Mainframe Security Specialist

• Base Pay $85,000.00 - $ / Year
• Job Category Cybersecurity & IT Security
• Employee Type FT Exempt

Description

Job Title: Mainframe Security Specialist

Clearance Required: US Citizen, Public Trust

Work Location: Hybrid;
Kansas City, Ft Collins Hybrid (currently remote)

Alpha Omega is looking for a motivated Mainframe Security Specialist to join our team, supporting the US Government.

Key Responsibilities:

• Utilize the following tools for the administration, configuration, monitoring, operation, analysis, maintenance, and reporting of the mainframe authentication, authorization, and access controls system:
  • Operating System Fundamentals (z/OS / MVS)
  • Job Control Language (JCL):
    • Writing, reading, and debugging complex JCL streams (JOB, EXEC, DD statements).
    • Utilizing Procedures (PROCs) and Symbolic Parameters
      .
    • Understanding utility programs like IEBGENER, IEBCOPY, IDCAMS, ICEGENER, and DFSORT/SYNCSORT
      .
    • Dataset Naming Conventions, Dataset Organizations (DSORG: PS, PDS, PDSE, VSAM).
    • Understanding VSAM dataset types (KSDS, ESDS, RRDS) and managing them via IDCAMS
      .
  • System Display and Search Facility (SDSF / EJES):
    • Navigating active jobs, output queues, held queues, system logs (SYSLOG/OPERLOG), and system resources (DA, ST, O, H, LOG, ULOG).
    • Executing system console commands and interpreting system messages/completion codes (e.g., S806, S0C4, S013).

2. Interactive Systems & Interfaces

• TSO/ISPF (Time Sharing Option / Interactive System Productivity Facility):
  • Advanced ISPF editor usage (Command line, line commands, find/change macros).
  • Managing datasets using Option 3.2 (Allocate/Rename/Delete), Option 3.4 (DSLIST), Option 3.14 (Search-For).
  • Navigating the z/OS UNIX hierarchical file system (HFS/zFS).
  • Shell environment commands (ls, chmod, chown, df, find, grep).
  • Understanding file permissions, UID/GID mapping, and UNIX path structure on z/OS.

3. Automation, Scripting & Custom Tooling

• REXX (RE structured eXtended eXecutor):
  • Writing REXX scripts to automate administrative tasks, parse reports, or manipulate datasets.
  • Building custom ISPF panels and edit macros using REXX.
• CLIST (Command List):
  • Reading and maintaining legacy CLIST scripts used for menu systems or batch job generation.
  • Understanding how automated ops tools (e.g., IBM SA z/OS, CA-OPS/MVS) intercept console messages and trigger actions.

4. Subsystems & Middleware Literacy

• JES2 / JES3 (Job Entry Subsystem):
  • Understanding job submission, execution, purge flows, spool space usage, and initiator management.
• CICS & IMS (Transaction Managers):
  • Basic operational understanding of CICS regions, transactions, and startup/shutdown procedures.
  • Understanding how Db2 subsystems and MQ queue managers interface with z/OS, dataset allocations, and system resources.

5. Mainframe Operations, Recovery & Change Management

• Disaster Recovery (DR) & IPL (Initial Program Load):
  • Understanding System System Initialization Parameters (SYS
    1.PARMLIB, SYS
    1.PROCLIB).
  • Participating in full-system IPLs and standalone disaster recovery site brings-ups.
  • Coupling Facility & Sysplex concepts (Parallel Sysplex, Shared DASD).
• Incident Management:
  Root cause analysis, analyzing SYSABEND/SYSUDUMP/SYSMDUMP files.
• Change Management:
  Mainframe window planning, back-out procedures, staging fixes (PTFs via SMP/E concepts).
• Configuration Management:
  Maintaining baseline documentation for system components and standard operating procedures (SOPs).

Non-Security Core Competency Summary Skill Domain Key Technologies / Utilities Application in Daily Operations

• Batch Processing
• JCL, IDCAMS, IEBCOPY, DFSORT
• Executing reporting jobs, batch maintenance, and data refreshes

System Interaction

• TSO, ISPF, SDSF, OMVS Shell
• Daily navigation, dataset editing, log monitoring, USS file work

Automation

• REXX, CLIST, ISPF Macros
• Streamlining routine administrative or operational checks

Storage & Datasets

• Dataset management, key store setup, space management

Disaster Recovery

• PARMLIB, Standalone Utilities, IPL

Required Qualifications:

Required Experience/

Skills:

• Minimum of 5+ years of experience ideally in the above mainframe skills.

Salary and Benefit Information:

The likely salary range for this position is $85,000 - $130,000. This is not, however, a guarantee of compensation or salary. There are multiple factors that are considered in determining final pay for a position, including, but not limited to, relevant work experience, skills, certifications and competencies that align to the specified role, education and certifications as well as contract provisions regarding labor categories that are…