Core Network Lead

Airalo runs the world's first eSIM store, helping millions of travellers access affordable mobile data across 200+ countries. The team is 400+ people across 60+ countries, fully remote by design, and many of the people building the product were customers first.

**The role**

This is a hands-on Technical Team Lead position owning the global build and technical integration of Full MVNO systems. You would lead a dedicated Build Team responsible for architecting, integrating, testing and commissioning end-to-end Full MVNO capabilities across global markets.

The team operates a Build-to-Run model: you build new MVNO capabilities and host MNO integrations from the ground up, test them rigorously, then hand stable systems over to a dedicated Run team after launch.

**What you would do**

- Lead, mentor and manage a team of around five engineers and QA specialists, owning sprint planning, task allocation and technical reviews across concurrent global rollout streams
- Establish engineering best practices, integration templates, automated testing strategy and technical handover standards
- Lead technical integrations with host mobile network operators globally across signalling, packet core, voice and messaging
- Own architecture and setup of Full MVNO core components, from the subscriber database (HSS/HLR) through packet core, signalling routing and messaging platforms
- Direct implementation and troubleshooting across the signalling stack including Diameter and SS7
- Own end-to-end service readiness across data, voice and SMS, covering session management, policy enforcement, VoLTE, legacy circuit-switched voice and international interconnects
- Design and validate mobile number portability routing against country-specific regulatory frameworks
- Own regulatory compliance per market, covering lawful interception (ETSI ES 201 671 / TS 102 232, HI1/HI2/HI3) and emergency routing such as e112, 911 and 999
- Partner with QA on integration, stress and acceptance testing, then drive Operational Readiness Reviews and documented handovers to the 24/7 Run team

**What you would bring**

- 5+ years hands-on in mobile core networks and Full MVNO integrations
- 2+ years leading engineers and/or QA specialists in an agile or delivery-focused environment
- Strong knowledge of both packet core and voice core, including HSS/HLR, policy and charging, VoLTE and legacy circuit-switched voice
- Expertise across Diameter, SS7 and SIP
- Messaging architecture and SMS routing experience, including operator interworking
- Proven delivery of mobile number portability and lawful interception solutions
- Documentation good enough to hand a system over on

**Nice to have**

- CI/CD, infrastructure as code (Terraform, Ansible), containerisation (Docker, Kubernetes) or automated signalling test frameworks
- Hands-on with vendors such as Nokia, Ericsson, Mavenir, Oracle Communications, Cisco, Summa Networks, NetNumber or XIUS
- Cloud-native or virtualised network functions on AWS, Azure, GCP or private cloud
- Degree in telecoms engineering, computer science or electrical engineering

**Compensation — disclosed across four European bands**

- **UK:** £89,600 – £128,800
- **Ireland:** €76,800 – €110,400
- **Western & Southern Europe:** €50,800 – €116,117
- **Central, Eastern Europe & Caucasus:** €53,851 – €88,291

Your band depends on where you are based, and Airalo says the Talent team walks through it on the first call.

**On-call — and unusually, how they handle it**

Participating in the on-call rotation is a core expectation, needed to maintain 24/7 reliability across Airalo's global operations. What sets this apart is that the policy is spelled out rather than buried:

- **Paid rotation** — standby fees plus overtime pay
- **Delayed start** — no on-call duties for your first six months
- **Rest and recovery** — guaranteed rest periods and flexible hours after night incidents
- **Shared load** — rotations split between weekdays and weekends to limit fatigue

Airalo publishes the full policy in its public handbook. For anyone weighing a role with on-call against a location-independent lifestyle, that transparency is worth more than a vague promise.

**Before applying**

Full-time and permanent. English is the working language, in meetings and async. The role is open across Airalo's supported locations in Europe.

Airalo uses AI-assisted tools to review CV information, with human hiring decisions, and AI interview notes you **can opt out of**. Background checks may be requested at the end of the process, with consent.