Exercises — Chapter 39: The Mainframe Architect's Career Path

Section 39.1 — The Architecture Mindset

Exercise 39.1 — The Mindset Shift Self-Assessment

Rate yourself on each of the four dimensions of architectural thinking (technical breadth, time horizon, stakeholder awareness, tradeoff management) on a scale of 1–5. For each dimension, provide:

a) A specific example from your work experience that demonstrates your current capability b) A specific situation where you felt out of your depth c) One concrete action you could take in the next 30 days to improve

If you do not yet have professional experience, use examples from this textbook's projects and case studies instead.

Exercise 39.2 — Problem Selection

You are the newly appointed architect for a mainframe system with the following issues:

  • Batch processing window is growing by 10 minutes per month and will exceed the available window in 8 months
  • Three CICS regions are running at 80% CPU utilization during peak hours
  • The DB2 subsystem has 47 tables with no referential integrity constraints (they were removed years ago for performance)
  • Two senior developers have announced their retirement in 12 months
  • The business wants to expose 15 existing batch processes as real-time APIs within 6 months
  • Technical debt in the copybook library has led to three production incidents in the past quarter

You cannot address all of these simultaneously. Rank them in priority order and write a one-paragraph justification for your top three priorities. Consider dependencies between the issues.

Exercise 39.3 — Architecture vs. Development Thinking

For each of the following scenarios, write two responses: one from a senior developer's perspective and one from an architect's perspective. Note how the scope, time horizon, and stakeholder considerations differ.

a) The team discovers a performance bottleneck in a CICS transaction that processes customer account inquiries. b) A vendor proposes replacing the current VSAM-based configuration management system with a DB2-based solution. c) A new regulatory requirement mandates encryption of all personally identifiable information at rest within 18 months.

Exercise 39.4 — Tradeoff Analysis

Recreate Kwame's payment processing modernization decision from Section 39.1. You have the same four options and five stakeholder groups. Write a one-page analysis that:

a) Maps each stakeholder's primary interest (not position) b) Identifies which interests conflict and which align c) Proposes a solution that addresses the most critical interests d) Explains which stakeholder(s) will be least satisfied and how you would manage that

Section 39.2 — Career Levels

Exercise 39.5 — Career Level Mapping

Using the five career levels described in Section 39.2, assess where you currently are and where you want to be in 5 years. For each gap between your current level and your target level:

a) List the specific skills you need to develop b) Identify opportunities in your current role to develop those skills c) Name one person who could mentor you in that skill area

Exercise 39.6 — The Technical vs. Management Decision

Write a 500-word reflection on whether the technical track (leading to architect/fellow) or the management track (leading to director/VP) is a better fit for you. Consider:

a) What energizes you most in your current work b) How you feel about giving up hands-on technical work c) Your communication and interpersonal skill level d) Your interest in organizational and personnel management e) Your financial goals and timeline

There is no wrong answer, but the reflection should be honest and specific.

Exercise 39.7 — Title vs. Capability Assessment

You are interviewing a candidate for an "Enterprise Architect" role. They have the title "Solution Architect" at their current company (3 years) and "Technical Architect" before that (2 years). Design five interview questions that would help you assess whether their capability matches the architect level described in Section 39.2, regardless of their titles. For each question, describe what a strong answer would include.

Section 39.3 — Building Your Portfolio

Exercise 39.8 — Write an ADR

Choose a technical decision from any previous chapter in this textbook (e.g., the DB2 optimization approach from Chapter 18, the CICS modernization strategy from Chapter 22, the batch processing redesign from Chapter 15). Write a complete Architecture Decision Record following the format in Section 39.3. Include:

  • Context (the business and technical situation)
  • At least three options considered
  • Your decision with rationale
  • Consequences (positive and negative)
  • Review date

Exercise 39.9 — Technology Evaluation

Write a technology evaluation for one of the following:

a) Replacing a VSAM-based master file with a DB2 table for a batch processing system b) Adopting IBM's CICS Transaction Server V6 from V5, including the new cloud-native features c) Implementing IBM z/OS Connect for API enablement vs. a custom CICS web services approach

Your evaluation should include: requirements, evaluation criteria, analysis of at least two options, cost comparison (estimate reasonable numbers), risk assessment, and recommendation.

Exercise 39.10 — Post-Implementation Review

Think about a technical decision you have made (professional or academic) that did not go as planned. Write a post-implementation review that includes:

a) The original decision and expected outcome b) The actual outcome c) What went wrong and why d) What you learned e) What you would do differently

This exercise is about intellectual honesty. The quality of the review is measured by how candidly you assess your own mistakes.

Exercise 39.11 — Portfolio Curation

Imagine you are preparing for a promotion to architect. From the work you have done in this textbook (projects, exercises, case studies), select five deliverables that would demonstrate architectural capability. For each, write a brief annotation explaining what it demonstrates about your skills.

