| name | solution-design |
| version | 1.0.0 |
| description | CircleTel product management and solution design. Triggers: 'solution design', 'product design', 'new product', 'unit economics', 'margin analysis', 'technology selection', 'product-market fit', 'PMF', 'which technology', 'pricing model', 'contribution margin', 'LTV', 'CAC', 'wholesale costs'. |
| dependencies | ["promotional-campaigns","pricing-strategy"] |
CircleTel Solution Design & Product Management
Strategic product management for CircleTel's telecommunications portfolio. Use this skill to design solutions, validate unit economics, select technologies, and ensure product-market fit.
When This Skill Activates
This skill automatically activates when you:
- Design new products or solutions for customers
- Evaluate unit economics or contribution margins
- Select technology for a customer scenario
- Validate product-market fit
- Analyze wholesale costs and pricing
- Compare product options for a use case
- Plan new product launches
Keywords: solution design, product design, new product, unit economics, margin analysis, technology selection, product-market fit, PMF, which technology, pricing model, contribution margin, LTV, CAC, wholesale costs, Tarana, DFA, DUNE, FWA, fibre
Quick Reference
CircleTel Identity
Brand
- Legal Entity: CircleTel SA (Pty) Ltd (Reg: 2008/026404/07)
- Brand Stylisation: circleTEL
- Tagline: "Connecting Today, Creating Tomorrow"
- Parent: New Generation Group (NewGen)
Vision
"To be South Africa's most trusted connectivity partner for underserved communities and growing businesses, delivering affordable, reliable digital services that enable economic participation and growth through AI-powered, digital-first experiences."
Strategic Pillars (v4.0)
- Digital Inclusion — Bridge the connectivity divide
- SME Empowerment — Integrated digital services
- AI & Digital First — AI at the core of operations
- Operational Excellence — Scalable, efficient operations
- Sustainable Growth — Diversified revenue, margin discipline
Core Values
- Ubuntu — Community-first
- Reliability — Delivering on promises
- Innovation — AI and technology for real problems
- Accessibility — Digital services for all South Africans
- Integrity — Transparent, ethical operations
Product Portfolio Overview
| Product Line | Technology | Status | Price Range | Target Margin |
|---|
| SkyFibre SMB | MTN Tarana G1 FWA | ACTIVE | R1,899–4,899/pm | 41–52% |
| BizFibreConnect | DFA FTTB | ACTIVE | R1,699–4,373/pm | 31–41% |
| ClinicConnect | Hybrid Tarana+LTE | SIGNED | R450/site/pm | 33–40% |
| ParkConnect DUNE | Peraso 60GHz mmWave | Q2 2026 | R1,299–4,999/pm | 54–75% |
| AirLink FWA | Reyee 5GHz | ACTIVE | R599–1,699/pm | 58–81% |
| Managed IT | SuperOps.ai | ACTIVE | R2,999–19,999/pm | 42–55% |
| WorkConnect SOHO | Technology-agnostic | Development | R799–1,499/pm | TBC |
| CloudWiFi WaaS | Managed overlay | Development | Per-venue | TBC |
| CircleConnect | MTN LTE/5G | ACTIVE | Package-dependent | 33–37% |
| HomeFibreConnect | MTN FTTH | SUNSET | R899–2,299/pm | 4–26% |
Full product details: See references/product-portfolio.md
Technology Selection Matrix
Use this to recommend the right technology for each customer scenario.
| Scenario | Technology | Product Line | Rationale |
|---|
| SME in MTN Tarana coverage | Tarana G1 FWA | SkyFibre SMB | Best latency (<5ms), best unit economics |
| Business needs symmetrical + SLA | DFA FTTB | BizFibreConnect | Guaranteed symmetrical, enterprise SLA |
| Rapid deployment / failover | MTN LTE/5G | CircleConnect | Nationwide, same-day activation |
| Office park (multi-tenant) | Peraso 60GHz | ParkConnect DUNE | Highest margins, shared backhaul |
| No MTN coverage, moderate density | Reyee 5GHz | AirLink FWA | Self-deploy, control infrastructure |
| Township / affordable segment | Tarana or Reyee | UmojaLink | Community-centric, prepaid model |
| Remote healthcare / clinic | Hybrid Tarana+LTE | ClinicConnect | Reliability-critical, managed service |
| Home office / freelancer | Best available | WorkConnect SOHO | Technology-agnostic |
| Venue WiFi (hospitality) | Managed overlay | CloudWiFi WaaS | Single monthly fee |
Technology Capabilities
| Technology | Download | Upload | Latency | Best For |
|---|
| Tarana G1 FWA | Up to 1Gbps | 4:1 ratio | <5ms | SME, business-critical |
| DFA FTTB | Up to 1Gbps | Symmetrical | <3ms | Enterprise, SLA-required |
| MTN FTTH | Up to 1Gbps | Variable | <5ms | Residential |
| Peraso 60GHz | Up to 2Gbps | Symmetrical | <1ms | Office parks, short-range LoS |
| MTN LTE | 10-150Mbps | 10-30% of DL | 20-50ms | Mobile, backup |
| MTN 5G | 50-500Mbps | 10-30% of DL | 10-30ms | High-speed mobile |
| Reyee 5GHz | Up to 500Mbps | Variable | 5-15ms | Self-managed FWA |
Decision Tree
Customer needs connectivity:
│
├── Is Tarana G1 coverage available?
