Manager – International Voice

What we're looking for;

• In keeping with our current business needs, we are looking for a person who meets the criteria indicated below
• Reporting to the Mobile Wholesale Lead, the role purpose is as highlighted below;
• To lead the growth and transformation of Safaricom's International Wholesale Voice portfolio through strategic partnerships, commercial innovation, network economics optimization, and automation-led operations.
• The role is accountable for maximizing voice revenue, network value realization, and traffic integrity through carrier ecosystem management, commercial negotiations, routing optimization, cost efficiency initiatives, LCR governance, revenue protection, and strategic partnership development across carrier, transit, enterprise, OTT, application, and emerging communications ecosystems.
• The role drives sustainable business performance through data-driven decision-making, AI-enabled insights, agile execution, and continuous optimization while delivering an Always-On service experience and strengthening Safaricom's position as a preferred regional and global voice interconnect partner.
• The role also leads the commercialization of future voice growth opportunities including international transit, international enterprise voice services: ITFS, DID, CPaaS, cloud communications, Voice Quality-on-Demand (QoD), Voice Biometrics etc., application-driven communications, and other next-generation voice services.
• Through ecosystem partnerships, automation-first operations, and innovative business models, the role supports the evolution of the voice business towards digital communications ecosystems, network monetization, and future connectivity services.

Responsibilities

Health & Safety

• Uphold the company code of conduct, policies and procedures, ensuring integrity and accountability in every aspect of your work.
• All employees have a responsibility to adhere to safety, health, and wellbeing policies, guidelines and procedures in all actions and decisions.

Revenue Growth, Commercialization & Network Economics

• Own revenue growth, and value realization.
• Drive inbound voice traffic growth, and network utilization.
• Optimize pricing, routing economics, and commercial performance through analytics, automation, and AI-driven insights.
• Provide commercial inputs into routing, LCR, and traffic optimization initiatives.
• Drive continuous optimization through data-driven performance management and agile execution.

Strategic Partnerships, Carrier Ecosystem & Commercial Management

• Own strategic relationships with carriers, application/OTT providers, MNOs, Firewall & Detection System providers.
• Lead commercial negotiations, carrier agreements, renewals, and strategic partnerships.
• Expand Safaricom's voice footprint through direct interconnects, traffic agreements, and ecosystem collaborations.
• Secure sustainable traffic, revenue growth, and long-term commercial commitments.
• Develop joint business plans and growth initiatives with key partners.
• Drive digitization and automation of partner onboarding, governance, reporting, and lifecycle management.
• Drive partner performance through analytics, automation, AI-enabled insights, and agile execution.

Voice Innovation, Traffic Monetization & Future Services

• Identify and commercialize new voice monetization opportunities including international transit, SIP interconnect, enterprise voice, and next-generation communication services viz., Voice QoD, Voice BioMetrics, Applications etc.
• Develop innovative traffic growth models and commercial propositions to strengthen competitiveness.
• Monitor industry trends, regulatory developments, and evolving communication ecosystems.
• Leverage automation, AI, and analytics to enhance commercial performance and operational efficiency.
• Align portfolio growth with future communication services, network transformation, and emerging digital ecosystems.

Governance, Risk, Settlements & Financial Management

• Govern contracts, settlements, billing integrity, reconciliations, and financial controls.
• Drive financial reporting accuracy and audit readiness through collaboration with Finance Reporting Team and Commercial Excellence.
• Manage partner disputes, credit exposure, commercial risks, fraud risks, and business continuity.
• Ensure compliance with regulatory, contractual, and industry obligations, including performance and report sharing.
• Drive revenue protection through collaboration with Revenue Assurance and Fraud Management teams.
• Improve settlement accuracy, governance, and risk management through automation, analytics, and AI-enabled controls.

Service Performance, Automation & Always-On Experience

• Govern and drive service availability, resilience, QoS, SLA and operational excellence through agile and automation-first operations.
• Champion predictive monitoring, self-healing capabilities, and AI-enabled service management.
• Lead issue resolution, continuous improvement, and service optimization initiatives.
• Accelerate touchless operations and straight-through processing across onboarding, routing, settlements, and reporting.
• Deliver an Always-On partner experience through proactive performance management and data-driven decision-making.

Industry Leadership, Market Intelligence & Future Readiness

• Represent Safaricom in voice industry forums, carrier communities, and strategic ecosystem engagements.
• Monitor market trends, competitive developments, regulatory changes, and emerging technologies impacting international voice services.
• Translate market intelligence into actionable commercial, operational, and strategic initiatives.
• Identify new partnerships, traffic opportunities, and monetization models arising from industry developments.
• Contribute to Safaricom's future-fit wholesale mobility and network monetization agenda

Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in Telecommunications, Engineering, IT, Business, Economics, Finance, Marketing, or related field.
• MBA or Master's Degree is an added advantage.
• GSMA, Interconnect, IPX, Carrier Relations, Product Management, Data Analytics, AI, or Digital Transformation certifications are desirable.
• 12+ years in telecommunications with at least 5 years in International Voice, Wholesale, Interconnect, Carrier Relations, or International Business.
• Proven track record in revenue growth, carrier negotiations, traffic monetization, and network economics.
• Strong experience in voice routing, settlements, interconnect, and international carrier ecosystems.
• Demonstrated experience leveraging analytics, automation, and AI to improve commercial and operational performance.
• Experience leading cross-functional initiatives, strategic partnerships, and transformation programs.