Jim Merchant Email & Phone Number

Columbus, Ohio, United States

Employed the Agile /iteration development methodology to enable Nationwide to achieve CMMI Level 3 certification.Developed system design documents from client requirements, and produced specific test plans to test new system functionalities and features using the Matrix Tracking method. Participated in over 40 projects ranging from Rate Changes, and Compliance updates, to the addition new functionalityPlayed a major role in the creation new Insurance features such as Vanishing Deductibles, Road Side Assistance, and New Car ReplacementTook the initiative to create a set of development utility applications using REXX and ISPF Dialogue to aid our development staff. I also created the corresponding documentation, and conducted training classes of 20+ people to enable our development team to use the new software. This system saved Nationwide some 40 man hours per week, (approx. $6,000 per month).EnvironmentCOBOL/ COBOL LE; IMS; VSAM; OS/ 390 JCL; REXX / ISPF, FILE-AID; FAULT ANALYSER; CHANGEMAN; QUALITY CENTER; ABEND-AID; IBM-DEBUG; SYN-SORT

As part of the Quality Service group, I worked closely with various testers to provide valid test data for specific projects. I wrote complex SQL queries based on specific account criteria supplied by the numerous testing groups. Later, I worked closely with other development specialists to create an automated system using REXX & ISPF panels to pull the account information from the databases, and supply it to our clients.

Huntington Bank As a developer on the Unizan bank conversion, I gained extensive experience working with batch DB2 and Easy-Trieve. I also handled documenting the entire conversion process (including all software development). I also worked with Strobe (windows version).

I performed a leading role in the conversion to and upgrades to the Advanced Loan System (ALS) from Fidelity software. These upgrades have promoted significant growth in Bank One's loan portfolio by accelerating the delivery of new products to the market. I also have led a small team of technical analysts that handled packaging accounts for bank branch sells. As part of this project, I automated the process for creating extract account files thus accelerating the ability of the bank to sell off branches more quickly. Other project experience include leading the effort to upgrade our previous system to the new standard version of COBOL (COBOL 370), and several coordinated tests of our disaster recovery and archive procedures. In addition, I have also taught courses on File-Aid and Xpeditor

As a host programmer, I maintained the mainframe CICS piece of Bank One's client server teller system. I participated in the design, development, and delivery of 2 different releases of the Teller system. These accomplishments gave the system the ability to readily expand and adapt to the bank's changing business needs. My responsibilities also included maintenance to our batch system, and our in-house system tools (REXX PROCS) as well. I also lead the project to implement MQSeries for remote access and communication. I acquired valuable experience with on-line system design, development, testing, implementation and documentation.

As part of the conversion services team, I developed, tested, and maintained conversion software for over 14 System Conversions. During this time I worked with 7 different banking systems including Checking, Savings, CDs/IRAs, and Account Analysis. These efforts enabled Bank One to assimilate many redundant systems, and saved the corporation over $ 10 million. During this time, I led a team charged with upgrading and improving the department's internal audit controls. I was also a member of the Conversion Standards Committee which monitored the overall performance of the department.

As a technical consultant I was assigned to Bank One where I worked in the Conversion Services area. Responsibilities included writing conversion software, and constructing jobs to perform parallel systems test to insure the accuracy of each conversion. I learned to work closely with many different people from different backgrounds. We became a close knit team, and did an extraordinary amount of work in a short period of time. I acquired the ability to adapt and learn new applications quickly.

I was responsible for support and upgrades for both batch, and on-line programs for a variety of systems including Point-of-Sale, Inventory Management, Retail Store Operations, and Sales Tracking. This enabled me to develop and maintained several IDMS on-line applications through the use of IDMS' prototype' tools, as well as various CICS applications. The high quality of our work was reflected in the fact that the corporation singled out our department for several achievement awards in the area of service to our clients. The work was very intense, but it provided a great opportunity to learn good coding, and de-bugging techniques. I also gained a good working knowledge of VSAM files, sort techniques, JCL set up and CICS internals.

Aa, Computer Science

Ba, Russian

Activities and Societies: Member Slavic Honor SocietyAttended Pushkin Institute in Moscow USSR as part of study program while at OSU

Russian

Activities and Societies: a study tour at the Pushkin Institute of the Russian Language sponsored by The Ohio State University