
IBM i Expert
to modernize core systems with vetted, available freelancers matched in minutesHire experts who work across RPG, Db2 for i and IBM i integrations, from stabilizing established workloads to connecting business applications with modern services. FRATCH matches you quickly and precisely with vetted, available freelancers.
Meet FRATCH Experts who have recently used IBM i
Silvia B.
Last position:
Business Consultant - Product Management Banking at Aareal Bank AG
- Focus on optimizing and further developing the internal customer EBICS application
- Functional and technical consulting for Aareal First Financial Solutions AG on EBICS standard products and applications in the areas of operations and further development, as well as project-related communication with external development partners and the product manufacturer to implement the corresponding technical optimizations
- As the functional coordinator, providing advice on content-related and regulatory requirements as well as technical prerequisites and requirements, and bringing these together at the functional level
- Consulting on the use of EBICS formats
- Reviewing the current EBICS standard for optimization and further development potential
- Analyzing the current state to identify development potential and deriving appropriate recommendations for action while considering regulatory requirements
- Conducting EBICS tests throughout the project
- Functional responsibility for requirements management and, in this context, recording and documenting requirements for such tests
- Designing a functional and sustainable test management system
- Conducting and evaluating tests
- Consulting on sustainable quality assurance and audits
- Project language: German and English
- Tools/Methods: MS Project, MS Office, MS Visio, TestRail, Confluence, Jira, Business Logics Bankkrecher, Business Logics Test Data Generator, Business Logics Banking Tool, Business Logics Test System, DBEAVER, Squirrel, Unix Virtual Machines, WinSCP, Kitty, Putty, various Aareal Bank products, Online Banking Portal, Aareal Sign, core banking system, SAP Blue Eagle, SAP RE-FX, Aareon Wodis Sigma, Haufe Real Estate Wowinex, GAP Group Immotion, UTS Karthago, SAP IS-U/Waste, SIV kVASy, various EBICS clients
Anton E.
Last position:
HGB Accountant and Consultant at Eurostyle Systems Würzburg GmbH
- Processing of a five-month backlog of incoming documents;
- Clarification of residual items and overdue open items;
- Review, reconciliation and clarification of accounting matters;
- Analysis of existing workflows and implementation of process improvements;
- Processing of accounting transactions in SAP FI and MM
Anton P.
Last position:
Product Owner / IT Project Manager (EUDR Compliance SaaS) at Gras GmbH
- Responsible for the backlog and roadmap of a production SaaS compliance platform for the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), with around 30 customers on AWS and Docker.
- Coordinated feature development and API integrations across 2 external and internal development teams.
- API integrations with the EU EUDR API and SAP.
- 70% fewer customer-reported issues, supporting ISO-27001 certification.
Roger B.
Last position:
Plant Manager, Steinach Plant at Frör Plaho-Tec
- Interim assignment until a new plant manager was found
- Ensured production control and on-time order processing.
- Introduced transparent weekly and monthly planning as well as forward-looking capacity management.
- Cleaned up and structured bills of materials, master data and work documents.
- Held team leader meetings and coordinated the production areas.
- Took over the professional management of the production teams.
- Promoted an open, constructive leadership culture and involved employees in change processes.
- Coordinated with adjacent areas (production planning, supply chain, quality, development).
- Documented measures and prepared the handover to permanent management
Michael L.
Last position:
Head of IT at Ruthmann Holdings GmbH
- Management of IT with 10 employees, including budget and personnel responsibility.
- Harmonization of the Navision systems in Germany, Switzerland and Austria.
- Connection of the ERP systems in Switzerland, Austria and Italy to the central Microsoft Power BI systems in Germany.
- Rollout of a new firewall at 10 locations in D, CH and A.
- Evaluation of a new DMS.
- Migration to Windows 10 / 11.
- Transformation of 9 countries into ONE Europe.
- Start of NIS2 implementation in 5 European countries.
Manfred B.
Last position:
Interim Manager Managing Director
- Optimization of business results and expansion of sales activities
- Responsible for personnel organization
- Introduction of a document management system (DMS)
- Introduction and optimization of the ERP, CMS and CRM landscape
- Introduction of digital signatures
- Increase in revenue, reduction in costs and increase in EBIT
Matthias B.
Last position:
Windows Administrator at Telair GmbH
Windows Administrator, software deployment, user support, Azure / Entra administrator, hardware support, software packaging, defining and introducing processes
Tasks performed:
- Handling incidents, service requests & changes in the Matrix42 ticket system
- Handling / resolving incidents
- User creation / permissions
- Installation and patch management for Windows
- Permissions and license management in Entra
- Process improvement and documentation
Tools and methods used: Windows Server 2016 / 2019, Active Directory, Windows 11, Office 365, Azure / Entra, Ivanti, VMWare & ESX, Dell & Kyocera Minolta & Zeus hardware support
Pavel S.
