Core Network Engineer

Ilitha Telecommunications; Rosebank; On-site; CAD 84,000 - 151,000; Full time

Job summary

Ilitha Telecommunications is looking for a Core Network Engineer to join its Technology & Infrastructure division in Rosebank, Gauteng. The role centers on end-to-end planning, configuration, optimisation, and integrity of the core IP and transport network that powers FTTH and WTTX services.

You will handle capacity planning, backhaul design, IP addressing, routing governance, and escalations from the NOC. Responsibilities include building PoPs, monitoring utilization, coordinating with vendors,

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Telecommunications Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or a related field or equivalent professional experience.
• Cisco CCNP (Enterprise or Service Provider) certification or equivalent (Huawei HCIP / MikroTik MTCRE / Juniper JNCIS).
• Network security certification advantageous: Security+, CEH, CCNA Security, or equivalent.
• Project management qualification (PMP, Prince2) advantageous.
• Valid South African driver’s license.

Responsibilities

• Network Capacity Planning & Architecture: plan capacity, design PoPs, document backhaul, maintain IP/VLAN/backbone configurations.
• Backhaul Link Planning & Transport Management: monitor utilization, forecast growth, coordinate with vendors.
• Core Network Configuration & Operations: manage BGP/OSPF/MPLS, GPON OLT configurations, PPPoE/IPoE/RADIUS/TACACS/SNMP.
• Network Security & Governance: design access policies, conduct audits, ensure compliance.
• High-Level Technical Support & Escalation: act as L3 escalation point, engage OEMs for critical faults.
• Vendor & Project Coordination: manage changes, track milestones, document everything.
• Reporting & Documentation: maintain topology, IP plans, CMDBs; prepare capacity/performance reports.

Skills

BGP/OSPF/MPLS

IP/MPLS

Firewall/VPN

Security certification

CCNP Certification

Network monitoring tools

Documentation tools

MikroTik RouterOS

Ubiquiti platforms

GPON OLT platforms

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Telecommunications/CS/EE or equivalent

Tools

PRTG

LibreNMS

SolarWinds

Zabbix

draw.io

Visio

Job description

JOB TITLE: Core Network Engineer DIVISION: Technology & Infrastructure COMPANY: Ilitha Telecommunications (Pty) Ltd EMPLOYMENT TYPE: Permanent – Full Time CLOSING DATE: 20 November 2026 LOCATION: Rosebank, Gauteng (with travel to sites)

• High-Level Technical Support & Escalation
• Vendor & Project Coordination

Role Purpose

Ilitha Telecommunications is a fast-growing South African internet service provider on a mission to bridge the digital divide by delivering high-speed, affordable fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) and fixed-wireless (WTTX) connectivity to underserved townships, peri-urban, and rural communities across South Africa. Backed by landmark investment secured to connect over 500 000 low-income homes, Ilitha is at an exciting inflection point in its growth journey — scaling its physical and core network infrastructure at pace across the Eastern Cape and beyond. The Core Network Engineer will be central to the reliability, capacity, and security of the network that powers this mission. The Core Network Engineer is responsible for the end-to-end planning, configuration, optimisation, and integrity of Ilitha’s core IP and transport network — the backbone that carries all FTTH and WTTX traffic from customer premises to the internet. This role owns capacity planning, backhaul link design, IP addressing architecture, routing protocol governance, and high-level technical escalations from the NOC. It is a hands‑on engineering role that operates at the intersection of strategic network planning and day-to-day operational excellence. As Ilitha expands its footprint to hundreds of thousands of additional homes, the Core Network Engineer will play a defining role in ensuring the network scales reliably, securely, and cost-effectively — while maintaining the quality of experience that differentiates Ilitha in the market.

