Senior Mainframe Developer- Cards & Payments (Hybrid)

About the role

As a Senior Mainframe Developer, you will make an impact by leading the design, development, and optimization of business-critical mainframe applications that support high-volume payment and card processing environments. You will be a valued member of the technology team and work collaboratively with business analysts, product owners, infrastructure teams, quality engineering teams, and other stakeholders to deliver secure, scalable, and resilient solutions.

Responsibilities

• Lead the design and delivery of scalable mainframe solutions that support complex transaction processing and align with enterprise technology standards.
• Partner with business and product teams to translate cards and payments requirements into reliable technical solutions and system enhancements.
• Drive application stability and operational excellence through performance optimization, proactive monitoring, incident resolution, and root cause analysis.
• Review technical deliverables to ensure compliance with security, audit, and data integrity requirements in financial services environments.
• Mentor team members and promote development best practices, knowledge sharing, and continuous improvement across the mainframe engineering organization.

Requirements

• Strong hands-on experience with IBM mainframe technologies, including batch processing, transaction processing, and enterprise application development.
• 6+ years of experience in Mainframe.
• Proven expertise with IBM mainframe utilities, Job Control Language (JCL), debugging tools, and data management processes.
• Experience supporting cards, payments, banking, or other financial services applications.
• Strong understanding of secure development practices, data protection principles, and regulatory requirements within financial systems.
• Demonstrated ability to analyze complex technical issues, troubleshoot production incidents, and drive long-term system improvements.
• Experience leading technical initiatives and collaborating effectively with distributed teams and stakeholders.
• Cognizant cannot provide sponsorship for this role now or in the future.

Skills

• Deep knowledge of card processing, payment transaction lifecycles, authorization, clearing, and settlement processes.
• Experience optimizing mainframe performance, batch scheduling, and resource utilization in high-volume environments.
• Strong background in technical architecture, solution design, and modernization initiatives.
• Experience defining and supporting testing strategies, including functional, integration, and performance testing.
• Proven ability to mentor junior engineers and lead technical discussions across cross-functional teams.

Pay

The annual salary for this position is between $60,000 to $93,500 depending on experience and other qualifications of the successful candidate. This position is also eligible for Cognizant’s discretionary annual incentive program, based on performance and subject to the terms of Cognizant’s applicable plans.

Benefits

• Medical/Dental/Vision/Life Insurance
• Paid holidays plus Paid Time Off
• 401(k) plan and contributions
• Long-term/Short-term Disability
• Paid Parental Leave
• Employee Stock Purchase Plan

Schedule

Hybrid position requiring 3 days a week in a client or Cognizant office in Brooklyn, OH. The working arrangements for this role are accurate as of the date of posting. This may change based on the project you’re engaged in, as well as business and client requirements.