Why should you choose us
Rakuten Symphony is reimagining telecom, changing supply chain norms and disrupting outmoded thinking that threatens the industry's pursuit of rapid innovation and growth. Based on proven modern infrastructure practices, its open interface platforms make it possible to launch and operate advanced mobile services in a fraction of the time and cost of conventional approaches, with no compromise to network quality or security.
Rakuten Symphony has operations in Japan, the United States, Singapore, India, South Korea, Europe, and the Middle East Africa region. For more information, visit: https://symphony.rakuten.com
Building on the technology Rakuten used to launch Japan's newest mobile network, we are taking our mobile offering global.
To support our ambitions to provide an innovative cloud-native telco platform for our customers, Rakuten Symphony is looking to recruit and develop top talent from around the globe. We are looking for individuals to join our team across all functional areas of our business – from sales to engineering, support functions to product development.
Let's build the future of mobile telecommunications together!
About Rakuten Group, Inc. (TSE: 4755) is a global leader in internet services that empower individuals, communities, businesses and society. Founded in Tokyo in 1997 as an online marketplace, Rakuten has expanded to offer services in e-commerce, fintech, digital content and communications to 2 billion members around the world. The Rakuten Group has over 30,000 employees, and operations in 30 countries and regions. For more information visit https://global.rakuten.com/corp/.
Job Summary:
We are seeking a highly experienced and technically strong Lead Standards Delegate to represent Rakuten Mobile/Symphony in 3GPP RAN1 and RAN2. The role focuses on contributing to and influencing 6G Radio Access Technologies.
The ideal candidate brings 8–12 years of hands-on experience in wireless communications, with solid exposure to RAN physical layer and/or protocol aspects, along with practical experience in 3GPP standardization. This role requires a balanced combination of deep technical understanding and the ability to navigate standards discussions, build consensus, and represent company positions effectively.
The candidate is expected to contribute to shaping future RAN directions, align internal technical strategy with ongoing standardization activities, and translate complex discussions into clear insights for product and research teams.
Key Responsibilities:
• Standards Body Representation & Influence:
- Actively participate in and represent Rakuten Mobile/Symphony in 3GPP RAN1 and RAN2 working groups.
- Prepare, present, and negotiate technical contributions aligned with company priorities and overall Release evolution.
- Contribute to shaping 6G RAN through active engagement in study and work item discussions.
- Support agreement building on key technical directions through continuous participation in meetings and ad-hoc discussions.
- Influence specification development to ensure Rakuten's system design and architectural perspectives are appropriately reflected.
- Build and maintain strong working relationships with delegates across vendors and operators to facilitate collaboration and consensus.
• Technical Expertise & Advocacy:
- Serve as a subject matter expert in RAN1 (physical layer) and/or RAN2 (radio protocols and procedures), depending on domain focus.
- Analyze ongoing discussions, agreements, and proposals to assess their impact on system performance, complexity, and deployment.
- Advocate Rakuten's technical positions with clear, well-reasoned arguments grounded in practical implementation considerations.
- Maintain awareness of cross-layer interactions and ensure alignment between physical layer design and protocol behaviour where relevant.
• Internal Alignment & Strategy:
- Collaborate closely with R&D, product, and system engineering teams to align contribution strategy with product and research directions.
- Translate 3GPP discussions and outcomes into clear internal guidance for implementation and roadmap planning.
- Provide regular updates to stakeholders on key developments, agreements, and potential risks or opportunities.
- Identify emerging topics and early study directions, including those relevant to 6G, and support internal positioning accordingly.
• Documentation & Knowledge Transfer:
- Develop high-quality 3GPP contributions with clear technical motivation and structured reasoning.
- Track key discussions, agreements, and open issues across meetings to ensure continuity and follow-up.
- Support internal knowledge sharing through summaries, technical discussions, and mentoring of team members on standards work.
• Innovation & Future Vision:
- Identify opportunities for innovation aligned with ongoing standardization activities and future RAN evolution.
- Contribute to the development of patentable ideas and support related IP activities.
- Support long-term positioning of Rakuten in 3GPP, including early engagement in 6G-related discussions.
- Soft Skills:
- Exceptional communication, presentation, and negotiation skills, with the ability to articulate complex technical concepts to diverse audiences (technical and non-technical).
- Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities.
- Proven ability to work independently and as part of a distributed team and work cohesively with a cross functional organization.
- Excellent interpersonal skills, with the ability to build consensus and influence outcomes in a multi-stakeholder environment.
- Demonstrated ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines effectively.
- High degree of professionalism and ethical conduct.
Education:
- Bachelor's or Master's degree in Electrical / Electronics Engineering, Computer Science, Telecommunications, or a related technical field.
- PhD is a plus.
Additional Skills
- Virtualization, Cloud native architectures, Kubernetes and Cloud environments.
- Good understanding of Agile principles and processes.
- Understanding of AI/ML
- Experience working in a fluid, start-up-like environment.
RAKUTEN SHUGI PRINCIPLES:
Our worldwide practices describe specific behaviours that make Rakuten unique and united across the world. We expect Rakuten employees to model these 5 Shugi Principles of Success.
- Always improve, always advance. Only be satisfied with complete success - Kaizen.
- Be passionately professional. Take an uncompromising approach to your work and be determined to be the best.
- Hypothesize - Practice - Validate - Shikumika. Use the Rakuten Cycle to success in unknown territory.
- Maximize Customer Satisfaction. The greatest satisfaction for workers in a service industry is to see their customers smile.
- Speed!! Speed!! Speed!! Always be conscious of time. Take charge, set clear goals, and engage your team.