Last position:
Interim Finance/Controlling Manager at Freelancer
- Accounting, controlling and reporting, taxes, risk management, treasury, credit management, legal matters, internal control/SOX, HR, IT, cooperation with auditors, tax advisors and public authorities
- Logistics, production and HACCP, occupational safety and veterinary and hygiene regulations (food production)
- Due Diligence, M&A, company demergers, crisis management, project management
Selected interim projects:
- Twistcafe (Fastfood restaurants) – Interim CFO (worldwide): Resolution of problems with accounting and tax documents for the annual financial statements of the German and Austrian subsidiaries; standardization of accounting for intercompany transfers of raw materials and cash (CZ, SK, DE, AT, PL); automation of recharging discount campaigns and cashless payments; improvements to cost center accounting (200+ CCs)
- VIB Vermögen AG (Branicks Group, Real Estate) – Interim Head of Accounting (DE): HGB annual financial statements for 19 companies without complications; IFRS consolidated financial statements without complications; automation of consolidation measures (debt consolidation, expense and income consolidation); automation of reporting
- NTT (Telecommunications) – Interim Senior Controller (DE): Simplification, standardization and automation of month-end closing activities (accruals for customer and supplier rebates, order backlogs, accrued revenues, monthly GP adjustments), including SOX compliance documentation; balance sheet reconciliation; improvement of loyalty reporting
- Lilium (Aerospace) – Interim Senior Accountant (DE): Tax line corrections; asset migration from Datev to Infor LN for two companies, including improvement of data quality; automation of the processing of interim asset investments and asset additions; successful SOX closing audit for fixed assets leading to the US stock market listing
- Brose (Automotive) – Interim Head of Controlling (CZ): Successful Forecast III; simplification and automation of calculations and reporting (hourly rates, temporary workers, monthly reports, scrap and external rework, direct personnel costs); platform change for the monthly management board meeting
- LUST Hybrid-Technik (Pankl-SHW Industries, Manufacturing) – Interim Finance Controller (DE): Monthly and annual financial statements (including inventory valuation, cost and performance accounting), budget-to-actual comparisons, variance analyses, ad hoc evaluations, forecast preparation, automation
- Gebr. Bode (Schaltbau Group, Manufacturing) – Interim Head of Accounting (DE): Annual financial statements without complications; simplification and automation of liquidity planning; automation of the open items report, standardization of intercompany reconciliations; introduction and automation of the fixed assets report
- Hyva Georg Hydraulik (Manufacturing) – Interim Senior Accountant/Finance Manager (DE): Simplification and automation of VAT returns, Intrastat and other statistical reports; automation of the fixed assets report; introduction and automation of CC report/forecast and temporary worker accruals; master data correction
- Beiersdorf (FMCG) – Interim Finance Manager (DE/SK): Transfer from the local finance department in Slovakia to the SSC Hamburg
- Trèves (Automotive) – Interim Plant Controller/Head of Finance & Controlling (CZ): Identification of weaknesses; implementation of controlling processes for the purchasing process (PR/PO/GR), payroll, energy costs, ICO accounting, CC reporting
- Hella Slovakia Signal-Lighting (Automotive) – Interim Head of Controlling (SK): 10% reduction of receivables open items; automation of reporting (Capex, Cost Center, Maintenance Costs); standardization and automation of inventory and receivables impairment
- Tunap Cosmetics (FMCG) – Interim Finance Manager (DE): Reduction of DSO by 21 days in four months; balance sheet cleanup (fixed assets, provisions, prepaid expenses); reduction of unprocessed invoices in the workflow by 1.2 million EUR during the annual closing; automation of impairments, controls and reporting
- Hanon Systems Autopal (Automotive) – Interim Finance Controller (CZ): Identification of weaknesses; automation of CC report and orders; automation of inventory and receivables impairment
- Drägerwerk (Manufacturing) – Interim Finance Controller (CZ): FI/CO management, process audit, investment incentives, accounting accuracy, SAP settings (FI/CO, MM)
- Maxim Chicken (FMCG) – Interim Head of Finance and Controlling (CZ): Introduction of new products for gastronomy with increased sales; introduction of cash flow forecasting; reduction of variable and fixed costs (raw materials, real estate leasing); successful veterinary inspection
- Trelleborg Automotive Czech Republic (Automotive) – Interim Plant Controller/Head of Finance (CZ); Carbody Czech Republic (Automotive) – Interim Plant Controller/Head of Finance (CZ): Accounting correction; company demerger with SAP split; introduction of cash flow forecasting; factoring
- Kantar Media (WPP Group, Media) – Interim Finance Manager (CZ): Automation of the US GAAP report; reduction of fixed costs (supplier contracts, personnel costs); implementation of standard processes; successful SOX audit; relocation of production
Tezcan D.