│ ├── YES → SkyFibre SMB (best unit economics)
│ └── NO → Continue
│
├── Is DFA fibre available at location?
│ ├── YES + needs SLA → BizFibreConnect
│ └── NO → Continue
│
├── Is it an office park / business park?
│ ├── YES → ParkConnect DUNE (if LoS available)
│ └── NO → Continue
│
├── Is rapid deployment needed?
│ ├── YES → CircleConnect LTE/5G
│ └── NO → Continue
│
├── Is it a township / price-sensitive area?
│ ├── YES → AirLink FWA or UmojaLink
│ └── NO → Continue
│
└── Default → WorkConnect SOHO (best available at address)
Unit Economics
Golden Rule
Minimum 25% gross margin on ALL products — no exceptions without MD written approval.
Cost of Sale (COS) Components
| Component | Vendor | Monthly Cost | Notes |
|---|
| BNG Service | Echo SP | R20.20 | Tier 4 rate (>1k users) |
| IP Transit | Echo SP/DFA | R28.00 | ~4 Mbps avg @ R7/Mbps |
| DFA Backhaul | DFA Magellan | R86.27 | R12,940 ÷ 150 users |
| Support | Internal | R30.00 | L1 support allocation |
| Billing/Admin | AgilityGIS | R10.96 | BSS stack |
| Total COS Floor | | R175.43 | Excludes access costs |
Echo SP BNG Pricing Tiers
| Tier | Subscribers | Per-Sub MRC |
|---|
| 1 | 1–250 | R30.30 |
| 2 | 251–500 | R26.93 |
| 3 | 501–1,000 | R23.57 |
| 4 | 1,001+ | R20.20 |
Portfolio Unit Economics
| Product | Blended CAC | LTV | LTV/CAC | Payback |
|---|
| SkyFibre SMB | R2,550 | R18,000+ | 7.1x | 4–6 mo |
| BizFibreConnect | R2,500 | R14,280 | 5.7x | 8 mo |
| ClinicConnect | R1,500 | R9,132 | 6.1x | 6 mo |
| ParkConnect DUNE | R8,167 | R22,788 | 2.8x | 5.7 mo |
| Managed IT | R3,500 | R35,988 | 10.3x | 4 mo |
| AirLink FWA | ~R1,500 | R10,000+ | 6.7x | 3–4 mo |
Margin Calculation
Gross Margin % = (Revenue - COS) / Revenue × 100
Required: ≥25% gross margin
Example:
SkyFibre SMB 50/25: R1,899/mo
COS: ~R175
Gross Margin: (R1,899 - R175) / R1,899 = 90.8% ✓
Solution Design Checklist
For every new solution or product, validate against these 10 points:
1. Market Demand
2. Unit Economics
3. Technology Fit
4. Wholesale Dependency
5. Deployment Complexity
6. Competitive Differentiation
7. Revenue Model
8. Capital Requirement
9. Scalability
10. Portfolio Alignment
Product-Market Fit Framework
Stage 1: Problem Validation
| Question | How to Validate |
|---|
| Who has the problem? | Specific persona research |
| How are they solving it today? | Competitor analysis |
| Willingness to pay? | Customer interviews, not assumptions |
| Switching cost? | Analyze competitor lock-in |
Stage 2: Solution Validation
| Question | How to Validate |
|---|
| Does our tech stack support it? | Technical feasibility review |
| Can we hit target price at ≥25% margin? | Full COS model |
| What's the MVP scope? | Feature prioritization |
| Order-to-active timeline? | Process mapping |
Stage 3: Market Validation
| Metric | How to Calculate |
|---|
| TAM | Total addressable market in ZAR |
| SAM | Limited by our coverage footprint |
| SOM | Realistic Year 1 capture |
| Evidence | LOIs, pilots, competitor analysis |
Stage 4: Scale Validation
| Question | Answer Required |
|---|
| Unit economics at 10×, 100×, 1000×? | Model at each scale |
| Wholesale costs decrease? | Echo SP tiering, DFA volume |
| Ops processes scale? | Without linear headcount |
| Support model sustainable? | At projected subscriber count |
PMF Signals to Measure
| Signal | Target |
|---|
| Monthly churn | <2% (target <1.5%) |
| NPS | >40 (M6), >50 (M12), >60 (M24) |
| Organic growth | >30% from referrals |
| Activation speed | <24h (LTE), <3d (FWA), <5d (fibre) |
| Support load | <2 tickets/customer/month |
