Mainframe Application Developer

About the Role

We are seeking a Mainframe Application Developer with COBOL/CICS experience to support a mission-critical federal program responsible for high-volume financial and transactional processing. This role operates within a secure IBM mainframe environment and is integral to maintaining system stability, performance, and compliance. The ideal candidate brings strong technical expertise in legacy systems while contributing to ongoing modernization initiatives aligned with federal IT transformation goals. This position is contingent upon contract award. 

Key Responsibilities

• Analyze federal program requirements, change requests, and user needs to develop compliant technical solutions
• Design, develop, and maintain COBOL applications in both CICS (online) and batch processing environments
• Execute unit testing and support integration and user acceptance testing (UAT) activities
• Participate in code reviews, technical walkthroughs, and controlled implementation processes
• Troubleshoot and resolve production issues in accordance with SLA requirements and operational procedures
• Support all phases of the Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) in alignment with federal standards and governance
• Prepare impact analyses and Level of Effort (LOE) estimates to support project planning and contract deliverables
• Maintain thorough system documentation in compliance with audit and regulatory requirements
• Adhere to secure coding practices and configuration management processes
• Contribute to modernization initiatives, including system integration, refactoring, and cloud-aligned transformation efforts

Required Qualifications

• Minimum 5 years of experience in mainframe application development supporting enterprise systems
• Demonstrated experience with:
  • COBOL
  • CICS
  • JCL
  • SQL
• Hands-on experience within IBM z/OS environments
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and debugging skills
• Experience supporting production systems in a controlled, compliance-driven environment

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience supporting federal financial, payroll, or high-volume transaction systems
• Familiarity with DB2, VSAM, or IDMS
• Experience working within Agile or hybrid Agile environments in the federal space
• Exposure to federal IT modernization efforts, including cloud migration, legacy system transformation, or DevSecOps practices
• Understanding of federal security and compliance frameworks (e.g., FISMA, NIST)

Clearance & Eligibility Requirements

• U.S. Citizenship required
• Ability to obtain and maintain a federal security clearance or public trust

Synectics is an Equal Opportunity Employer