Optimization Engineer – Radio Access Network

About the role

Ericsson is seeking an Optimization Engineer to join its South African team. You will work on the design, tuning, and performance optimisation of 2G/3G/4G/5G radio access networks, while also supporting pre‑sales and customer engagements. The role blends deep technical expertise with direct customer interaction to ensure high‑quality network delivery.

Key responsibilities

• Lead RAN design and dimensioning aligned with customer requirements.
• Plan and execute RF optimisation to improve KPIs such as throughput, accessibility, retainability, latency and coverage.
• Perform root‑cause analysis of performance issues and resolve network outages.
• Engage with customers to identify improvements and present technical solutions.
• Prepare proposals, optimisation plans and performance reports.
• Conduct site acceptance, verification and benchmarking through drive/walk tests.
• Configure and validate RAN parameters using OSS/NMS tools.
• Support feature roll‑outs, refarming, upgrades and integration projects.
• Estimate service costs and define scopes of work for proposals.
• Mentor junior engineers and share knowledge across the team.
• Ensure compliance with operational processes and participate in on‑call activities.

Required profile

• Bachelor’s degree in Telecommunications, Electrical Engineering or a related field.
• Minimum 5 + years of hands‑on RAN experience in vendor or operator environments.
• Strong stakeholder management and consultative communication skills.
• Customer‑focused mindset with the ability to manage multiple priorities.

Required skills

• RAN design, optimisation and performance management.
• Radio concepts, air‑interface technologies and signalling.
• RAN tuning, neighbour relations and handover optimisation.
• RF planning and drive‑test tools (Atoll, TEMS, Actix, Nemo).
• Experience with Ericsson, Huawei or Nokia OSS/NMS platforms.
• Knowledge of 5G technologies (NR, EN‑DC, SA/NSA, MIMO).
• Data analysis and automation (Python, SQL, Excel).