Middleware Application Support

Purpose of Job

We are seeking a highly skilled Middleware support engineer to join our EMEA Application Management team. The role will require supporting the IT applications and services that deliver the EOD and Intraday batch data encompassing trade data and payments. This role is critical in ensuring the service continuity and support of the Middleware applications, monitoring, workflow, reporting and control systems which utilise in-house and third-party vendor technology solutions. The ideal candidate will have extensive experience in application support, middleware support, strong analytical and engineering background, system upgrade management, maintenance and troubleshooting skills, and the ability to handle complex system and data integration support challenges. The candidate should also possess coordination skills to manage stakeholders in IT and non-IT areas involved in resolution of issues.

Key job functions of this role are:

Incident Management

1. Perform daily system checks to ensure all applications maintained by the Middleware team are fully operational.
2. Capture and log where appropriate all incidents arising from issues with the Middleware application stack.
3. Work closely with the wider Front and Back Office support team providing application support / Incident management for the application stack currently used by the Bank.

Change Enablement

1. For changes that are being applied to the applications supported, be aware and involved in the UAT phase to understand what is being changed and the quality of the changes being delivered.
2. Work closely with internal and vendor stakeholders when changes are being prepared.
3. Own the review of changes to ensure these are fit for deployment to Production and provide your feedback if there are any issues that need to be reviewed ensuring the integrity of the production environment in not impaired.
4. Represent at the relevant Change Advisory Board prior to promotion to production to confirm all required artifacts and details are included in the change record.
5. Undertake systems upgrades delivery management involving different IT resources.

Miscellaneous

1. In addition to the key focus on Compliance support, provide general Application Support across the Back Office application stack when required.
2. Be part of the team rota covering the professional day requirements to support the 07:00 – 18:00 shift patterns.
3. Undertaking other reasonable tasks at the discretion of the Head of Section and Group

Background

• The EMEA Application Management team plays a critical role within EMEA Technology and is responsible for ensuring the applications used by the business teams are operational and any incidents or queries with the applications can be investigated and the issues resolved. This function is responsible for ensuring all systems that are maintained throughout the working day and the systems ready for the end of day batches to start.
• The Middleware Application Support role will be key for ensuring that we have sufficient support available for the suite of middleware applications used by both the team and business teams. There will also be a requirement to cover and share in the support of other back-office applications that all combine to provide support for the Bankand various Business teams.
• The role will also work with the wider IT teams including infrastructure, development and where appropriate the project teams. This role is an expansion of the existing Application Management team, where the successful candidate will have a number of existing team members to work with when troubleshooting any incidents that are raised. There will also be an expectation to help cover other areas of support that are required at time to time within the team.

Accountabilities & Responsibilities

Key Stakeholders:

Engaging IT colleagues at all levels in EMEA to participate in and contribute to the successful delivery of support for the Front and Back Office.

Work with Third party management and Business Service Management to ensure IT Service Management processes align with wider organisational policies and procedures

• Responsible for providing first / second line support of Middleware applications. There will also be an expectation to cover other products and support issues as an when required.
• Responsible for providing valuable insight into how systems are performing and addressing any issues noted before they result in an impact for the business.
• Engaging IT colleagues at all levels in EMEA to participate in and contribute to the successful delivery of application support, maintenance and upgrades.
• The candidate would be expected to be in the office environment 2/3 days per week, with hybrid days working from home.
• No direct reports.
• No budget responsibility.
• Stay current with industry best practices, regulatory changes, and technological advancements in banking technology.
• Responsible for installing, patching and upgrading IBM MQ for the SMBC LN region.
• Planning and implementation of DR principles and procedures, this includes regular DR tests between London data centers.
• Daily monitoring of the IBM MQ estate (LN and NY) and ensuring that all components are running to required SLA’s.
• Daily monitoring of connectivity to/from external vendors.
• Incident resolution and providing responsive solutions and understanding RCA.
• Regular attendance to CAB to screen for potential upcoming threats to production.
• Planning and implementing security protocols including SSL and AD account/group management. This requires liaising closely with the IT Security team.
• Carry out all network management required to underpin the IBM MQ connectivity infrastructure. This includes firewall and routing management and therefore close collaboration with the network team.
• Install, support and maintain SFTP middleware to various external vendors.
• In addition to early morning monitoring, also provide regular 24x7 OOH support on a rota basis.
• Providing middleware standards and procedures for infrastructure and applications.
• Create and maintain documentation of all middleware systems used.

Knowledge, Skills, Experience & Qualifications

• Technical Knowledge:
• Experience and understanding of IT application support, with a focus on ITIL best practice.
• An understanding of Change management and the importance of why this needs to be delivered correctly.
• Exposure supporting SQL and Oracle based applications and basic SQL query abilities would be advantageous.
• Analytical Skills:
• Ability to analyse and troubleshoot issues and make informed decisions on how best to address and fix application or system failures, whilst following and adhering to the correct processes and policies.
• Deliver strong problem-solving skills and be able to provide recommendations and solutions for remediation or improvement.
• Must have an inquisitive mindset and enthusiasm to own issues and be confident to ask questions should the issue be more complex than initially thought.
• Day-to-day management of existing non-production environments.
• Working closely with the environment management team to provide new environments & services.
• Ensuring the stability of non-production environments.
• Communication Skills:
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to communicate information concisely and accurately in a manner that is appropriate to the audience.
• Meticulous attention to detail to ensure accurate delivery of application availability.
• Organisational Skills:
• Strong organisational skills and efficient time management to handle various responsibilities.
• Interpersonal Skills:
• Ability to work well with cross-functional teams and operate sensitively and effectively in a multicultural environment.
• Education:
• Bachelor’s degree in information technology, Computer Science, or a related field.
• Relevant certifications (e.g., ITILv4 Foundation) desirable but not essential
• Experience:
• Previous exposure to Application Support roles and or Change Management roles.
• Experience working in a large, complex organisation with a diverse IT environment.
• Tools and Software:
• Proficiency in ITSM software and tools (e.g., ServiceNow, BMC etc.)
• Desirable
• Certifications related to data management or cloud technologies.
• Experience with data warehousing and business intelligence tools.
• Familiarity with cloud-based data solutions and platforms (e.g., AWS, Azure).
• Work Environment
• Expected to be in the office 2 – 3 days a week.