Last position:
Solution Architect / Project Manager at German Football Association
- Overall responsibility for the project lifecycle from scope definition to completion
- Close collaboration with platform teams, IT leaders, and external service providers
- Application of SAFe principles and structured sprint work
- Creation of a migration roadmap with clear milestones
- Monitoring of the lifecycle: onboarding, repository migration, replication of permissions, and system tests
- Visualization of the architecture with PlantUML and Gliffy as well as documentation in Confluence
- Regular status reports and running knowledge transfer sessions
Armin V.
Last position:
Software Developer at DFS GmbH
- TANGe is a DFS project to introduce a modern digital tower system that is meant to make airport air traffic handling safer, more efficient, and future-ready. My current task in this project is the development of the Runway SID Assignment Service, which is responsible for assigning departure routes from an airport. SID - Standard Instrument Departure stands for a standardized departure route.
Software: Java, microservices, Kafka, Robot Framework, Gitlab, Kubernetes, Docker
Stefan S.
Last position:
Interim Manager Project Management PMO at ND Coatings GmbH (Meyer Werft Papenburg)
Revenue €90 million, 50 employees
Industry: Shipbuilding, marina
Temporary assignment as Head of PMO
Recording and validation of PMO processes
Creation of capacity planning through 2032
Evaluation of standard preservation processes, including VSM and macro mapping
Creation of planning tools for project coordinators
Participation in coordination meetings with Meyer Werft
Data preparation for the monthly review
Contribution to the tendering strategy for new ships
Creation of roles and responsibilities and job descriptions for project managers and project coordinators
Project management for the Disney Adventure cruise ship
Re-design of the reporting tool
Creation of a planning tool for project coordinators with a planning horizon through 2032
Design of an on-call service, including work instructions
Creation of calculation models for quotations
Project management for Disney Adventure
Knud W.
Last position:
Lead Programmer, Architect and Deputy Product Owner at Bundesagentur für Arbeit
- Lead programmer, architect and deputy product owner
- Completed transition from zPDV to STEP
- Ensured quality of C++ and Perl sources through automated and manual checks
- Supported resolution of incidents and errors in testing
- Implemented batch for supplementary assignment of payment run numbers
- Implemented batch for distribution of SGB 2 information to the central payment unit
- Supported replacement of Solaris with Linux
- Upgraded gcc from 7.4 to 9.3
- Programmatically generated Makefiles from Borland projects for builds
- Extended funding data with new attribute “Kennzeichen Fahrtkosten Praktikum”
- Programmatically generated XSD and WSDL files from IDL definitions
- Represented the product owner when needed
- Implemented batch for one-time payment processing
- Developed generator for Liquibase files
- Implemented and maintained regular anonymization of production data
- Supported migration from SLES 12 to SLES 15
- Supported introduction of mutual TLS
- Implemented batch for sending deletion impulses to EDA BE
- Organized script directory structure
- Investigated potential introduction of String-Latin and implemented minimal solution
- Remediated security findings identified by CheckMarx
- Supported PAP recalculations and general change notices
- Converted ERP interfaces from SOAP to REST
- Planned technical and business topics such as register modernization, cash register security, training costs, four-eyes principle
Luca P.
Last position:
ERP Program Manager at Fiserv
The customer is undergoing a comprehensive transformation. All SAP ECC landscapes worldwide are being migrated to SAP S/4HANA, with the goal of introducing a standard template worldwide.
The program also includes the “RISE with SAP” migration and modernization program, which may involve migrating the landscapes of selected country installations to the SAP Private Cloud.
On the stakeholder side, the program reporting line extends to the company’s executive board and that of the implementation partner.
Fiserv Germany’s ERP landscape currently includes several non-standard SAP tools and applications that extend the functionality of the ECC environment and can often be integrated into downstream systems. As part of the transition to SAP S/4HANA, it is essential to assess the core functionality, integration points and future viability of these applications in order to determine their alignment with the target architecture.
The focus of the work is on providing expert advice and assessment to define the scope, strategy and roadmap for transitioning Fiserv Germany’s SAP ECC system to SAP S/4HANA.
