Vice President of Regional Operations - Central

Company Description

Zayo provides mission-critical bandwidth to the world's most impactful companies, fueling the innovations that are transforming our society. Zayo's 141,000-mile network in North America and Europe includes extensive metro connectivity to thousands of buildings and data centers. Zayo's communications infrastructure solutions include dark fiber, private data networks, wavelengths, Ethernet, and dedicated Internet access. Zayo serves wireless and wireline carriers, media, tech, content, finance, healthcare and other large enterprises.

Zayo is seeking a Vice President of Regional Operations - Central who will be responsible for endtoend regional operational performance across fiber delivery operations, outside plant (OSP) construction and repair, fiber engineering, network maintenance, splicing, and all associated implementation activities within assigned regional markets. This role carries full accountability for everything that happens or fails to happen within the region's fiber infrastructure and delivery operations.

This leader ensures that projects and operational activities are delivered on time, on interval, within budget, and in full adherence to quality, safety, regulatory, and customer standards. Our Vice President of Regional Operations - Central leads inmarket OSP Directors, the Regional Head of Operations, Project Managers, Construction Managers, and engineering/implementation teams, while also integrating and coordinating matrixed leadership from centralized functions-including Long Haul/Core, Field Operations, NOC, Damage Prevention, and centralized Engineering-to deliver consistent, fast, and customerfocused results.

This role reports to the SVP, Regional Operations and is a key driver of Zayo's regional execution strategy, ensuring a consistent customer experience across all regions while meeting or exceeding financial, operational, and service performance targets.

Location: Preference for Chicago, Denver or Toronto; flexible across the Central U.S. for candidates able to travel to support regional operations.

Responsibilities:

• Own all regional operational outcomes across delivery operations, OSP construction, OSP maintenance/repair, fiber engineering, splicing, and network restoration.

• Provide direct leadership to regional OSP, operations, implementation, and engineering teams; lead the current Head of Regional OSP, who reports into this role.

• Ensure all projects and operational activities are delivered on time, on interval, within quality and safety standards.

• Act as final escalation point for fiber outages, service-impacting events, and delivery blockers within the region.

CrossFunctional & Matrix Leadership

• Integrate leadership from centralized teams-including LH/Core, Field Operations, NOC, engineering, damage prevention, finance, and people & culture-into a cohesive matrixed regional leadership structure.

• Ensure cross-functional coordination for all operational aspects to deliver a consistent, fast, and customer-centric experience.

• Partner with centralized engineering and program leaders to ensure alignment on design, standards, and delivery priorities.

Project & Delivery Oversight

• Oversee all OSP and delivery projects in the region, including network builds, maintenance identification/repair, relocations, and splicing.

• Develop and maintain high-level and detailed project schedules; ensure trackers are updated and maintained with accurate information.

• Remove roadblocks that impede project progress or service restoration; communicate early warnings on potential due date, interval, or budget risks.

Performance, Customer Experience & Continuous Improvement

• Deliver against annual node, delivery, and revenue targets for the region.

• Achieve or improve MTTR performance, NPS, build interval, and other KPIs.

• Identify bottlenecks quickly and implement durable solutions.

• Drive operational excellence and quality across build, repair, and engineering activities.

Financial Leadership & Budget Ownership

• Own regional expense and capital budgets, including project capital and ongoing operating expense.

• Minimize variance between budgeted and actual spend; provide accurate forecasting and ensure stated forecasts are met.

• Track, report, and communicate OSP and delivery financial performance; oversee billing and cost recovery for network damages.

• Review and approve contractor invoices and engineering/OSP spend.

Quality, Compliance & Standards

• Ensure adherence to all build-quality, network reliability, regulatory, and safety standards.

• Provide all required as-built documentation to Fiber Engineering upon project completion.

• Ensure timely completion of ISO tasks and adherence to procurement policy for RFPs, bidding, and award processes.

Stakeholder Engagement

• Maintain strong relationships with customers, vendors, municipalities, utilities, and internal stakeholders.

• Participate in project, customer, and relocation meetings; provide clear communication on regional priorities and escalations.

• Support senior Zayo leadership through reporting, critical project updates, escalation handling, and executive communication.

Qualifications:

Education

• BS in Engineering, Information Technology, Telecommunications, or related technical field required.

• A master's degree is a plus.

Experience

• Minimum of 10 (ten) years of telecommunications leadership experience with strong knowledge of OSP construction, fiber networks, implementation/delivery operations, project management, and network maintenance.

• Demonstrated success managing large regional teams and matrixed organizations; prior experience leading people leaders and large field/engineering organizations.

• Strong business acumen with proven ability to manage expenses and capital budgets exceeding $1M.

• Experience delivering complex fiber builds, restorations, relocations, and large-scale maintenance programs.

Skills

• Excellent communication, leadership, and decision-making capabilities.

• Strong strategic planning, forecasting, and operational optimization skills.

• Outstanding critical thinking with the ability to anticipate and respond to risk quickly.

• Proficiency in data analysis, financial reporting, and performance management.

• Certifications such as PMP, Six Sigma, or related leadership credentials are advantageous.

Organizational Relationship

Reports to: SVP, Regional Operations

Direct reports: Regional Head of Operations (current HORO), OSP Directors, Implementation/Engineering managers, and associated operational leaders

Indirect reports: 50+ regional operational personnel and matrixed dotted-line leaders from centralized functions

Working Conditions

This role follows Zayo's hybrid work model (approx. 60% in-office, 40% flexible). Travel is required across the assigned region, with availability expected for critical events and escalations on a 24/7 basis.

Estimated base salary range: $225,000 - $250,000 USD/annually

#LI-AW1

The base pay range shown is a guideline and reasonable estimate for this role. It takes into account the wide variety of factors that are considered in making compensation decisions. Actual compensation offered may vary from the posted range based upon geographic location, work experience, skill level, certifications, and other business and organizational needs. Non- sales roles may be eligible to participate in a discretionary annual incentive plan. Sales roles may be eligible to participate in a sales incentive plan.

Additionally, this position may be eligible for certain benefits, such as health insurance, life insurance, disability retirement plans, paid time off.

The posting will be active for a minimum of 3 days. The active posting will continue to extend by 3 days until the position is filled.

Benefits, Rewards & Wellness

• Excellent Health, Dental & Vision Insurance

• Retirement 401(k) Savings Plan

• Generous paid time off policy including paid parental leave

Zayo provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, provincial or local laws.

This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.