Section 39.4 — Soft Skills for Architects

Exercise 39.12 — Multi-Audience Communication

You have decided to migrate a COBOL batch billing system from VSAM files to DB2 tables. Write three versions of the announcement:

a) A technical memo for the development team (focus: migration approach, timeline, impact on their work, technical considerations) b) A summary for the operations team (focus: deployment plan, monitoring changes, runbook updates, rollback strategy) c) An executive brief for the CIO (focus: business benefit, cost, risk, timeline — one page maximum)

Exercise 39.13 — Stakeholder Mapping

For the CNB payment modernization scenario described in Section 39.1, create a complete stakeholder map. For each stakeholder:

a) Place them in the appropriate quadrant (high/low influence, high/low interest) b) Identify their primary interest (not position) c) Describe your communication strategy for them d) Identify potential risks to the relationship

Exercise 39.14 — Conflict Resolution Role Play

Two teams in your organization are in conflict over an integration approach:

  • Team A (COBOL developers) wants to use MQ messaging with COBOL programs reading from queues
  • Team B (Java developers) wants to use a REST API with a Java microservice calling the COBOL program via CICS Transaction Gateway

Both approaches are technically viable. Write a script for a 30-minute mediation session where you, as the architect:

a) Open the discussion by framing the shared goal b) Ask each side to state their interests (not positions) c) Identify common ground d) Propose a solution that addresses both teams' core interests e) Gain agreement on next steps

Exercise 39.15 — The Difficult Conversation

Your most senior developer — someone you deeply respect and who has been with the organization for 25 years — has proposed an architecture that you believe is technically sound but strategically wrong (it solves today's problem but creates significant technical debt for future requirements). Write out how you would approach this conversation, including:

a) How you would open the discussion b) How you would acknowledge their expertise while presenting your concerns c) How you would handle the possibility that you are wrong d) How you would reach resolution if you both remain convinced of your positions

Section 39.5 — The Business Side

Exercise 39.16 — Build a Business Case

Create a business case for upgrading your organization's z/OS from version 2.5 to version 3.1. Include:

a) Problem statement (in business terms) b) At least three options (including "do nothing") c) Cost estimates for each option (research realistic numbers or estimate reasonably) d) Risk assessment for each option e) Recommendation with rationale tied to business objectives

Exercise 39.17 — MLC Cost Optimization

Your organization's monthly MLC software bill is $1.2M. A batch job that runs on the third Saturday of each month is setting the R4HA (rolling four-hour average) peak that determines the bill. The job runs for 6 hours at 95% CPU utilization.

a) Calculate the potential savings if you could reduce the job's CPU utilization by 40% (assume the next highest peak would be 70% of the current peak) b) Propose three architectural strategies to reduce the job's CPU consumption c) For each strategy, estimate the implementation cost and time d) Write a one-paragraph executive summary recommending the best approach

Exercise 39.18 — Vendor Negotiation Preparation

Your IBM software license renewal is coming up in 90 days. The annual cost is $4.8M. IBM has proposed a 5% increase. Prepare for the negotiation by:

a) Listing five pieces of information you need before the meeting b) Identifying your BATNA (Best Alternative To a Negotiated Agreement) c) Identifying three things you could offer IBM in exchange for better pricing (that cost you little but are valuable to them) d) Writing your opening statement for the negotiation

Exercise 39.19 — Executive Translation

Translate each of the following technical statements into language suitable for a CFO presentation:

a) "We need to upgrade our CICS Transaction Server from V5.6 to V6.2 because V5.6 goes out of support in 2026." b) "Our DB2 buffer pool hit ratio has dropped from 99.2% to 97.8%, causing increased I/O wait times." c) "We should implement zIIP offload for our DB2 stored procedures to reduce MLC costs." d) "Our COBOL copybook management process is causing production incidents due to version mismatches."

Section 39.6 — Certifications and Continuous Learning

Exercise 39.20 — Learning Plan

Create a 12-month continuous learning plan for yourself. Include:

a) One certification you will pursue (with justification for why that one) b) Three books you will read (one technical, one business, one leadership) c) Two conferences or user group meetings you will attend (or present at) d) One teaching/mentoring commitment you will make e) One cross-platform technology you will explore f) Monthly milestones for tracking progress

Exercise 39.21 — Conference Proposal

Write an abstract for a presentation you could give at SHARE or a similar mainframe conference. The topic should relate to something you have learned in this textbook. Include:

a) Title (compelling, not generic) b) Abstract (200 words) c) Target audience d) Three learning objectives e) Why this topic matters now

Exercise 39.22 — Knowledge Gap Analysis

For each of the following technology areas, rate your knowledge on a scale of 1 (no knowledge) to 5 (expert). For any area rated 3 or below, identify one specific resource (book, course, hands-on lab) you could use to improve:

  • z/OS system internals
  • COBOL language features (including OO-COBOL and COBOL V6)
  • CICS architecture and programming
  • DB2 for z/OS administration and performance
  • JCL and batch architecture
  • IMS database and transaction management
  • MQ messaging
  • z/OS Connect and API enablement
  • Container extensions (zCX)
  • IBM Cloud Pak for z/OS
  • TOGAF or equivalent architecture framework
  • Financial analysis and business case development

Section 39.7 — The Mainframe Architect's Unique Value Proposition

Exercise 39.23 — Your Value Proposition

Write a one-page "personal value proposition" document that articulates what you bring to a mainframe architect role. Include:

a) Your unique combination of skills and experience b) The problems you are best positioned to solve c) Your approach to architecture (what principles guide your decisions) d) What differentiates you from other candidates

This is not a resume — it is a statement of architectural identity and philosophy.

Exercise 39.24 — The Elevator Pitch

You are in an elevator with your company's CTO. They ask, "Why should we invest in mainframe architecture talent instead of just migrating everything to the cloud?" You have 90 seconds. Write your response.

Then write a second version for a different audience: a university computer science department chair who is considering whether to offer mainframe courses.

Exercise 39.25 — Career Roadmap

Using the template from code/example-01-career-plan.md, create your own five-year career development plan. Be specific about:

a) Your target role in 5 years b) The skills you need to develop (with quarterly milestones) c) The experiences you need to gain d) The relationships you need to build e) The portfolio deliverables you need to create f) How you will measure progress

This is the most important exercise in this chapter. Return to it quarterly and update it.