IBM i (AS/400) Engineer - E3 Replenishment

Releady is building remote support for a US music retail and instrument rental company that runs its replenishment and supporting applications on IBM i (AS/400). This role requires an engineer who can get into an environment with limited documentation, work out what it runs, capture that knowledge, and then support it on call.

• Employment Type: Independent Contractor Engagement (approximately 40 hours per week)


• Location: Remote


• Length: 6 months with possible extension


• Compensation: $55 - $65 CAD per hour, depending on experience

The environment

• IBM i (AS/400): The system hosts E3 replenishment and green-screen menu applications that manage user profiles, flat-file exchanges and point-of-sale employee data. The hardware is nearing end of life, no new development has happened in several years, and the E3 version will be confirmed during the assessment.


• ERP: A heavily customized Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 instance, supported in-house, feeds data to the IBM i system.


• Other platforms: The wider estate includes Salesforce, an Oracle ATG ecommerce platform, and internally built web applications for store fulfillment and instrument rentals.


• Team: The engineer joins an internal IT organization of about 20 people, supported by overseas staff in several countries, while infrastructure, security and cloud services are run by a shared services team at the parent company.

The engagement phases are - assessment to documentation to on-call support:

1. Assess the environment. Gain access to the IBM i system and review active jobs, job queues, schedules, running programs, menus and user profiles. Inventory the custom scripts, programs and interfaces built over the years, and separate what was custom-built for this company from standard E3 and IBM i functionality. Identify the E3 version and modules in use, map how data arrives from Dynamics AX 2012 and where outputs go, and report on the support status of the hardware, operating system and E3 software.


2. Document what's there. Capture how each process works through screen recordings, screenshots, recorded walkthroughs and AI-assisted notes. The goal is complete, usable content the internal team can follow, and a formal manual isn't required.


3. Support and hand off. Provide on-call support under a retainer when something breaks, resolve incidents, and train an internal team member to take over day-to-day operation of the system.

Candidates should bring senior, hands-on IBM i depth and E3 replenishment experience, including:

• Operation and administration of IBM i (AS/400, iSeries) systems, including work management, subsystems, job queues, job scheduling, user profiles and security


• Reading, debugging and modifying RPG (RPG IV/ILE and older RPG III) and CL programs


• Working knowledge of DB2 for i, physical and logical files, and flat-file interfaces to other systems


• Support of green-screen (5250) menu applications used in day-to-day operations


• Experience with E3 replenishment, now Blue Yonder Advanced Replenishment (formerly JDA), including modules such as TRIM or SLIM


• A track record of reverse-engineering and documenting systems that came with little or no documentation


• Written and spoken English at B2 level or higher

Preferred

• Experience integrating IBM i with Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 or another ERP.


• Background in retail inventory, purchasing or replenishment processes.


• Experience with IBM Power hardware lifecycle, OS upgrades, or planning a move off IBM i.


• A track record of using AI tools to speed up documentation and knowledge capture.