General Manager, Telecoms Business

ABOUT THE CLIENT

The business is focused on leveraging its technical capabilities, licences, infrastructure and market relationships to strengthen existing revenue streams while developing new products, partnerships and commercial opportunities within the telecommunications ecosystem.

The organisation operates within a dynamic and highly competitive telecoms environment and works with mobile network operators, carriers, service providers, enterprise customers, technology partners and other industry stakeholders.

As the business continues to expand its telecoms portfolio, it is seeking an experienced commercial leader who can drive revenue growth, develop strategic partnerships, commercialise new products and strengthen relationships across the telecoms ecosystem.

JOB SUMMARY

The General Manager, Telecoms Business will provide senior commercial leadership for the Client's telecoms portfolio, with responsibility for protecting, growing and diversifying its existing and emerging business lines.

The role will lead commercial strategy, business development, product commercialisation, strategic partnerships and executive-level customer engagement across Interconnect, International Direct Access (IDA), Value-Added Services (VAS) and other telecoms businesses assigned by the Board.

The successful candidate will be expected to identify new market opportunities, originate and close complex commercial deals, develop high-value customer relationships and convert the Client's technical capabilities, licences and market access into sustainable revenue.

The role will work closely with the MD, Technical Operations, who remains responsible for technical operations and service delivery. The General Manager will also collaborate with the Client's MVNO business, FestMobile, supporting agreed growth initiatives through strategic relationships, market access and commercial opportunities without duplicating the responsibilities of the existing GM Sales.

The ideal candidate must combine strong commercial and business development capabilities with sufficient technical understanding to engage credibly with MNOs, carriers, service providers, enterprise customers, technology partners and other senior stakeholders within the telecoms ecosystem.

ROLE MANDATE

• Develop and execute a Board-approved commercial growth strategy for the Client's telecoms portfolio.

• Protect and grow existing Interconnect, IDA and VAS revenue, margins and strategic customer relationships.

• Build a qualified pipeline of new customers, partners, products and market opportunities.

• Translate network, platform and service capabilities into commercially viable voice, data, messaging, digital and other value-added products.

• Represent the Client at executive level with MNOs, carriers, enterprise customers, ecosystem partners and relevant industry stakeholders.

• Introduce strong commercial discipline around pricing, contracting, forecasting, customer profitability, collections and account growth.

• Work closely with the MD, Technical Operations to ensure commercial commitments are technically feasible, profitable and deliverable.

• Collaborate with FestMobile's GM Sales and leadership team to support agreed MVNO growth initiatives.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Commercial Strategy and Growth

• Develop a three-year portfolio growth strategy and annual commercial operating plan covering Interconnect, IDA, VAS and other telecoms businesses.

• Establish clear revenue, gross margin, customer and product targets across the portfolio.

• Monitor competitive developments, technology shifts, regulatory changes and customer demand to identify emerging opportunities and risks.

• Develop growth strategies around existing services, adjacent products, new routes, customer segments and strategic alliances.

• Establish distinct commercial priorities for each business line while identifying cross-selling and cross-portfolio opportunities.

• Provide recommendations on where the Client should invest, partner, build capabilities, acquire capabilities or exit, supported by commercial and financial analysis.

• Reduce dependence on a narrow customer, route or product base through deliberate portfolio diversification.

2. Business Development and Revenue Delivery

• Personally originate and lead major commercial opportunities from prospecting and qualification through solution design, negotiation, contracting, implementation handover and revenue realisation.

• Build and maintain an active opportunity pipeline with defined values, probabilities, decision makers, next actions and expected closing dates.

• Lead bids, proposals, presentations and commercial negotiations for significant opportunities.

• Develop account-growth plans for priority customers covering retention, cross-selling, wallet share and executive engagement.

• Re-engage dormant or underdeveloped accounts and convert relationships into measurable commercial opportunities.

