COMMON POWERUp 2026

I start working with IBM POWER Servers and IBM i since I was 19 back in 1990 when it was called IBM AS/400 and from the beginning I was focused on Integrating the System with everything else (first of all DOS PC's, then Windows PC's and HP Unix and so on) and to modernize the existing Applications from the Database up to the Frontend.
To be honest I started on the IBM System /36 with OCL and RPG-II... and now - 35 years later - what am I doing?
Right - modernizing and optimizing Applications.

Today my very fast growing Team and me are modernizing not only IBM iCobol and RPG Applications (still lot's of RPG-II and OCL out there) from the ground to the top but also Optimizing all kind of Business Processes on all kind of platforms with many different frameworks like .Net, Node.js, Angular, React, ExtJs, Python, etc. and of course since the beginning of 2023 also with AI Models.

The main focus is still IBM i and with my Team and me enhance, optimize and modernize all kind of growing Applications.
We have customers that want to modernize or transform everything. From the Database Model up to the Frontend.
With them we are recreating the Application Step by Step so the business will work anyway.
Most companies that keep their IBM iApplication do that because of the stability of the system and the application and processes.
To keep this stability and keep the company going every day is our main goal by modernizing or transforming existing applications and whole systems.

Other customers "only" want to do that with parts of their application. For example, creating Webservices or Microservices for integrating with Web Shops, customers, suppliers and so on.

Creating new Frontend over existing old applications.
Beautifying 5250 Display Files with additional Value but keep the existing 5250 in the background.
Recreate new Database Models and Database Access Layers.

We do that in different ways and what the customer has and what he wants to achieve decides which way we go with our customers.

Most of them keep RPG in a very modern way.
We use RPG Microservice layer architecture for example but that is not the "golden key" to all kind of problems or challenges.

So the first and most important part is to analyze what really makes sense in the specific situation of a company.

You are very welcome to visit my sessions in New Orleans. Every day another one.
I am happy to see you there.