Operations Manager

The learning streams here provide an overview of IBM Z mainframes and their components, and discusses key concepts of the z/OS operating system, including security. An overview of networks and the VTAM and TCP/IP communication protocols used in these environments are also presented.

The learning streams above address the advanced skills, knowledge, and practices dealing with products that an Operations Manager will need to know about. These focus on the key concepts of the z/OS operating system, and how workloads are processed in that environment. A background on the types of storage devices implemented in the mainframe environment is also covered. Details on managing file transfers to and from your Data Center is also important to know.

The learning streams above provide content focussing on business-related information. This includes disaster recovery, where the Operations Manager often plays a critical role in ensuring recoverability of business data, and infrastructure, ensuring they comply with any regulatory requirements. This person also needs a solid background on various application development methodologies such as DevOps and Agile, and needs to understand how coaching and mentoring practices can be implemented to ensure they, and other staff, are trained to meet their full potential.

The learning streams here are not mandatory but help to provide a holistic view of the mainframe environment that you are working in. For example, z/OS UNIX is available on a z/OS system, and use of z/VM and Linux operating systems is also likely, so knowledge in these areas is going to useful. Other topics such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Blockchain, Containers, Kubernetes, and machine learning provide an overview of various technologies available on the mainframe that your organization may be using.

The cloud is playing an ever increasing role in Data Center processing so knowing how it works, its structure, and security configuration may be of interest. If so, then cloud governance information will also be important. Other products such as Db2, IMS, CICS, and IBM MQ may also be installed, so knowing how these run can assist you if problems occur. Your organization is also likely to use some sort of system automation, so if IBM’s SA z/OS is installed then you should complete this training. Knowing how system software is installed and managed in your environment is also going to be useful knowledge.