• Ensure signed contracts translate into live traffic, billable usage, collections and acceptable gross margins.

3. Strategic Customer and Industry Relationships

• Own and strengthen relationships with senior decision makers across MNOs, international and domestic carriers, ISPs, aggregators, enterprise customers, digital platforms, financial institutions and relevant public-sector institutions.

• Develop and maintain an executive engagement calendar for the Group GMD, Group COO, Board sponsors and key executives.

• Serve as the senior commercial escalation point for strategic accounts while coordinating technical resolution with the MD, Technical Operations.

• Represent the Client at major industry forums, partner meetings and strategic negotiations.

• Maintain a structured relationship map covering decision makers, influencers, commercial priorities, risks and agreed engagement actions for strategic accounts.

4. Product Development and Commercialisation

• Develop a portfolio-wide product roadmap based on validated customer needs, available capabilities, expected margins and speed to revenue.

• Identify and commercialise VAS opportunities including enterprise messaging, A2P SMS, USSD, CPaaS, content and subscription services, voice and data bundles, APIs and other digital services approved by the Board.

• Lead customer discovery and develop business cases covering target customers, value propositions, pricing, investment requirements, risks, route to market and financial returns.

• Work with Technical Operations to translate approved concepts into service definitions, technical requirements, SLAs, implementation plans and launch criteria.

• Lead go-to-market planning, commercial launch, customer adoption and post-launch performance reviews.

• Recommend the redesign, repositioning or discontinuation of products that do not meet agreed adoption, revenue or margin thresholds.

5. Commercial Operations and Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Establish pricing frameworks, deal-approval thresholds and minimum margin requirements within Board-approved authority limits.

• Ensure proposals and contracts clearly address volumes, pricing, settlement, credit exposure, service levels, liabilities, renewal and termination rights.

• Partner with Finance to monitor revenue assurance, billing accuracy, receivables, customer credit, settlement exposure and customer-level profitability.

• Produce accurate monthly forecasts and explain variances across pipeline, contracted business, traffic, billed revenue and cash collections.

• Ensure disciplined use of the approved CRM and maintain accurate institutional records of customer and commercial information.

6. Leadership and Board Reporting

• Build and lead a high-performing commercial team covering business development, key account management, product commercialisation and sales support.

• Set clear performance targets, coach team members and maintain a culture of accountability, integrity and collaboration.

• Present concise monthly commercial dashboards and quarterly strategic reviews to the Board.

• Coordinate commercial priorities across the leaders and teams responsible for the various telecoms business lines.

• Escalate material customer, pricing, margin, regulatory, credit and delivery risks promptly with recommended actions.

• Undertake other Board-approved assignments relating to the commercial growth and protection of the Client's telecoms portfolio.

7. FestMobile Collaboration and Support

• Collaborate with FestMobile's GM Sales and leadership team, who retain direct responsibility for the MVNO's sales strategy, sales team, pipeline and revenue delivery.

• Support selected high-value opportunities involving MNO engagement, strategic partnerships, enterprise accounts, distribution channels, bundled services, VAS and other agreed initiatives.

• Leverage the Client's group-level relationships, market access and commercial expertise to support FestMobile in opening strategic doors, strengthening negotiations and resolving cross-business obstacles.

• Identify cross-selling and shared-product opportunities between FestMobile and the Client's Interconnect, IDA, VAS and other telecoms businesses.

• Coordinate shared customer and partner engagements with FestMobile's GM Sales to avoid duplicated approaches, conflicting pricing, unclear ownership or unapproved commitments.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

Financial Performance

Business Development

Customer Growth

Portfolio Resilience

Product Execution

Commercial Discipline

Joint Delivery

FestMobile Collaboration

EXPECTED OUTCOMES IN THE FIRST 12 MONTHS

First 90 Days: Diagnose and Align

• Complete a commercial review of the Interconnect, IDA, VAS and other active telecoms businesses, including customers, products, routes, contracts, pricing, margins, pipeline, receivables and concentration risks.

