Mainframe Developer

Job Summary

We are looking for a seasoned Mainframe Developer to join our team. The ideal candidate will design, develop, maintain, and enhance mission-critical mainframe applications. In addition to strong skills in COBOL, JCL and mainframe technologies, this role requires hands-on experience in CI/CD pipelines, automation, and DevOps practices to accelerate delivery and improve reliability.

Key Responsibilities

• Design, develop, test, debug and maintain mainframe applications (primarily in COBOL) in a large-scale transactional environment.
• Create, modify, and optimize JCL scripts / jobstreams for batch processing jobs.
• Work with tools and utilities in a z/OS environment (e.g. TSO/ISPF, SDSF, JES, utilities).
• Integrate with online mainframe transactions (e.g. CICS, IMS) and backend batch systems.
• Participate in design & architecture discussions, and translate functional requirements into technical designs.
• Implement unit testing, integration testing, and performance tuning of mainframe programs.
• Troubleshoot and resolve production issues, ensuring high availability and minimal downtime.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams (business analysts, QA, operations) to deliver high-quality software.
• Automate build, deploy, and release processes via CI/CD pipelines for mainframe artifacts.
• Maintain version control, branching/merging, and ensure code quality and adherence to coding standards and best practices.
• Drive continuous improvement: suggest and implement process enhancements, automation, and tooling.
• Mentor junior engineers, conduct code reviews, and promote knowledge sharing.

Required Skills & Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field (or equivalent experience).
• Strong experience in COBOL
  for mainframe development.
• Deep knowledge of
  JCL / job control / batch scheduling
  and scripting for job automation.
• Solid experience with
  mainframe platforms
  (z/OS, MVS) and familiarity with system utilities.
• Hands-on experience in
  CI/CD / DevOps
  for mainframe: building automated pipelines for compile, test, deploy.
• Familiarity with modern DevOps tools (e.g. Jenkins, Git, Ansible, UrbanCode, XL Deploy, or other relevant tools).
• Experience with version control systems and branching strategies.
• Exposure to CICS, IMS, DB2, VSAM, or equivalent subsystems (preferred).
• Strong debugging, performance tuning, and troubleshooting skills.
• Understanding of software development lifecycle (SDLC) and best practices (unit testing, code reviews, documentation).
• Ability to work in agile / iterative environment, attend Scrum ceremonies, etc.
• Excellent analytical, problem-solving, and communication skills.
• Ability to work independently and in a team, with stakeholders across business & technical domains.

Preferred / Nice-to-Have

• Experience in
  mainframe modernization
  (for example, migrating to APIs, integrating with cloud, exposing mainframe services).
• Experience with tools such as Endeavor, ChangeMan, CA Endevor, IBM UrbanCode, or other mainframe release management tools.
• Knowledge of scripting (e.g. Unix shell, REXX, CLIST) for automation.
• Familiarity with monitoring, logging, and observability tools in mainframe environments.
• Domain experience (banking, finance, insurance, government) is a plus.
• Prior experience mentoring or leading small teams.