Job Title: Mainframe Dev & Deployment Tools Engineer

Job Type: Contract [NO BENEFITS]
Duration: 6–12 Months
Locations: Plano, TX | Charlotte, NC | Richmond, VA | Jacksonville, FL | Pennington, NJ | Chicago, IL

Job Summary

We are seeking an experienced Mainframe Dev & Deployment Tools Engineer to design, implement, and support development toolchains and deployment frameworks within IBM z/OS environments.

The ideal candidate will have strong expertise in mainframe development, source code management, release engineering, and deployment automation. This role focuses on enabling DevOps practices, automating build and deployment pipelines, and ensuring reliable application promotion across development, testing, and production environments.

Key Responsibilities

1. Development Toolchain & DevOps Enablement

• Design, implement, and maintain mainframe development toolchains supporting COBOL, PL/I, JCL, and related technologies.
• Enable and support source control integration, versioning strategies, and artifact management.
• Promote the adoption of DevOps practices within mainframe development environments.
• Maintain development tools and frameworks to improve productivity, consistency, and deployment reliability.

2. Build & Deployment Automation

• Develop and maintain automated build and deployment processes for mainframe applications.
• Implement tools and pipelines for code compilation, packaging, and application promotion across environments.
• Automate release management processes to reduce manual effort and improve deployment consistency.
• Troubleshoot build and deployment issues and implement solutions to improve operational efficiency.

3. Deployment Frameworks & Tools Support

• Administer and support enterprise mainframe deployment tools, including Endevor, ChangeMan, and ISPW.
• Manage the complete package lifecycle, including build, testing, deployment, and rollback.
• Maintain and manage application promotion paths across development, QA, UAT, and production environments.
• Ensure compliance with established change management and release management processes.

4. Environment Management

• Manage and support mainframe development, testing, and production environments.
• Ensure consistency, stability, and integrity across environments.
• Coordinate application deployments with development teams, QA, and operations.
• Support environment-related troubleshooting and resolve deployment dependencies.

5. Automation & Integration

• Develop automation solutions using REXX, CLIST, JCL, and other scripting tools.
• Integrate mainframe development toolchains with enterprise CI/CD pipelines.
• Support integration with distributed DevOps tools such as Git and Jenkins, where applicable.
• Identify opportunities to automate repetitive tasks and improve build and release workflows.

6. Mainframe Development Support

• Apply strong COBOL, Assembler, and REXX expertise to support mainframe development and deployment activities.
• Support the development, compilation, and deployment of custom applications written in Assembler.
• Troubleshoot technical issues related to source code, builds, deployments, and application promotion.
• Contribute to mainframe modernization and enterprise DevOps initiatives as required.

Required Qualifications

• 5–10+ years of experience working in mainframe environments.
• 3–5+ years of experience in development tools, deployment engineering, software configuration management (SCM), or release engineering.
• Strong hands-on experience with IBM z/OS environments.
• Practical experience with at least one enterprise mainframe deployment tool, such as Endevor, ChangeMan, or ISPW.
• Strong knowledge of mainframe software development lifecycle (SDLC) processes.
• Experience with build automation, release management, and application promotion processes.
• Hands-on experience with JCL, TSO/ISPF, and SDSF.
• Strong understanding of source control, version management, and deployment workflows.
• Knowledge of DevOps concepts and their application to mainframe environments.
• Strong proficiency in COBOL, Assembler, and REXX.
• Ability to build, compile, and support custom applications written in Assembler.
• Experience developing automation solutions for mainframe development and deployment processes.

Preferred Qualifications

• Familiarity with DB2, IMS, and CICS integration in mainframe deployments.
• Experience with CI/CD tools, including Jenkins and Git integration.
• Knowledge of automation frameworks and scripting languages such as REXX and Python.
• Exposure to mainframe modernization initiatives.
• Experience supporting enterprise-scale DevOps transformations.
• Experience automating build, release, and deployment pipelines.

Key Skills

• IBM z/OS
• Mainframe Development
• COBOL
• Assembler
• REXX
• JCL
• TSO/ISPF
• SDSF
• Endevor
• ChangeMan
• ISPW
• Software Configuration Management (SCM)
• Release Engineering
• Build & Deployment Automation
• Mainframe DevOps
• CI/CD Pipelines
• Git & Jenkins
• Application Promotion
• Environment Management
• Mainframe SDLC
• DB2, IMS & CICS