• Meet priority customers and partners and develop an executive relationship map for key accounts.

• Agree the commercial growth plan, decision rights, working cadence and escalation process with the Board and MD, Technical Operations.

• Establish a credible commercial pipeline and identify priority quick wins, dormant accounts and at-risk revenue.

• Present a prioritised product and partnership opportunity roadmap.

• Meet with FestMobile's GM Sales and leadership team to agree priority support areas, shared accounts, engagement protocols and clear role boundaries.

Months 4 to 6: Convert Opportunities

• Close or materially advance a Board-agreed number of strategic commercial opportunities.

• Implement key account plans and a disciplined CRM and forecasting process.

• Standardise commercial proposals, pricing guardrails, deal reviews and handover processes into Technical Operations.

• Complete validated business cases for at least two priority growth initiatives.

• Recommend the required commercial organisation, capabilities and incentive structure.

Months 7 to 12: Scale and Institutionalise

• Deliver Board-approved revenue, margin, pipeline and customer-diversification milestones.

• Launch at least one approved new or materially enhanced telecoms offering, including a priority VAS or adjacent digital service where commercially viable.

• Establish a path to recurring revenue for new offerings.

• Deepen C-suite relationships across priority operators, carriers and enterprise accounts.

• Build an effective commercial team and succession pipeline.

• Institutionalise monthly commercial performance reviews and quarterly portfolio reviews.

Requirements

EDUCATION AND PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Telecommunications, Computer Science, Business, Economics, Finance or a related discipline.

• MBA, relevant postgraduate qualification or recognised commercial or telecoms certification is an advantage.

• Demonstrable understanding of telecoms economics, commercial contracting and the Nigerian operating environment.

REQUIRED EXPERIENCE AND COMPETENCIES

• Typically 12 or more years of relevant experience within telecommunications or digital infrastructure, including at least five years in a senior commercial, business development, product or strategic account role.

• Proven experience originating, negotiating and closing complex, high-value B2B telecoms transactions.

• Strong relationships and credibility across MNOs, carriers, interconnect providers, VAS providers, ISPs, aggregators, enterprise customers or adjacent telecoms ecosystem participants.

• Experience developing and commercialising telecoms products or services, including VAS or adjacent digital services, with measurable revenue or margin outcomes.

• Experience working across commercial, technical, finance, legal, regulatory and operations functions.

• Demonstrated experience managing revenue targets, sales pipelines, customer profitability, commercial contracts and receivables.

• Experience working with an MVNO, MNO, consumer mobile business or digital-service platform is an advantage.

TECHNICAL AND COMMERCIAL FLUENCY

• Ability to discuss interconnect, IDA, carrier services, traffic, routing, capacity, quality, SLAs, settlement and network integration at a commercially credible level.

• Strong understanding of the VAS ecosystem, including enterprise messaging, A2P SMS, USSD, CPaaS, APIs, content and subscription services, partner models and applicable regulatory considerations.

• Ability to understand technical constraints and cost drivers and translate them into commercially viable customer propositions and contractual commitments.

• Strong financial and analytical skills, including pricing, margin analysis, business case development and scenario modelling.

• Proficiency with CRM systems, commercial dashboards, forecasting, proposal development and executive presentations.

LEADERSHIP ATTRIBUTES

• Proactive opportunity originator with the energy and persistence to open doors, build trust and close business.

• Strategic and forward-looking, with the ability to distinguish commercially attractive opportunities from distractions.

• High personal integrity, sound commercial judgment and respect for governance and commitments.

• Collaborative and comfortable operating within a peer-leadership structure, with respect for technical expertise and shared accountability.

• Strong executive presence, communication, negotiation and influencing skills.

• Disciplined, data-driven and accountable for business outcomes.

• Calm under pressure and capable of managing complex customers, competing priorities and sensitive commercial negotiations.