Service Delivery Manager

Telco Cybersecurity Operations

Role Purpose

The Service Delivery Manager (SDM) is accountable for the end-to-end delivery, stability, and continuous improvement of Telco Cybersecurity Operations, ensuring contractual, regulatory, and operational commitments are consistently met. This role acts as the primary operational interface between cybersecurity operations, network/NOC teams, vendors, and client stakeholders, ensuring SLAs, OLAs, and SLOs are achieved while protecting the integrity, independence, and operational effectiveness of the cybersecurity function.

Key Responsibilities

Service Delivery & Operational Governance

• Own and manage end-to-end service delivery for Telco Cybersecurity Operations (SOC, NOC-SOC integration, network security, infrastructure security).

• Define, monitor, and enforce SLAs, OLAs, and SLOs across internal teams, partners, and third-party vendors.

• Ensure service continuity, availability, and resilience across mission-critical telco environments (core, access, transport, IMS, MCX, IoT).

• Chair and govern operational service reviews, including daily, weekly, and monthly service cadence.

• Drive service improvement initiatives based on trend analysis, RCA, and operational KPIs.

Stakeholder & Client Management

• Act as the single accountable operational owner for cybersecurity service delivery toward the customer.

• Lead senior stakeholder engagement across technology, network, operations, and business teams.

• Represent cybersecurity operations in cross-functional forums, ensuring security positions are clearly articulated, justified, and professionally defended using risk, impact, and service-assurance arguments.

• Manage escalations calmly and authoritatively, balancing service availability, security posture, and contractual obligations.

• Build strong, trusted relationships with client counterparts, including service owners, NOC heads, infrastructure leaders, and risk/compliance teams.

SLA / OLA / SLO Management & Reporting

• Design, implement, and continuously refine service metrics and dashboards.

• Ensure transparent and accurate SLA reporting, including breach analysis and remediation plans.

• Translate technical service data into executive-level insights for senior management.

• Drive corrective actions and service recovery plans when targets are at risk.

• Lead service acceptance, transition, and stabilization for new services or platforms.

Team Leadership & People Management

• Lead and manage large, multi-disciplinary operations teams, including SOC analysts, security engineers, NOC interfaces, and service coordinators.

• Establish clear roles, RACI, shift models, and escalation paths.

• Foster a culture of operational discipline, accountability, and continuous improvement.

• Coach team leads and senior engineers on stakeholder communication, prioritization, and incident handling.

• Ensure operational readiness through training, runbooks, and drills.

Telco, NOC & Security Operations Integration

• Ensure seamless operational integration between SOC and NOC functions.

• Oversee security monitoring across telco networks, core infrastructure, cloud platforms, and critical applications.

• Coordinate incident handling across network, security, and IT domains.

• Ensure incident, problem, and change management processes align with telco operational realities.

• Support major incident management (MIM) and post-incident reviews.

Risk, Compliance & Service Assurance

• Ensure cybersecurity services align with regulatory, contractual, and internal governance requirements.

• Participate in audits, compliance reviews, and service assurance assessments.

• Ensure service delivery models support high-availability and mission-critical environments.

• Identify operational risks early and implement mitigation plans.

Required Experience & Qualifications

Experience

• 10+ years in service delivery, operations, or managed services roles within Telco, Critical Infrastructure, or Large Enterprise environments.

• Strong hands-on experience managing SLA, OLA, and SLO-driven services.

• Proven background in NOC operations, Telco networks, or large-scale infrastructure operations.

• Demonstrated experience managing large operations teams (24×7 environments preferred).

• Prior exposure to SOC / Cybersecurity Operations within telco or service provider environments.

• Track record of managing complex stakeholders and high-pressure operational situations.

Technical & Domain Knowledge

• Solid understanding of: Telco network architectures (core, access, transport)

• NOC operations and tooling

• SOC operations, incident management, and escalation models

• Network and infrastructure security concepts

• Familiarity with ITSM frameworks (ITIL or equivalent).

• Comfortable engaging with engineers, architects, and executives alike.

Leadership & Behavioral Attributes

• Strong executive presence with the ability to hold firm positions professionally and credibly.

• Calm, structured, and decisive under pressure.

• Excellent communication skills—both written and verbal.

• Highly organized with strong governance and follow-through.

• Able to balance security rigor with service availability and business priorities.

Preferred / Nice to Have

• Experience in mission-critical telco services (MCX, public safety, private LTE/5G).

• Experience in multi-vendor, multi-technology environments.

• Exposure to regulatory or national critical infrastructure environments.

• Formal ITSM or service management certifications.