Mainframe MQ System Programmer SME
Kyndryl · Remote · Future Space Sandton, South Africa · 19d ago
Who We Are
At Kyndryl, we run and reimagine the mission-critical technology systems that drive advantage for the world’s leading businesses. We are at the heart of progress; with proven expertise and a continuous flow of AI-powered insight, enabling smarter decisions, faster innovation, and a lasting competitive edge. For our people—Kyndryls—that means doing purposeful work that powers human progress. Join us and experience a flexible, supportive environment where your well-being is prioritized and your potential can thrive.
The Role
As a Mainframe MQ System Programmer SME, you will be responsible for the installation, configuration, maintenance, performance optimization, troubleshooting, and ongoing support of IBM MQ for z/OS environments.
You will act as a subject matter expert for MQ infrastructure and provide technical leadership across complex customer environments. You will support MQ Queue Managers, Queue Sharing Groups, Sysplex environments, clustering, security integration, automation, disaster recovery, capacity management, and software upgrades.
The role requires strong customer-facing skills, analytical problem-solving capabilities, and the ability to resolve complex technical issues while maintaining high levels of system availability, security, and performance.
Job Description
Key Responsibilities
- Install, implement, configure, maintain, and upgrade IBM MQ for z/OS using ShopzSeries and SMP/E.
- Administer and support large-scale Mainframe MQ environments, including Queue Managers and associated MQ objects.
- Configure and maintain MQ system options to optimize performance, availability, and reliability.
- Support and administer Queue Sharing Groups (QSGs) and z/OS Sysplex environments, including Coupling Facility integration.
- Design, implement, and troubleshoot MQ clustering, workload balancing, and high-availability solutions.
- Perform MQ problem determination, root-cause analysis, and resolution of complex incidents and system outages.
- Troubleshoot MQ issues using MQ commands, diagnostic facilities, logs, dumps, and monitoring tools.
- Perform dump analysis and provide technical root-cause analysis for MQ-related system problems.
- Monitor MQ performance, availability, capacity, and system health, taking proactive action to prevent service degradation.
- Develop and implement performance-tuning strategies for MQ environments.
- Support MQ disaster recovery planning, testing, execution, and validation across data centres.
- Ensure MQ environments meet customer High Availability, resilience, performance, and capacity requirements.
- Implement and maintain MQ automation, including health checks, queue manager recycle processes, alerting, monitoring, and automated recovery.
- Develop automation scripts using REXX or similar technologies to improve operational efficiency.
- Maintain and improve MQ operational procedures, standards, technical documentation, and knowledge articles.
- Ensure MQ environments comply with security policies and standards, including RACF/SAF integration.
- Work with Security teams to implement MQ security controls and best practices.
- Support MQ-related projects, migrations, upgrades, implementations, and service transitions.
- Collaborate with Development, Operations, Infrastructure, Network, Security, Storage, Automation, and other technical teams.
- Provide technical leadership and guidance to other MQ System Programmers and Mainframe support teams.
- Engage directly with customers to understand requirements, provide technical recommendations, and resolve complex technical issues.
- Participate in change management, implementation planning, testing, and post-implementation validation.
- Contribute to continuous improvement, modernization, automation, and service optimization initiatives.
- Provide primary and backup on-call support, including nights, weekends, and public holidays where required.
- Provide global support and collaborate with geographically distributed teams.
- Maintain strong focus on customer satisfaction, operational stability, security, and service-level commitments.
Who You Are
Required Technical and Professional Expertise
- 8+ years of experience as a Mainframe IBM MQ System Programmer.
- Extensive experience supporting IBM MQ for z/OS in large and complex enterprise environments.
- Strong expertise in MQ installation, implementation, configuration, maintenance, and upgrades.
- Hands-on experience with ShopzSeries and SMP/E for MQ software installation and maintenance.
- Strong experience with MQ Queue Manager administration and MQ object configuration.
- Proven experience with Queue Sharing Groups (QSGs) and Sysplex environments.
- Knowledge and practical experience with Coupling Facility configurations supporting MQ.
- Experience designing, implementing, and troubleshooting MQ clusters and workload balancing.
- Strong MQ troubleshooting and problem-determination skills using MQ commands and diagnostic/monitoring tools.
- Experience with MQ monitoring and management tools such as:
- MQ Explorer
- IBM OMEGAMON
- SYSVIEW
- BMC MainView
- MQATTACH
- ICC
- Strong understanding of MQ security and RACF/SAF integration.
- Experience with MQ performance monitoring, capacity management, tuning, and optimization.
- Experience supporting MQ high availability and disaster recovery solutions.
- Knowledge of MQ backup, recovery, restart, and recovery procedures.
- Experience with automation and scripting, particularly REXX or similar scripting technologies.
- Good understanding of JCL and z/OS utilities.
- Experience working with Development, Operations, Infrastructure, and other technical teams.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities.
- Experience performing technical root-cause analysis and supporting major incidents.
- Ability to work effectively in a customer-facing environment.
- Willingness and ability to participate in an extended-hours/global on-call rotation.
Preferred Skills and Experience
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, or a related discipline.
- IBM MQ certification or relevant IBM Mainframe certification.
- Experience administering a broad range of Mainframe MQ objects and configurations.
- Experience with MQ modernization, migration, and transformation projects.
- Experience implementing MQ automation and operational tooling.
- Experience with enterprise monitoring and automation platforms.
- Experience integrating MQ with distributed and enterprise application environments.
- Knowledge of z/OS system programming and related Mainframe subsystems.
- Experience working within ITIL-based service management environments.
- Strong technical documentation and knowledge-transfer skills.
- Previous experience working in a managed services or large enterprise customer environment.
Being You
The “Kyn” in Kyndryl means kinship, which represents the strong bonds we have with each other, our customers and our communities. We focus on ensuring all Kyndryls feel included and we welcome people of all cultures, backgrounds, and experiences. Even if you don’t meet every requirement, we encourage you to apply. We believe in growth, and we’re excited to see what you can bring. At Kyndryl, employee feedback has told us that our number one driver of employee engagement is belonging. That sense of belonging — being a valued, respected, trusted member of the team — is fundamental to our culture and fueling great experiences for our customers. This dedication to welcoming everyone into our company means that Kyndryl gives you the ability to thrive and contribute to our culture of empathy and shared success. That’s The Kyndryl Way.
What You Can Expect
Your career with us isn’t just a job—it’s an adventure with purpose. We offer a dynamic, hybrid-friendly culture that supports your well-being and empowers you to grow. Our Be Well programs are thoughtfully designed to support your financial, mental, physical, and social health—because we know that when you feel your best, you do your best.
From your very first day, you’ll dive into impactful work that powers the systems our customers rely on every day. You won’t just contribute—you’ll make a difference, tackling meaningful projects that sharpen your skills and fuel your growth.
We’re here to champion your journey. With powerful tools to chart your career path, personalized development goals aligned with your ambitions, and continuous feedback to keep you inspired and on track, you’ll have everything you need to thrive and evolve. You’ll develop in-demand skills to grow your career and achieve your ambitions with access to cutting-edge learning opportunities—from certifications with Microsoft, Google, and Amazon to coaching and hands-on experiences. And through it all, you’ll be part of a culture that values empathy, restless learning, and a devotion to shared success.
We want you to thrive here—and we’re committed to helping you do just that. Ready to make an impact? Join us and help shape what’s next.
Get Referred!
If you know someone that works at Kyndryl, when asked ‘How Did You Hear About Us’ during the application process, select ‘Employee Referral’ and enter your contact's Kyndryl email address.