Consulting Manager

Title: Technical IBM i (AS/400) Release Coordinator

Responsible for planning, coordinating and executing IBM i (AS/400) software releases for Dealer Management System (DMS) environments; owns release content, feature/component version tracking, pilots, cutover and staged rollouts to dealers while ensuring minimal business disruption and clear stakeholder communication.

Primary Responsibilities

• Plan and own end-to-end release lifecycle for IBM i (AS/400) applications, including scheduling, scope definition, risk assessment and rollback planning.
• Maintain a release manifest and a single source of truth for feature lists, change requests and component versions (modules, PTFs, libraries, objects).
• Track, validate and report component versions across environments (dev, QA, pilot, production) and ensure configuration items (CIs) are correctly recorded.
• Coordinate build packaging, versioning and deployment artifacts with development, configuration management and operations teams.
• Run and manage pilot programs with selected DMS dealers: prepare pilot plans, validate functionality, collect feedback, log issues and decide go/no-go with stakeholders.
• Plan and execute staged rollouts to DMS dealers (phased scheduling, dependency mapping, timing windows, communication plans and cutover activities).
• Create and maintain runbooks, deployment playbooks and rollback procedures for each release.
• Drive cross-functional release readiness reviews and Chair/coordinate Release/Go-Live meetings (CAB or equivalent).
• Monitor post-deployment health, coordinate hotfixes/PATCHes and run post-implementation reviews to capture lessons learned.
• Produce release status dashboards, KPIs and executive reports (release progress, defect counts, pilot outcomes, deployment success rates).
• Escalate risks and issues promptly and manage stakeholder expectations with clear, timely communication.

Required Skills And Experience

• 10+ years working experience with IBM i (AS/400 / IBM iSeries) environments or in roles supporting IBM i-based applications.
• Hands‑on familiarity with IBM i objects, libraries, save-restore methods, PTFs, and typical IBM i deployment/update approaches.
• Experience in release management, deployment coordination or configuration management for enterprise systems.