Emilio Perna

Sales & Customer Operation Director (Italy) | COO Managed Services @ Ericsson

About

I'm an outcome-oriented Business Leader with 25+ years of progressive experience in Technology & Infrastructure services. Throughout my career, I've combined P&L ownership and multi-country leadership with end-to-end responsibility across go-to-market, business development, sales, delivery, and customer operations. I have a proven track record in driving large-scale transformations and launching operations from scratch in complex regulatory environments, consistently achieving revenue, margin, and operational excellence targets. I focus on execution, quality, and customer satisfaction through AI-enabled digitalization, automation, and data-driven operating models. I'm recognized as a trusted partner to Telco Operators, TowerCos, Infrastructure providers, and mission-critical enterprise clients (Public Administration, Defense, Utilities) — enabling sustainable growth through strategic account development, cross-functional orchestration, and service delivery excellence. "Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life" (Confucius)

Country

Italy

City

Rome

Industry

Information Technology & Services

Skill

Account Management, Key Account Management, Key Account Relationship Building, Telco/IT, PMO Development, Cloud Infrastructure, Technology Change Management, PMO set-up, Global Delivery, OSS, Cross-functional Team Leadership, Core Network, IP network, Line Management, Budget Management, Coaching & Mentoring, Operational Risk Management, Network Services, Crisis Management, Startup Environments

Experience

Sales & Customer Operation Director (Italy) | COO Managed Services

Ericsson

2019-5 - Present · 7 yrs 5 mos

Italy

• Full P&L accountability for B2B revenue across Italian operators, infrastructure providers, and mission-critical enterprise clients; led pre-sales, complex bids/RFPs, strategic negotiations, delivery governance, and significant contract expansion. • COO Field Services Outsourcing of Vodafone Italy (~350 FTE): full ownership of operations, profitability, service performance, quality, and EHS compliance — driving continuous improvement through automation and AI-enabled tools. • Designed Go-to-Market strategies for AI-driven and 'As-a-Service' solutions; built a certified multi-vendor partner ecosystem for integrated product-service delivery.

Head of Networks & Managed Services (Italy, SEE, Libya, Israel)

Ericsson

2018-4 - 2019-4 · 1 yr 1 mo

Italy

• Full P&L ownership across pre-sales, delivery, and operations in 15 countries, leading a 1,500+ FTE organization serving 40+ Tier-1/Tier-2 clients. • Led large-scale infrastructure transformation programs leveraging AI/automation, and strengthened governance, compliance, and EHS risk management across complex multi-country operations.

Head of Networks | COO Managed Services (Romania, Moldova, Montenegro)

Ericsson

2015-10 - 2018-7 · 2 yrs 10 mos

Romania and Montenegro

• Full P&L ownership across 3 countries; standardized governance and digitalized processes, reducing delivery risk and accelerating time-to-value. • Established Montenegro branch from scratch (greenfield, ~130 FTE) and restructured the 600+ FTE organization in Romania, achieving ~40% efficiency uplift.

Head of Customer Operations Management (Italy & Libya)

Ericsson

2010-6 - 2015-9 · 5 yrs 4 mos

Libya

• Launched and scaled Libya operations from scratch (~90 people), maintaining service continuity during severe geopolitical instability. • P&L ownership for customer operations and infrastructure projects across major Italian and Libyan clients, with reinforced delivery governance and SLA adherence.

Head of PMO, Consulting Services & Training (Global Center — Italy, North Africa & Middle East)

Ericsson

2007-1 - 2010-5 · 3 yrs 5 mos

• Led pre-sales and delivery of Technology/Operations Consulting and Training across Italy, North Africa & Middle East; managed portfolio of ~100 IT & Networks technology projects/year with 120+ senior consultants, supporting customer enablement programs to accelerate technology adoption and service optimization.

Core Network & IP Technology Manager

Ericsson

2004-1 - 2006-12 · 3 yrs

OSS & BSS Manager

Ericsson

1998-1 - 2003-12 · 6 yrs

OSS Technical Specialist

Ericsson

1996-10 - 1997-12 · 1 yr 3 mos

Education

MIT Sloan School of Management

2020-1 - 2020-12 · 1 yr

12-month executive program focused on digital transformation and strategic innovation. Core areas: AI for Business Strategy, Industry 4.0 & Change Leadership, Cybersecurity Governance, IoT Business Models.