMMARY

Directs and manages the teams and programs responsible for planning, engineering, design, records accuracy, and lifecycle stewardship of network infrastructure supporting the ACS network. This role has complete ownership and accountability for Layer 1 infrastructure planning and design, including outside plant facilities, inside plant infrastructure associated with the network, fiber routes, ducts, conduits, structures, DC power capacity, rack location and availability, capacity, records, and related construction engineering. The role is also accountable for coordinating end-to-end network infrastructure plans across Layer 2 and Layer 3 domains, in partnership with the Sr. Director of IP Engineering and the Network Architects, to ensure physical infrastructure, transport, aggregation, routing, resiliency, and growth plans are aligned to business, customer, operational, and capital priorities. The Senior Director, Network Infrastructure & Planning translates business demand, network strategy, service delivery requirements, reliability objectives, and funded project commitments into actionable infrastructure plans, budget inputs, engineering priorities, and implementation readiness. The position emphasizes accountable ownership of Layer 1 outcomes while providing shared planning accountability for Layer 2 and Layer 3 network evolution.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Owns end-to-end planning and design accountability for Layer 1 network infrastructure, including OSP fiber, copper where applicable, ducts, conduits, poles, handholes, manholes, facility routes, splice plans, capacity, and physical network records.
• Owns planning and availability accountability for inside plant infrastructure associated with the network, including DC power capacity, rack location, rack availability, physical space readiness, and related facility dependencies needed to support network growth, resiliency, and implementation readiness.
• Ensure Layer 1 infrastructure plans support network reliability, route diversity, resiliency, serviceability, maintainability, constructability, permitting readiness, and economic utilization of facilities.
• Oversees analysis of available and existing facilities, route constraints, capacity exhaust, customer demand, traffic growth indicators, and funded project requirements to determine new construction, rearrangements, removals, or augmentation needs.

• Develops, maintains, and improves sustainable facilities records processes with the goal of complete, accurate, timely, and electronically accessible network records.
• Provides shared accountability for Layer 2 and Layer 3 network planning with the Sr. Director of IP Engineering and network architects, ensuring Layer 1 infrastructure plans are coordinated with transport, aggregation, routing, peering, resiliency, and capacity strategies.
• Partners with IP Engineering leadership and architects to translate strategic network architecture into practical infrastructure needs, including site readiness, fiber availability, route diversity, physical path constraints, equipment location requirements, and capital planning inputs.
• Facilitates decision-making and escalation when Layer 1 infrastructure constraints affect Layer 2 or Layer 3 design alternatives, schedule, budget, resiliency, or service delivery commitments.
• Develops budgetary inputs, capital forecasts, and business case support for approved and proposed network infrastructure projects.

POSITION QUALIFICATIONS

• Leadership – Ability to influence others to perform their jobs effectively and to be responsible for making decisions.
• Accountability - Ability to plan, organize, measure, and coordinate multiple tasks to deliver the budget for product line, revenue, and profit.
• Adaptability - Ability to adapt to change in the workplace.
• Analytical Skills - Ability to use thinking and reasoning to solve a problem.
• Creative - Ability to think in such a way as to produce a new concept or idea.
• Detail Oriented - Ability to pay attention to the minute details of a project or task.
• Judgment - The ability to formulate a sound decision using the available information.
• Problem Solving - Ability to find a solution for or to deal proactively with work-related problems.
• Responsible - Ability to be held accountable or answerable for one’s conduct.
• Technical Aptitude - Ability to comprehend complex technical topics and specialized information.
• Time Management - Ability to utilize the available time to organize and complete work within given deadlines.

SKILLS & ABILITIES

Education: Bachelor’s Degree in related fields, such as Engineering, Business or Construction. Equivalent experience may be substituted for schooling on a year-for-year basis.

Experience: Twelve (12) years of telecommunications engineering/construction experience. Equivalent education may be substituted for years of experience.

Computer Skills: Demonstrated proficiency using Microsoft Office Suite, to include Word, Excel, Outlook, and Access. Demonstrated proficiency using OSP Insight and AutoCAD.

We hope you’ll join us as we change lives through technology. For more than 120 years, our team has served Alaskans with critical telecommunication services. As technology becomes increasingly woven into our lives, we’re focused on delivering world-class connectivity solutions to our customers, from family homes to statewide enterprises. With career opportunities across the Last Frontier, our team takes pride in serving customers and giving back to our local communities. Exciting challenges are in front of us. We’re actively building Alaska’s fastest internet with fiber to the home. In rural Alaska, we’re building a state-of-the‑art network to bridge the digital divide for communities that have gone unserved for too long.