Specialist Transport IP & Optical Planning

About the role

The Specialist Transport IP & Optical Planning will design, plan and optimise both optical (OTN/DWDM) and IP/MPLS/IPRAN networks that support mobile RAN, enterprise services and upcoming 5G deployments. The role focuses on delivering scalable, resilient and cost‑efficient transport solutions while leveraging automation, data‑driven forecasting and AI/ML techniques.

Key responsibilities

• Plan and design OTN/DWDM networks, including ROADM‑based C+L band, Flex‑Grid and CDC architectures.
• Develop capacity plans for backbone, metro and access fibre, and design protection schemes (1+1, ring, mesh).
• Create IP network topologies for aggregation, core and service edge (BRAS/BNG, PE routers) and scale IP/MPLS layers (IPRAN, FTTS, aggregation/core).
• Support L2VPN, L3VPN, EVPN and point‑to‑point connectivity services for enterprise and mobile traffic.
• Prepare transport and IP networks for 5G requirements such as high capacity, low latency and network slicing.
• Identify congestion points, forecast traffic and proactively upgrade capacity.
• Develop automation scripts (Python, APIs) for planning validation, capacity tracking and integration with OSS/BSS.
• Apply data analytics and AI/ML models for demand prediction, capacity optimisation and anomaly detection.
• Collaborate with enterprise sales, operations teams and vendors to validate designs and roll out new technologies.

Required profile

• Bachelor’s degree in Telecommunications, Electrical/Electronic Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science or a related field.
• 0‑5+ years of experience in transport optical and/or IP/MPLS network planning within a telecom operator or vendor environment.
• Strong understanding of optical transport (DWDM, OTN, ROADM, GMPLS) and IP/MPLS technologies (IPRAN, Segment Routing, BGP, OSPF/IS‑IS, QoS, TE).
• Knowledge of network synchronization, clock distribution and protection schemes.

Required skills

• DWDM, OTN, ROADM, GMPLS
• Optical protection schemes (1+1, ring, mesh)
• IPRAN, IP/MPLS, Segment Routing
• BGP, OSPF, IS‑IS, QoS, Traffic Engineering
• Network synchronization and clock distribution
• Python, scripting and API development
• Automation and network planning tools
• Data analytics, AI/ML modelling for traffic forecasting
• Integration with OSS/BSS systems