Position: Senior JDA MMS Technical/Functional Consultant - IBM AS/400
Company: Confidential - Retail Consult.
Location: United States - Candidates Closer to Florida Preferred
Work Arrangement: Onsite when need for go-live.
Employment Type: C2C.
Experience Required: 15+ Years Overall; 10+ Years in JDA MMS
Core Technology: JDA MMS (Merchandise Management System), IBM AS/400 (IBM i)
Location: Candidates must be based in the United States. Proximity to Florida is preferred but is not identified as a mandatory requirement.
Overview
The Senior JDA MMS Technical/Functional Consultant will provide hands-on technical and functional expertise supporting an enterprise merchandise management environment built on JDA MMS and the IBM AS/400 platform.
This role requires a senior consultant who understands how JDA MMS supports merchandising and related business operations and who can investigate application issues, evaluate functional requirements, analyze underlying AS/400 technical components, and develop practical solutions.
The consultant will operate across both business and technology disciplines, translating business problems into technical investigation and resolution while maintaining an understanding of application dependencies, data flows, and operational impacts.
The organization is seeking two highly experienced consultants capable of contributing quickly in a specialized legacy enterprise application environment. Success will depend on demonstrated JDA MMS expertise, practical AS/400 problem-solving capability, and the ability to deliver reliable solutions with limited ramp-up time.
Purpose:
Apply deep JDA MMS and AS/400 expertise to help sustain and improve a business-critical merchandise management environment. Your work will support the stability of core business processes and the resolution of complex application challenges requiring specialized technical and functional knowledge.
Expand your influence as a senior subject-matter expert by addressing complex enterprise application issues, advising business and technology stakeholders, and helping strengthen the maintainability and supportability of an established merchandise management platform. The role offers opportunities to apply extensive experience to challenging problems that require both business-process understanding and hands-on technical investigation.
This opportunity is designed for an experienced consultant who enjoys solving difficult problems in mature enterprise systems and being recognized for specialized expertise. The consultant will have the opportunity to take ownership of complex JDA MMS issues, work across functional and technical teams, and deliver meaningful improvements rather than performing routine system administration alone.
Objectives
1. Rapidly Establish Technical and Functional Ownership of the JDA MMS Environment. Within the first 30-60 days, develop a working understanding of the client's JDA MMS implementation, IBM AS/400 environment, major business processes, interfaces, customizations, and current application challenges. Review available documentation, application components, operational procedures, and outstanding issues to identify critical dependencies and areas requiring attention. Work with business and technical stakeholders to prioritize problems and establish a practical approach for resolving assigned issues or delivering required enhancements. Success will be measured by the ability to independently analyze representative JDA MMS problems, explain their business and technical impacts, and begin delivering validated solutions within the initial engagement period.
2. Resolve Complex JDA MMS Application and AS/400 Technical Issues. Within the first 60-120 days, independently investigate and resolve assigned application defects, processing problems, data inconsistencies, and integration issues affecting the JDA MMS environment. Use knowledge of JDA MMS functionality and the underlying AS/400 technical stack to determine root causes and develop appropriate corrective actions. Coordinate with relevant stakeholders to validate proposed solutions, assess downstream impacts, and implement changes through approved processes. Success will be measured by successful resolution of priority issues, reduced recurrence of resolved defects, timely completion of assigned work, and minimal disruption to supported business operations.
3. Deliver Functional and Technical Enhancements to Merchandise Management Processes. Within the first 90-180 days, evaluate assigned business requirements and translate them into practical JDA MMS configuration, application, interface, or technical enhancement recommendations as appropriate to the existing environment. Assess the impact of proposed changes on related merchandising processes, application components, and dependent systems before implementation. Support the design, development, testing, and validation of approved enhancements while maintaining compatibility with the client's established AS/400 architecture. Success will be measured by delivery of agreed enhancements, successful business validation, controlled implementation, and achievement of the intended functional outcomes.
4. Improve Application Supportability and Strengthen Knowledge Transfer. Within the first 180 days, identify recurring application issues, technical dependencies, documentation gaps, and support practices that limit the efficiency or reliability of the JDA MMS environment. Develop practical recommendations and implement approved improvements to troubleshooting procedures, application documentation, operational knowledge, and recurring issue resolution. Share specialized JDA MMS and AS/400 knowledge with relevant business and technical stakeholders to reduce dependence on undocumented individual expertise. Success will be measured by improved issue-resolution consistency, useful technical and functional documentation, reduced recurrence of known problems, and greater stakeholder confidence in the supported environment.
