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Computer firms try to handle mainframe worker shortage

By Katherine Yung, Detroit Free Press

They are the dinosaurs of the computer industry. But anyone who thinks mainframe computers are going the way of typewriters and videocassette recorders is in for a surprise. [It's not the mainframe hardware that is valuable, it's the billions and probably trillions of dollars of software written to run on them that's valuable. If you throw out that IBM mainframe, you have to rewrite all the software to make it work on PC]

"Big Iron," as the machines are called, is not headed for extinction any time soon. But nearly 50 years after these once-giant computers were first introduced, companies like Detroit-based Compuware and IBM are preparing for a shortage of mainframe workers.

"This will be a growing problem very quickly," said Bob Paul, CEO of Compuware, a business software firm that gets 40% of its revenue from its mainframe division.

Compuware estimates that as many as 40% of the world's mainframe programmers will be retiring in the near future.

The looming shortage has forced mainframe companies such as Compuware, IBM and CA Technologies to step up their talent-development efforts. But in a world with 3D graphics, video streaming and all kinds of social media, getting young people interested in a career in mainframes is a tough sell.

"It is not as sexy as developing new mobile apps," Paul acknowledged. "But if you want a secure and highly valued career, this is a great place to go."

Mainframe computers have become more important than ever in an increasingly data-driven world. The computers handle millions of high-volume transactions every day, ranging from airline reservations and ATM checking account withdrawals to online purchases and text messages. Banks, insurance companies, government agencies, Detroit's automakers and others all rely on the computers.

But most colleges and universities stopped teaching mainframe programming years ago. Many computer science students don't even know what mainframes are.

Nine years ago, IBM, the leading manufacturer of mainframes, developed a mainframe developers training program that's now offered at 1,067 schools worldwide, though none are in Michigan.

The skills shortage has prompted Compuware to team up with several Michigan universities to provide free mainframe software development training courses. The company cannot yet identify which schools it is working with, but the first 10-week course kicked off this spring at Wayne State University's College of Engineering, attracting more than 60 students.

They quickly discovered that working with mainframes is not for everyone. Only 15 of the 60 WSU students completed the challenging, non-credit course. [Give me a break, the COBOL on mainframes is a lot simpler then the stuff on modern PCs]

One of them is Thyrus Gorges, a 20-year-old Detroiter who is entering his third year at Wayne State and is working this summer as an intern in Compuware's mainframe division.

"The learning curve is really high," he said. Mainframes attracted Gorges' interest because it is "something entirely different."

Before taking the course, he had heard references to mainframes only from movies made in the 1980s. He said his friends have no idea what he is talking about.

This fall, Gorges plans to take a second mainframe course that Compuware will be offering at Wayne State. "I will be pretty valuable in a few years," he predicted.

At Compuware's headquarters in downtown Detroit, more than 200 employees work in the mainframe division, not including its salespeople. The company would not reveal the average age of this group of employees.

Lucy Kulpa, a mainframe software development manager and one of the instructors for the Wayne State course, said it's difficult to recruit mainframe software developers from other companies, so Compuware decided to grow its own talent.

The mainframe business "is a very disciplined and structured world," Kulpa said. "It's a unique job."

zEnterprise EC12 IBM Mainframe Computer