Mainframe Middleware Z-Series Integration Specialist – Leeds/Edinburgh

Mainframe Middleware Z-Series Integration Specialist – Leeds/Edinburgh

Gibbs Consulting is looking for an accomplished Mainframe Middleware Z-Series Integration Specialist, with good experience of MQ and Z/Linux Integration Bus. You will provide complex technical support and project delivery, including incident and problem resolution, for IBM MQ environments running on z/OS.

The MQ team is seeking additional support to manage the MQ estate on zSeries Mainframe, ensuring the stability and optimisation of critical systems. This role will contribute to key projects aligned with the strategic initiatives across divisions such as Digital, Payments, Retail and Insurance, as well as driving improvements in technology and processes. The role includes out-of-hours deployments and migrations to maintain service continuity. You will support complex environments and will enforce standardisation, assist with improvement initiatives and collaborate across the wider Middleware teams to develop and implement process enhancements. You will be responsible for delivering change through RTL and into production under change governance independently while ensuring strict adherence to processes and procedures. Additionally, you will work with IT Security to maintain the security of the MQ product. You may be expected to be part of the 24/7 rota to support the business (Usually 1 week in 6 on call Monday to Monday). You will be expected to be onsite in the office for 2 days per week as per Group Policy.

SKILLS:

• IBM Message Queue (MQ) Administration: Expertise in administering IBM MQ v9.x on z/OS, including clustering, configuration, and maintenance to ensure high availability and optimal performance.
• Operational Experience on z/OS: Proficiency in managing MQ environments via z/OS panels and MQ Explorer, ensuring seamless integration and system stability.
• Security and Compliance: Experience with TLS implementation and security configurations to maintain the integrity and confidentiality of messaging environments.
• Incident Management and Troubleshooting: Strong diagnostic skills and the ability to analyse technical information from multiple sources to effectively support and troubleshoot online systems, minimising service disruption in complex environments.
• Project Delivery and Support: Experience in delivering integration-related projects, particularly in upgrade and migration efforts, and adhering to change management processes.
• Automation & Scripting: Strong skills in scripting (e.g., Bash, Shell) and automation tools like UrbanCode Deploy or Ansible for process automation and deployment in z/Linux environments.
• Out-of-Hours Deployments and Support: Flexibility and experience in performing maintenance, migrations, and deployments outside regular working hours to ensure project delivery within service level agreements (SLAs).
• Stakeholder Collaboration: Ability to work closely with key stakeholders (e.g., project managers, architects, cloud services teams) to drive and deliver on the technology roadmap
• ITIL: Knowledge and practical application of ITIL best practices for incident, problem, and change management, ensuring alignment with service management processes.
• Agile and DevOps Methodologies: Experience working in Agile and DevOps environments, with a focus on continuous integration, delivery, and automation of operational tasks. Proficient in using tools such as Jira and Confluence for project management and collaboration.
• Change Management Processes: Proven experience working within formal change management frameworks, ensuring changes to integration environments are properly documented, tested, and governed.
• Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity: Understanding of disaster recovery (DR) processes and business continuity in the integration space, including participation in DR planning and testing for IBM ACE/IIB environments.
• Integration and Middleware Solutions: Understanding of integration technologies and middleware architectures, supporting enterprise-wide messaging and transaction processing.
• Automation Tools: Experience with automation tools such as Ansible and UrbanCode Deploy for system configuration, deployment and operational efficiency within mainframe environments.
• Scripting Languages: Proficiency in scripting languages including REXX, Unix Shell, Bash and Python for automation, patch remediation and operational improvements across z/OS and Linux platforms.
• Monitoring Tools: Familiarity with system and middleware monitoring solutions such as Dynatrace, Nagios, Zabbix and IBM’s monitoring suite to ensure service availability and performance.
• DevOps and CI/CD: Experience with Git, Jenkins and CI/CD pipelines, applying automation and DevOps principles to infrastructure management and software deployment.
• Project and Process Management: Experience in managing projects using Jira and Confluence within Agile environments, ensuring collaboration, visibility and adherence to best practices.
• Mainframe and Enterprise Solutions: Expertise in managing MQ on z/OS and Linux, optimising performance and ensuring system stability in high-availability environments

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