The recommended best practices from SAP are followed and a structured approach is used to ensure a smooth transition with minimal disruption while maximizing business value.
This assessment forms the basis for a successful SAP S/4HANA transformation and ensures alignment with industry best practices, regulatory compliance and future scalability.
Migration Strategy Definition – assessment of available transition approaches based on business objectives, technical feasibility and SAP Best Practices.
Technical Readiness Assessment – conducting a system analysis to assess compatibility, custom code impact, data volume management, integration points and infrastructure readiness for SAP S/4HANA.
Business Process Impact Analysis – reviewing the latest business process documentation to define the scope and effort required to implement the necessary functions in SAP S/4HANA and to identify opportunities for process optimization.
Roadmap for Non-SAP Systems and Applications – assessment of third-party and legacy applications regarding their integration with SAP S/4HANA and recommendation of consolidation, migration or replacement strategies.
Deployment & Implementation Planning – defining a phased approach for implementation, including project schedules, risk mitigation strategies and key milestones aligned with business priorities.
This transformation takes place in phases: the Discovery phase leads to the Explore phase, which is followed by the Design phase and finally implementation.
Program management
Change management
Requirements management
Transition management
Stakeholder management
Risk management
Comprehensive coordination
Olga B.
Last position:
Project Manager, Business Analyst & AI Expert
INTRODUCTION OF AI OPERATING SYSTEM & DEVELOPMENT OF DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE
Technology / Start-up – Munich, 3 employees
Objective:
Selection and implementation of an AI operating system, development of a structured knowledge base, and creation of AI agents and skills to increase efficiency across the entire company
- Requirements analysis and evaluation of suitable AI operating systems based on the company’s specific needs
- Design and development of a central knowledge base as the foundation for AI-supported processes
- Development and configuration of AI agents and skills for recurring business processes
- Prompt engineering for precise, context-based outputs from the AI agents
- Personal coaching for the founders and employees on using AI independently and effectively
- Overall project management, including planning, prioritisation and progress tracking
- Documentation of the implemented solutions and creation of usage concepts for sustainable operation
Tools: Langdock, SharePoint, Prompt Engineering, AI agents, AI skills
Maik S.
- Development of a new generation of Spring Boot microservices for an archiving system on OpenShift, monitoring, security analyses
Stack: Java, Spring Boot, Kafka, Vaadin, OpenShift 4.x, Maven, Artifactory, Jenkins, Git/Github, GitHub Copilot, GitOps, CI/CD, Kargo/ArgoCD
Discover over 15,000 top freelancers
Statistics of experts using IBM i
Aggregated from the professional profiles of matched freelancers.
Experience
28 years

Position duration
2.1 years

Positions per freelancer
18

Top business areas
Project Management, Information Technology, Operations

Top industries
Information Technology, Manufacturing, Banking and Finance

Certification focus areas
Information Technology, Project Management, Operations
Bachelor's degree or higher
73%
Master's degree or higher
39%
Doctorate
8%

Certifications per freelancer
3

Most common languages
German, English, French

Speak two or more languages
96%
Based on our profile pool as of 16 Oct 2026.
Daily rate distribution
The chart shows how the daily rates of experts in this technology are distributed, based on recent contracts on our platform. Each bar covers a rate range — its height shows the share of experts charging within that range.
Average rates of experts using IBM i
Rates are based on recent contracts and do not include FRATCH margin.
The average daily rate is the mean of all daily rates from recent contracts of comparable freelancers on our platform.
The median daily rate is the middle value of all daily rates — half of comparable freelancers charge less, half charge more. Unlike the average, it is barely affected by outliers.
Calculated based on our freelancers’ daily rates as of 16 Oct 2026. Actual rates may vary depending on seniority level, experience, skill specialization, project complexity, and engagement length.
IBM i experts industry focus
See which industries our matched freelancers work in most often — every figure is calculated live from the freelancers on FRATCH.
- Information Technology (77%)
- Manufacturing (68%)
- Banking and Finance (59%)
- Automotive (55%)
- Professional Services (48%)
- Transportation (42%)
- Insurance (35%)
- Retail (35%)
Please note that freelancers can work across multiple industries, so percentages overlap.
About the technology
IBM i at a glance
IBM i is an integrated operating system and application platform for IBM Power Systems. It combines the operating system, database, security model and system management in one environment. Companies use it to run dependable transaction processing for finance, manufacturing, distribution, retail and other operations that rely on accurate business records.
Core workloads
IBM i supports long-running systems for orders, inventory, purchasing, accounting, logistics and production planning. Many applications use RPG or COBOL with Db2 for i, while newer services may use SQL, Java, PHP or web interfaces alongside established programs.
