General Manager – VAS Strategy, Operations & Business Control

Function - Value Added ServicesReporting To - CEO/ Managing DirectorLocation - Dubai, UAECoverage - Global / Middle East / Africa / International MarketsRole PurposeTelcovas is looking for an experienced General Manager – VAS to take end-to-end ownership of the company’s Value Added Services business. The GM will be responsible for VAS strategy, business planning, operations, commercial performance, product performance, governance and control across Telcovas’s operator customers and markets.This is not purely a sales position. The GM will operate as the business owner for the VAS portfolio, ensuring that products are commercially successful, operationally stable, properly governed and continuously growing.Key Responsibilities· VAS Strategy & Business Planning: Define the overall VAS strategy, annual operating plan, product roadmap and market priorities. Identify new opportunities across telecom operators, digital services and emerging VAS models.· Business Ownership & P&L: Own VAS revenue, gross margin, operating costs and profitability. Prepare budgets, forecasts and monthly business reviews and ensure revenue and margin targets are achieved.· Operational Management: Take overall control of VAS operations across customers and countries, ensuring service availability, SLA compliance, timely issue resolution, operational discipline and customer satisfaction.· Performance & Business Control: Establish a strong management-control framework covering revenue, traffic, subscriptions, ARPU, churn, conversion, customer activity, product profitability and operational KPIs. Build management dashboards and identify deviations early.· Product Portfolio Management: Review the performance of existing VAS products and determine which services should be scaled, improved, repositioned or discontinued. Work with Product and Technology teams to introduce new services based on operator and market requirements.· Revenue Growth & Monetization: Develop strategies to increase subscriber penetration, usage, engagement, ARPU and overall VAS revenue. Identify cross-sell, upsell, bundling and new monetization opportunities.· Operator & Partner Management: Manage strategic relationships with mobile operators, content providers, technology partners, aggregators and other ecosystem partners. Participate in important customer reviews and commercial discussions.· Commercial Governance: Review commercial models, revenue-share arrangements, pricing, partner settlements, business cases and product profitability. Ensure proper reconciliation between traffic, billing, invoicing and collections.· Sales & Account Support: Work closely with regional Sales teams to identify new opportunities, prepare business cases and support major customer presentations, proposals, tenders and negotiations.· Customer Lifecycle & Analytics: Drive data-led management of acquisition, activation, engagement, retention, churn and reactivation. Establish clear KPIs by product, customer and geography.· Cross-Functional Leadership: Coordinate Sales, Product, Technology, Operations, Finance, Marketing and Customer Support teams to ensure clear ownership and execution across the VAS lifecycle.· Governance & Management Reporting: Conduct weekly/monthly VAS business reviews covering revenue, pipeline, service performance, customer issues, collections, product performance, risks and action items. Provide concise executive reporting to Telcovas management.Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)VAS revenue growth; gross margin and profitability; subscriber growth; ARPU; churn and retention; service availability and SLA performance; customer satisfaction; new product launches; collections and revenue realization; partner performance; and achievement of annual business targets.Candidate Profile· 12–18+ years of experience in telecom VAS, digital services, mobile content, subscription services, or telecom product/business management.· Significant experience working directly with mobile network operators.· Demonstrated experience managing a business or product portfolio rather than only sales.· Strong capability in revenue ownership, forecasting, analytics, operations, commercial negotiations and senior operator relationships.· Good understanding of VAS ecosystems, subscription models, customer lifecycle, ARPU, churn, revenue share, digital channels and telecom operator environments.· Experience across Africa, Middle East and/or emerging telecom markets is highly desirable.· Strong leadership, stakeholder management, analytical thinking and execution discipline.Leadership ExpectationThe ideal candidate should operate like a mini-CEO for the VAS business – connecting strategy, product, customer, operations, revenue, cost, profitability, control and growth. The GM should be able to assess every VAS service in terms of revenue, growth, margin, subscriber performance, operational health, customer impact and future potential, and translate that assessment into clear actions and measurable results.Core Mandate: Build a scalable, profitable and well-controlled VAS business for Telcovas, with clear ownership of strategy, operations and commercial performance.