COMMON POWERUp 2026: Full Schedule

Unlock the Power of IBM i at POWERUp 2026!

Join us in New Orleans, Louisiana for POWERUp 2026, the premier conference for IBM i professionals. Whether you’re an experienced expert or just starting your IBM i journey, this event offers unparalleled education, hands-on workshops, and valuable networking opportunities. Stay ahead of the curve with insights from industry leaders, explore the latest innovations, and connect with a thriving community that shares your passion for IBM i. Don’t miss this opportunity to expand your knowledge, grow your skills, and power up your career!

10:45am CDT

Secure Coding on IBM i: Fortify Your Applications Against Real-World Threats

Tuesday April 28, 2026 10:45am - 11:45am CDT

Balcony L

Evaluation Survey

Even well-designed IBM i applications can harbor hidden vulnerabilities. This session, built for developers working in ILE languages such as RPG, C, CL, and related languages, dives into the security nuances often overlooked during development. Through real-world examples drawn from sample applications, we’ll identify and correct issues involving object authority, adopted authority, and library list exposure. You will learn how these weaknesses arise, why they matter, and how to apply practical coding techniques to eliminate them. By the end of this session, you will have a clear roadmap to writing more secure IBM i software that is ready to withstand the threats in the wild.

Learning Objectives:

1. Understand the basics of IBM i object based security 2. Learn the basics of creating more secure software on IBM i

Speakers

Brian Nordland

Director of Development, Fortra

Brian Nordland is the Director of Development for IBM Power Development at Fortra. Brian has been a prominent speaker at events, webinars, and user groups, including COMMON and LUG for over a decade. He is a co-inventor on multiple patents and has authored technical publications in... Read More →

Tuesday April 28, 2026 10:45am - 11:45am CDT
Balcony L

General Programming, Security

10:45am CDT

Securing Open Source on IBM i

Wednesday April 29, 2026 10:45am - 11:45am CDT

Galerie 2

Evaluation Survey

Open source software brings innovation, flexibility, and modern development tools to IBM i, but also new security responsibilities. In this session, Alan Seiden explains how to keep your IBM i environment safe while benefiting from open technologies. You’ll learn how to assess and strengthen your open source supply chain, including precautions for VS Code extensions and lessons from recent Node.js npm attacks. Alan will share practical guidance on patching and updating PHP and other open source components, defending against denial-of-service threats, and applying IBM i-specific measures and permissions. The session includes some of the latest developments in web and application security that every IBM i administrator and developer should understand to protect today’s connected systems.

Learning Objectives:

`- Evaluate and strengthen the open source supply chain. - Apply practical security measures for open source technologies on IBM i - Implement IBM i-specific hardening techniques

Speakers

Alan Seiden

Principal Consultant, Seiden Group

How to modernize and create something new while leveraging your valuable business logic. Supporting developers, mentoring, staff augmentation, architecture, development and programming. Seiden PHP+ Server for IBM i,
APIs, IBM i, open source, web, PHP, Node.js, Python, RPG, ERPs... Read More →

Wednesday April 29, 2026 10:45am - 11:45am CDT
Galerie 2

General Programming, Security

3:45pm CDT

DevAITstSecOps - the modern way to do DevOps

Wednesday April 29, 2026 3:45pm - 4:45pm CDT

Studio 9-10

Evaluation Survey

The definition of "DevOps" has changed tremendously over the last few years; no longer is it simple Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment (CI/CD), but rather an interwoven process that begins with the typical Compile/Debug/Edit cycle, but that now also leverages Artificial Intelligence; Testing and Security steps that many supposed DevOps adopters are ignoring; and then and only then does it move to traditional CI/CD.

Learning Objectives:

Understand what terms like "DevOps" and "DevSecOps" really mean. Learn how to leverage new AI tools like GitHub Copilot as part of the development process. Reinforce how important Testing and Security are to DevSecOps.

Speakers

Kuldip Vikram

Senior Technical Staff Member, Architecture & Technology, Rocket Software

Kuldip is a Senior Technical Staff Member at Rocket Software responsible for modernizing IBMi applications/workloads and their development through a combination of Generative AI and pure/hybrid cloud deployments. He has a rich and diverse experience architecting, designing, developing... Read More →

Andrew Clark

Andrew Clark is the Senior Principal Software Engineer for IBM i at Rocket Software. Andrew has over 35 years of experience on IBM i beginning with the "secret Mankato Project" on a pre-release version of OS/400, and an internship at IBM Rochester working on the Query team. He... Read More →

Herman Rensink

Wednesday April 29, 2026 3:45pm - 4:45pm CDT
Studio 9-10

General Programming, Artificial Intelligence (AI), DevOps, IT Leadership & Management, IT Strategy, Program Testing, Programmer Tools, Security, Technologies Integrated with IBM i

COMMON POWERUp 2026

10:45am CDT

Brian Nordland

10:45am CDT

Alan Seiden

3:45pm CDT

Kuldip Vikram

Andrew Clark

Herman Rensink

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