| Revenue expansion | Positive net revenue retention |
Product Prioritization (POV Scoring)
Score each product on four dimensions (1–10):
| Dimension | Question |
|---|
| Ease of Deployment | How quickly can we deliver? |
| GTM Readiness | Are pricing, SLAs, sales tools ready? |
| Market Demand | Is there proven, addressable demand? |
| Competition | Can we win and differentiate? |
Decision Thresholds
| Score | Action |
|---|
| 8.0+ | LAUNCH IMMEDIATELY |
| 6.5–7.9 | SELECTIVE LAUNCH (focus segments) |
| 5.0–6.4 | DEPRIORITISE (defer or pilot) |
| <5.0 | DO NOT PURSUE |
Contribution Margin Model Template
Every product proposal must include:
## [Product Name] Contribution Margin Model
### Revenue
- Monthly price (excl. VAT): R[X]
- Contract term: [X] months
- Expected ARPU trajectory: [Flat/Growing/Declining]
### Cost of Sale
| Component | Monthly Cost |
|-----------|--------------|
| Access (MTN/DFA/etc.) | R[X] |
| BNG Service (Echo SP) | R[X] |
| IP Transit | R[X] |
| Support allocation | R[X] |
| Billing/Admin | R[X] |
| **Total COS** | **R[X]** |
### Hardware Amortization (if CircleTel-funded)
- CPE cost: R[X]
- Amortized over: [X] months
- Monthly allocation: R[X]
### Infrastructure Allocation
- Tower/site costs per user: R[X]
### Contribution Margin
- Revenue: R[X]
- Total COS (incl. hardware): R[X]
- **Gross Margin: [X]%** [✓ if ≥25%]
### Customer Economics
- CAC: R[X]
- LTV: R[X]
- LTV/CAC: [X]x [✓ if ≥3x]
- Payback: [X] months [✓ if <12]
Naming Convention
All products follow established naming patterns:
| Pattern | Products |
|---|
| [Descriptor]Connect | HomeFibreConnect, BizFibreConnect, ClinicConnect, ParkConnect, WorkConnect |
| Brand Names | SkyFibre, AirLink, UmojaLink, CloudWiFi, CircleConnect |
| Parent Brand | CircleTel (stylised: circleTEL) |
Never deviate from established naming without explicit approval.
Competitive Landscape
Key Competitors
| Tier | Competitors | Our Advantage |
|---|
| Premium FWA | WiruLink, Comsol | Tarana G1 latency |
| Mobile | MTN, Vodacom, Rain, Telkom | Dedicated FWA reliability |
| Fibre ISP | Afrihost, Cool Ideas, RSAWEB | Multi-tech flexibility |
CircleTel Competitive Advantages
- Technology moat: Tarana G1 = sub-5ms latency (10× better than legacy)
- Multi-technology: FWA + fibre + LTE/5G + 60GHz
- AI-first CX: Multilingual chatbot, predictive churn
- Transparent pricing: Published prices with clear SLAs
- Digital-first ops: Lower overhead, faster deployment
- Community focus: Ubuntu values, township inclusion
Financial Targets (v4.0 Strategy)
| Metric | Target |
|---|
| MRR (Month 12) | R11.84M |
| Annual run rate | R142M |
| External customers | 12,500+ |
| EBITDA margin | 22%+ |
| Cash flow positive | Month 6 |
| External revenue | 50% of total |
| Customer concentration | No single >30% |
Key Lessons (2025-2026)
- Working capital is strategic — 296-day DSO paralysed execution
- Intercompany dependencies create cash starvation
- Margin vs Volume: 42% gross margin proves pricing works
- Strategy without resources is a wish list
- Concentration risk: No customer >30% of revenue
Related Skills
| Skill | When to Use |
|---|
promotional-campaigns | Designing promos for products |
pricing-strategy | Pricing decisions and packaging |
competitor-alternatives | Deep competitive analysis |
Reference Files
references/product-portfolio.md — Full product specificationsreferences/wholesale-costs.md — MTN, DFA, Echo SP pricingreferences/technology-specs.md — Technical capabilitiesproducts/solution-design.md — Master source document
Version: 1.0.0
Last Updated: 2026-03-01
Source: products/solution-design.md
