The mainframe is now not a system to modernize away from, however a vital basis to construct the future on. Over the previous few months, the Rocket Software program staff has participated in among the greatest tech occasions and this message has been heard loud and clear. At each gathering of CIOs, IT leaders, and technologists there was a shared sense of urgency—and alternative—centered round one thought: future-proofing the mainframe.
To organize your mainframe for the long run, these occasions highlighted three key conversations tied to the modernization journey.
1. AI can’t work with out the suitable knowledge—and that knowledge lives on the mainframe
On the latest Gartner Data & Analytics (D&A) Summit in Orlando, one of many hottest matters was easy methods to operationalize AI in a method that delivers enterprise worth. But, as organizations race to construct AI fashions, many overlook a vital asset: the mainframe.
Mainframes nonetheless run vital operations for industries like banking, healthcare, retail, and transportation. They home a long time of wealthy transactional knowledge—exactly the type of high-value, high-integrity knowledge that AI fashions want to supply dependable insights.
However tapping into that knowledge may be difficult. Silos, outdated instruments, and integration gaps typically stand in the way in which. To future-proof the mainframe, organizations want to make sure frictionless entry to mainframe knowledge, not just for reporting and compliance but additionally to feed fashionable knowledge pipelines and AI workflows.
As we heard in Orlando, the message is evident: your AI is just nearly as good as the information you feed it—and far of that knowledge nonetheless lives on the mainframe.
2. The expertise hole is actual—however so is the chance
As we glance to the way forward for the mainframe, an adjoining dialog happened at SHARE Washington D.C.: the accelerating retirement of seasoned mainframe professionals.
This isn’t only a staffing challenge—it’s a information administration disaster. Years of experience in COBOL, JCL, and system administration can’t get replaced in a single day. However this transition additionally opens the door to empowering the subsequent technology with fashionable instruments, languages, and interfaces that summary away complexity whereas preserving the facility of the platform.
We heard inspiring tales of firms creating mentorship packages, investing in mainframe bootcamps, and utilizing DevOps instruments to assist new builders ramp up sooner. These efforts don’t simply bridge the abilities hole—they create a tradition of innovation across the mainframe.
To future-proof your workforce, not solely do you want to rethink who works on the mainframe, however how they work on it.
3. Modernization isn’t a one-time occasion—it’s a steady technique
Modernization was a serious throughline at each occasions, however with a transparent shift in tone. It’s now not about “ripping and changing” mainframes with cloud-native architectures. As a substitute, organizations are in search of hybrid approaches that modernize with out disruption.
Which means taking a measured, iterative method to modernization, and discovering the infrastructure that works greatest for the distinctive wants of your enterprise. Probably the most profitable organizations are those who view modernization as a strategic, ongoing functionality, not a one-time undertaking.
As one CIO put it at SHARE: “The objective isn’t to maneuver off the mainframe. The objective is to maneuver ahead—with it.”
Last ideas: the mainframe as a contemporary platform
The way forward for enterprise IT might be powered by AI, automation, and hybrid cloud. However none of those tendencies can succeed with out a stable knowledge basis, a talented workforce, and a modernization technique that respects what already works.
Study extra about modernization methods on the Rocket Software Insights Hub.