Key Responsibilities

• 1. Network Capacity Planning & Architecture
• Conduct end-to-end capacity planning to ensure high availability, scalability, and quality of service for all FTTH and WTTX internet services.
• Plan and implement new Points of Presence (PoPs) to support broadband service expansion across Ilitha’s growing footprint.
• Design and document backhaul link routes, capacity thresholds, and redundancy requirements for all long-haul and last-mile segments.
• Maintain and evolve IP addressing schemes, VLAN architecture, and backbone configurations in line with network growth.
• Model traffic growth trends and produce infrastructure upgrade recommendations ahead of capacity constraints.
• Backhaul Link Planning & Transport Management
• Monitor network utilisation trends across all backhaul segments to forecast growth and trigger upgrade procurement in advance.
• Coordinate with field teams, civil contractors, and fibre vendors for route planning, deployment, testing, and commissioning of new links.
• Evaluate link performance data and recommend optimisation actions for throughput, latency, and redundancy.
• Manage relationships with transport and transit providers to ensure SLA performance and cost‑effective capacity procurement.
• Maintain route diversity and failover paths to meet uptime commitments across all geographic segments.
• Core Network Configuration & Operations
• Own the configuration and management of core routing and switching infrastructure, including BGP peering, OSPF internal routing, and MPLS label switching.
• Maintain and optimise GPON OLT configurations and subscriber management systems supporting the FTTH access layer.
• Manage broadband protocols including PPPoE, IPoE, RADIUS, TACACS, and SNMP across the subscriber and management planes.
• Administer and optimise DWDM and Ethernet transport layers supporting core and aggregation network segments.
• Implement and maintain Quality of Service (QoS) policies to prioritise traffic classes and protect the subscriber experience during congestion events.
• Network Security & Governance
• Ensure the core network infrastructure is secure, continuously monitored, and compliant with industry best practices and applicable regulations.
• Design and enforce network access policies, firewall rule- sets, VPN configurations, and encryption standards across all network layers.
• Support incident response processes, lead root-cause analysis for security events and major outages and drive corrective action to closure.
• Conduct periodic security audits and vulnerability assessments of core infrastructure and recommend remediation actions.
• Maintain compliance with relevant frameworks (e.g. ICASA regulations, POPIA data handling requirements for network logs and subscriber data).
• High-Level Technical Support & Escalation
• Serve as the primary L3 escalation point for complex network incidents logged by the Ilitha NOC that exceed standard runbook resolution.
• Engage directly with OEM support teams (Cisco, Huawei, MikroTik, Ubiquiti, or equivalent) for critical fault resolution and firmware management.
• Provide technical guidance and mentoring to NOC engineers on core network concepts, troubleshooting approaches, and documentation standards.
• Participate in an on-call standby rotation and respond to critical incidents outside standard working hours as required.
• Liaise with ISP peering partners and upstream providers during multi-domain incidents.
• Vendor & Project Coordination
• Coordinate with equipment vendors, fibre contractors, and managed service providers for network infrastructure projects from design through to go-live.
• Participate in the evaluation of new network technology solutions, preparing technical assessment reports for CTO review.
• Manage change requests through Ilitha’s change management process, ensuring accurate impact assessments, rollback plans, and post-implementation reviews.
• Track project milestones for network expansion workstreams and elevate delivery risks to the Head of Network Planning in a timely manner.
• Reporting & Documentation
• Maintain comprehensive, accurate, and up-to-date documentation for all network topology, configurations, IP plans, and change records.
• Produce regular capacity, performance, and incident reports for the Head of Network Planning and CTO, highlighting trends and forward-looking risks.
• Contribute to the network section of board and investor reporting packages as required.
• Maintain a network asset register and ensure configuration management databases (CMDBs) reflect the current state of the core infrastructure.

Minimum Qualifications and Skills

• Bachelor’s degree in Telecommunications Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or a related field — or equivalent demonstrated professional experience
• Cisco CCNP (Enterprise or Service Provider track) — or equivalent Huawei HCIP / MikroTik MTCRE / Juniper JNCIS certification
• Network security certification advantageous: CompTIA Security+, CEH, CCNA Security, or equivalent.
• Project management qualification (PMP, Prince2 Foundation) advantageous.
• Valid South African driver’s licence.

Technical Competencies

• In-depth, hands‑on knowledge of IP/MPLS, GPON, DWDM, and Carrier Ethernet.
• Strong proficiency in BGP, OSPF, IS-IS, and MPLS Label Distribution Protocol (LDP/RSVP).
• Practical experience configuring broadband subscriber management: PPPoE, IPoE, RADIUS, TACACS, DHCP, and SNMP.
• Firewall and VPN configuration experience (Fortinet, Cisco ASA, Palo Alto, or equivalent).
• Familiarity with GPON OLT platforms (Huawei, ZTE, or equivalent) and FTTx access network design.
• Network monitoring and performance management tooling (PRTG, LibreNMS, SolarWinds, Zabbix, or equivalent).
• Strong technical documentation skills; working knowledge of network diagram tools (draw.io, Visio, or equivalent).
• Experience with MikroTik RouterOS and Ubiquiti platforms advantageous Experience
• Minimum 5 years of hands‑on experience in core network planning, configuration, or operations within an ISP, FTTH operator, or telecommunications environment.
• Demonstrated experience designing and managing IP/MPLS backbone networks and BGP peering.
• Track record of capacity planning and infrastructure scaling in a high-growth connectivity environment.
• Experience working with GPON access networks and the associated core network integration.
• History of L3 technical escalation ownership and successful OEM engagement for critical incidents.
• Experience working with or coordinating field engineering and civil contractor teams is advantageous
• Prior exposure to network security governance and compliance in a licensed ISP context is advantageous.