Atif Cheema
About Atif Cheema
Atif Cheema is a Senior Manager of Transport and Operations Systems at du in the United Arab Emirates, where he has worked since 2020. He has extensive experience in the telecom sector, having held various technical and managerial roles at du and other companies over the past two decades.
Work at du
Atif Cheema has held multiple positions at du, a leading telecommunications provider in the United Arab Emirates. He began his tenure in 2007 as a Technical Specialist/Manager for Internet Backbone and International PoP, serving for five years until 2012. He then transitioned to the role of Technical Manager for Internet International PoP Operations from 2012 to 2016. Cheema returned to du in 2017 as Senior Manager for IP Transport, a position he held for 11 months. He later served as Senior Manager for Service Re-Engineering Transport and IP Core from 2018 to 2020. Currently, he is the Senior Manager for Transport and Operations Systems, a role he has occupied since 2020.
Education and Expertise
Atif Cheema earned his Bachelor's degree from the University of Engineering and Technology in Lahore, Pakistan, completing his studies from 1993 to 1998. In addition to his degree, he obtained a Level 3 Certificate in Leadership from City & Guilds in 2018. Cheema specializes in crisis management and mentoring engineers within the telecom transport networks sector. His expertise encompasses a wide range of technologies, including iSDP, IPSec, CDN, CGN, CF, DPI, FNL, FTTA, BGP, TE, TCP, MBH, NAC, IuUP, twamp, and BNG.
Background
Before joining du, Atif Cheema worked in various technical roles in Pakistan. He began his career as a LAN/WAN Engineer at Nishat Mills Ltd. from 2000 to 2001. He then served as an Internet Exchange Resident Engineer at SYSNET PAKISTAN (PVT.) LTD. from 2001 to 2002. Cheema also worked as an Assistant Technical Manager for IT Infrastructure at Jazz (previously known as Mobilink) from 2005 to 2007. Additionally, he held a brief position as Interim Assistant Manager for Core IP Network at Wateen Telecom Limited in 2007.
Achievements
Atif Cheema has made significant contributions to the telecommunications sector, particularly in operational efficiency. He implemented strategies for telco Edge compute and Hopcount reduction in telecom transport networks. His effective process and governance management led to operational expenditure savings exceeding 20 million. Cheema's work has focused on enhancing the performance and reliability of transport systems within the telecom industry.