- Maintain and extend RPG applications
- Design Db2 for i data access and SQL queries
- Connect IBM i workloads to ERP, CRM and web systems
- Improve batch processing and transaction flows
Ecosystem and tools
The platform includes Db2 for i, integrated security, job management, subsystems and backup capabilities. Strong specialists may also work with IBM Power hardware, IBM i Services, CL, ILE, APIs, REST, JDBC, ODBC and source control workflows. Modernization often involves VS Code extensions, CI pipelines and observability tools.
When expertise matters
Companies often bring in freelance expertise when a key specialist leaves, an inherited application needs safe changes or an IBM i estate must connect with cloud and digital channels. External support is also useful during migrations, audits, performance investigations and release backlogs.
- Document undocumented RPG or COBOL logic
- Upgrade or refactor legacy applications
- Expose business functions through APIs
- Review security, backups and operational controls
What strong specialists deliver
A capable IBM i professional understands both business rules and the platform’s operational model. They trace dependencies before changing production code, use controlled deployments and protect data integrity. They can explain trade-offs between extending existing RPG, introducing SQL-based services and moving selected functions to other systems.
Selecting the right fit
Look for hands-on experience with the relevant IBM i release, workload and development style rather than a generic legacy-systems background. Ask for examples of RPG, Db2 for i, integration or modernization work similar to yours. Clarify access procedures, documentation, testing, on-call expectations and how remote collaboration will work with your internal team.
Frequently asked questions
Questions about IBM i? Start with the answers below.
IBM i is used for secure, reliable business applications such as order processing, inventory, accounting, manufacturing and distribution. Its integrated database and system services support workloads that must remain consistent and available over long operating cycles.
IBM i is the current name for the operating system historically associated with AS/400 and later iSeries systems. People still use AS/400 and iSeries when describing older applications, hardware or specialist experience, so those terms can help identify relevant professionals.
IBM i offers a tightly integrated operating system, database and security model, while Unix, Linux and cloud platforms usually assemble these capabilities from separate components. The right choice depends on workload continuity, integration needs, operating preferences and the cost or risk of replacing established business logic.
A strong IBM i specialist may also bring RPG, COBOL, CL, SQL, Db2 for i, APIs, REST, Java, PHP and Power Systems knowledge. Useful adjacent skills include source control, automated testing, CI pipelines, security reviews and integration with ERP or cloud services.
The required depth depends on the work. A contained report or SQL change may need focused platform knowledge, while a production modernization, integration or performance issue requires someone who can understand legacy dependencies, operational controls and business-critical data flows.
IBM i work can often be done remotely through secure access, version control, ticketing and screen-sharing. On-site collaboration may still help during hardware changes, restricted-environment work or workshops with operations teams, so access rules and communication expectations should be agreed early.
Ask how the specialist investigates dependencies, tests RPG or SQL changes and handles rollback plans. A good IBM i professional can explain production safeguards clearly, provide relevant delivery examples and translate technical decisions into operational and business impact.
IBM i modernization may include refactoring RPG, improving SQL usage, exposing existing functions through REST APIs or adding web and mobile access. It does not always require replacing the core system; a phased approach can preserve proven business rules while introducing better interfaces, automation and monitoring.
The average hourly rate of freelancers who have used IBM i in their recent projects is 102 €, which corresponds to a daily rate of about 819 € based on an 8-hour working day.
Of the freelancers who have used IBM i in their recent projects, 73% hold at least a Bachelor's degree, 39% hold at least a Master's degree, and 8% hold a doctorate.
On average, freelancers who have used IBM i in their recent projects have 28 years of professional experience, with a single engagement typically lasting around 2.1 years.
The most common languages among freelancers who have used IBM i in their recent projects are German (100%), English (93%), and French (26%).
The most common industries among freelancers who have used IBM i in their recent projects are Information Technology (77%), Manufacturing (68%), and Banking and Finance (59%).
The most common business areas among freelancers who have used IBM i in their recent projects are Project Management (86%), Information Technology (83%), and Operations (68%).
Main locations of FRATCH Experts, who have recently used IBM i
Our freelancers and interim experts are at home all over Germany — available on-site in Berlin, Hamburg, Munich and every major business hub, or fully remote. Choose a city to discover matched specialists, local market insights and up-to-date availability.
Across Switzerland our specialists are active in Zurich, Geneva, Basel and Bern — working on-site or fully remote. Choose a city to discover matched specialists, local market insights and up-to-date availability.
Countries:
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