Mainframe Senior Architect - Performance & Capacity Management

We are seeking an experienced Mainframe Senior Architect specializing in IBM mainframe performance and capacity management. This is a highly technical, hands-on role responsible for maintaining and optimizing the performance, scalability, stability, and cost efficiency of a large IBM zEnterprise mainframe environment.

This position is approximately 80% IBM mainframe performance management and 20% capacity planning.

The ideal candidate will have deep expertise in IBM z/OS performance, real-time performance monitoring and tuning, Workload Manager (WLM), SMF/RMF data analysis, and large-scale Parallel Sysplex environments.

This person will analyze system and workload performance, identify and resolve bottlenecks, optimize resource utilization, and forecast future infrastructure requirements while balancing performance with cost., * Monitor, analyze, troubleshoot, and optimize IBM z/OS mainframe performance across large, complex environments.

• Perform real-time analysis of CPU, memory, storage, workload, and transaction performance.
• Identify root causes of performance degradation and resolve bottlenecks during critical or high-volume processing periods.
• Tune and optimize Workload Manager (WLM) policies and workload configurations.
• Analyze and interpret SMF and RMF data to identify performance trends and opportunities for optimization.
• Evaluate the performance impact of major mainframe workloads and subsystems, including Db2, CICS, IMS, and MQ.
• Work within multi-LPAR and Parallel Sysplex environments.
• Analyze general processor and zIIP utilization and configuration.
• Perform capacity forecasting and modeling based on workload trends, business cycles, and anticipated growth.
• Forecast future MIPS/MSU and infrastructure requirements.
• Support mainframe cost optimization, including understanding IBM software pricing models and infrastructure costs.
• Perform SCRT (Sub-Capacity Reporting Tool) processing and related analysis.
• Develop reporting, dashboards, and performance analysis using tools such as SAS/MXG, Excel, OMEGAMON, IntelliMagic, REXX, and JCL.
• Partner with application developers, database administrators, infrastructure teams, DevOps, and leadership to communicate performance findings and recommendations.
• Develop preventative strategies to maintain system stability, availability, and low latency during peak workloads.
• Provide technical leadership and mentoring in mainframe performance and capacity management.

• Extensive hands-on experience with IBM mainframe performance management and tuning.
• Strong expertise with IBM z/OS and IBM Z architecture.
• Experience working in large multi-LPAR, Parallel Sysplex environments.
• Deep knowledge of Workload Manager (WLM) configuration and tuning.
• Strong experience analyzing SMF and RMF performance data.
• Experience monitoring and optimizing CPU, memory, storage, and workload utilization.
• Strong understanding of Db2, CICS, IMS, and MQ and how these workloads impact overall system performance.
• Experience troubleshooting complex mainframe performance issues in real time.
• Strong hands-on skills with REXX and JCL.
• Experience with performance reporting and analytical tools such as SAS/MXG and OMEGAMON.
• Strong knowledge of mainframe capacity concepts, including MIPS, MSUs, workload forecasting, and capacity modeling.
• Understanding of IBM mainframe software pricing and cost optimization.
• Advanced proficiency with Microsoft Excel and the ability to present complex technical findings to both technical and executive audiences.

• Strong communication and cross-functional collaboration skills. * Highly Preferred / Eye-Catcher Grafana experience is highly desirable. Candidates who have used Grafana for performance monitoring, dashboards, visualization, or mainframe-related operational reporting will receive strong consideration. Additional preferred experience includes:

• ZPCR
• Macro4 Freezeframe
• BMC Thruput Manager
• TADz
• IntelliMagic
• SAS programming for reporting and analytics
• Creating executive dashboards and operational reporting tools
• Highly transactional, large-scale enterprise environments

Education

• A Bachelor’s Degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, or a related technical discipline is desirable but not an absolute requirement.

• Candidates without a Bachelor’s Degree may still be considered based on the strength and depth of their relevant IBM mainframe performance experience. If a candidate does not have a Bachelor’s Degree, this should be clearly noted when presenting the candidate.

Ideal Candidate Profile

• The strongest candidate will be a true IBM mainframe performance specialist, rather than a general Mainframe Architect who has only had occasional exposure to performance or capacity management.

• We are particularly interested in candidates who have spent significant portions of their careers actively:

• Monitoring and tuning z/OS performance
• Working with WLM, RMF, and SMF
• Diagnosing real-time mainframe performance problems
• Optimizing CPU and zIIP utilization
• Working in Parallel Sysplex/multi-LPAR environments
• Analyzing Db2, CICS, IMS, and MQ workloads
• Using SAS/MXG, OMEGAMON, IntelliMagic, or similar performance tools
• Forecasting MIPS/MSU and future capacity requirements
• Balancing performance requirements against IBM mainframe infrastructure and software costs