The EMA Team Combines Expertise and Commitment

Doing is like talking – only cooler!

The EMA training concept immediately appealed to me. That's why I'm excited to be involved in developing and expanding the EMA curriculum.

Nearly 50 years of mainframe...

My first encounter with mainframe?
In 1976, while studying at the University of Applied Sciences Konstanz, I punched a Fortran program into punch cards.

What drives you?
Passing on my knowledge to the next generation.

There are things you can't live without... what's yours?
My wife Gabriele

Your tip for a short getaway trip…
Lake Constance!

I can't live without this app…
Spotify

Game night is coming up... what game are you bringing?
Skat, I play that (almost) every Friday

There are books you never forget... what's yours?
The Principles of Operation.

I'd love to be able to…
Play the piano

My tip for a cozy evening:
A whisky, music, and singing with friends

The best invention ever:
The IBM mainframe ;-)(

Everything about databases...

What was my previous IT experience?
I studied computer science in Hamburg, followed by a degree in business administration with a focus on IT management. I entered the IT world with application development for AS400. Starting in 1990, I worked in the mainframe world with application development and database administration for DB2 and IMS. I then transitioned to DB systems engineering and training in database systems and their applications.

This has increasingly shifted towards distributed system applications to link various DB systems and non-relational systems.

What do I know about the mainframe?
Quite a lot in the area of database systems and storage, but by no means everything! There are still new procedures and techniques to learn every day, it never gets boring.

What excites me about working with mainframes?
You never stop learning! Especially today, as the IBM mainframe also adapts new technologies and integrates into the modern world. There's always something new to learn and explore.

What do I do in my free time?
I enjoy riding my motorcycle and exploring the north. I also enjoy music (passively - attending concerts, from classical to heavy metal, I take it all in).

Lifelong learning

My first encounter with mainframe?
After joining IBM in the "IS" (Information Systems) department of the former Sindelfingen plant – 1986

The funniest experience in the IT business?
Training a delegation from China in Berlin – selected customer employees who were given a trip to Europe, which they had to "earn" through a specialized course. An extremely specific CICS topic was chosen – out of 16 people, one or two understood what it was about, the others smiled for 4 days. They also didn't like German tea, so they threw away the tea bags and drank the hot water like that.

Your tip for a short getaway trip…
How short? For 1-2 days, the Black Forest or Swabian Alb will do – a few more days on the Croatian coast.

What place in the world should you have seen (before you die)?
Grand Canyon

My Motto…
You're never too old to learn

My favorite quote…
"He who brings much will bring something to many" (Goethe/Faust)

Game night is coming up... what game are you bringing?
"Mensch ärgere dich nicht" – nobody else will dare to bring it

There are books you never forget... yours is?
The Physician (Noah Gordon), Exodus (Leon Uris)

My most embarrassing moment was…
As an altar boy, I once put on the robe the wrong way around – but that passed too

My tip for a cozy evening:
Quiet music and a good book

Kobold or COBOL?

My first encounter with mainframe?
On January 4th, 1982, at 6 AM, I entered the mtu data center in Munich for the first time. In the first few months, as an operator, I got to know two IBM printers (1403), two more from STC (they were a bit faster), a card reader, and a card punch. From that, a "lasting friendship" with the IBM mainframe and its concepts grew.

The funniest experience in the IT business?
… when the computer science doctor looked over my shoulder and asked: "Is that a program in 'Kobold'?" (it was probably just a joke)

Your tip for a short getaway trip…
Travel to a beautiful, unknown city and explore a lot

My favorite quote…
„You only see the beautiful things if you go slowly.“

My tip for a cozy evening:
Put your feet up, go to the sauna

What still needs to be invented?
The communication-facilitation device - you open a flap on your counterpart and immediately understand everything correctly (and vice versa)

I'd love to be able to…
Do magic, but for real

My favorite animal is…
The proverbial "jack of all trades," they're so versatile

The best invention ever:
Writing and printing

My favorite word:
„Hrglpfrmft“ it's so catchy

Mainframe above all

My first encounter with mainframe?
Getting a job at IBM supporting VM and VSE

What drives you?
Infinite interest in mainframe topics

When things don't go as planned, I tell myself…
Just keep going

I'd love to be able to…
Cook

My tip for a cozy evening:
Good food, music, letting my thoughts wander, and simply relaxing

What would you really like to try in your life?
Oh, way too much. Driving a race car, flying, studying astrophysics,….

If you could turn back time, you would…
Be 40 years old with the experience I have now

You have three wishes:
There's only one wish - to have as many wishes as I want :-))

The world needs to know this about you!
Nothing! No Facebook, Instagram, and the like... and that's a good thing! Privacy is privacy. Google knows the rest 😉

The best invention ever:
Fire :-), the man at the grill :-))

Sharing knowledge...

Why am I a trainer with EMA?
I have done this repeatedly during my active professional life (both in German and English), and I have always enjoyed it. Moreover, I believe that the knowledge accumulated in this process should not simply be lost: I have experienced both sides of the business, both as a customer and as a manufacturer (hardware and software).

An interesting thematic arc...

The examiner's role includes not only the final exam itself but also an intensive engagement with the technical final papers.

An interesting thematic arc that I would not want to miss.