Subtasks
1. Assess the Existing JDA MMS and AS/400 Environment. During the first 15-30 days, review the client's JDA MMS implementation, IBM AS/400 architecture, major application components, relevant business processes, integrations, and existing technical documentation. Identify critical application dependencies, known production issues, outstanding enhancement requirements, and gaps in functional or technical knowledge. Meet with relevant business and technology stakeholders to understand operating priorities and establish expectations for assigned work. Success will be measured by a documented environment assessment, a prioritized issue or enhancement backlog, and demonstrated understanding of the system's most important business and technical dependencies.
2. Analyze Business Processes and Translate Functional Requirements. During the first 30-60 days, work with business stakeholders to understand assigned merchandising-related processes, application behavior, and functional requirements. Analyze how JDA MMS currently supports these activities and identify gaps, defects, or enhancement opportunities requiring technical or functional intervention. Translate findings into clear functional specifications, technical investigation tasks, or proposed solution approaches appropriate to the existing application environment. Success will be measured by accurate requirements analysis, stakeholder agreement on expected outcomes, and reduced ambiguity before technical work begins.
3. Investigate and Resolve AS/400 and JDA MMS Technical Problems. During the first 30-90 days, independently investigate assigned JDA MMS application issues by analyzing relevant program behavior, processing logic, data conditions, interfaces, and AS/400 components. Determine root causes and develop corrective actions that address the underlying problem while considering impacts on dependent business processes. Validate solutions with appropriate technical and functional stakeholders before implementing changes through approved procedures. Success will be measured by successful resolution of priority defects, accurate root-cause identification, and reduced recurrence of corrected issues.
4. Design and Implement Approved Application Enhancements. During the first 60-120 days, translate approved functional requirements into practical technical solutions within the JDA MMS and AS/400 environment. Evaluate application dependencies, customization impacts, interface requirements, and data considerations before developing or coordinating implementation changes. Work with relevant development, application support, and business teams to ensure that enhancements are tested and introduced in a controlled manner. Success will be measured by successful delivery of assigned enhancements, completion of agreed testing, and achievement of expected business functionality.
5. Validate Business Processes, Data Integrity, and System Integration. During the first 90-150 days, support functional and technical validation of application changes, defect corrections, and relevant integrations. Develop or execute appropriate test scenarios to confirm that intended business processes operate correctly and that changes do not create unintended effects on related application functions or data. Collaborate with business users and technical teams to investigate failed tests and resolve issues before approved implementation. Success will be measured by successful completion of agreed validation scenarios, accurate processing outcomes, and reduced post-implementation defects.
6. Improve Operational Stability and Transfer Specialized Knowledge. During the first 120-180 days, identify recurring support issues, undocumented application dependencies, and opportunities to improve JDA MMS troubleshooting and operational procedures. Create or enhance practical documentation describing relevant business processes, technical components, recurring issues, resolution steps, and approved application changes. Share knowledge with appropriate support and technology stakeholders to strengthen continuity and reduce reliance on individual subject-matter experts. Success will be measured by usable documentation, improved support-team understanding, faster resolution of recurring issues, and greater operational consistency.
7. Continuously Evaluate and Integrate AI to Improve Performance. Within the first 90-180 days, take ownership of identifying how approved AI and automation tools can support or enhance the core responsibilities of this role. Evaluate opportunities to improve legacy application analysis, technical documentation, issue classification, requirements interpretation, test-case development, and troubleshooting of JDA MMS and AS/400-related problems. Lead appropriately scoped pilots and validate all AI-generated findings, technical recommendations, and documentation against actual application behavior and approved business requirements before adoption. Success will be measured by demonstrable improvements in analysis efficiency, documentation quality, troubleshooting effectiveness, or knowledge transfer without compromising confidentiality, system integrity, or professional judgment.
Critical Candidate Requirements
Extensive Enterprise Technology Experience: Minimum 15 years of overall professional experience, with demonstrated involvement in complex enterprise application environments.
Deep JDA MMS Expertise: Minimum 10 years of hands-on experience with JDA MMS, including meaningful technical and functional involvement in merchandise management processes and application support or enhancement work.
IBM AS/400 Technical Knowledge: Strong working knowledge of the AS/400 technical environment underlying JDA MMS. Candidates must be able to demonstrate practical technical investigation and problem-solving rather than general familiarity with the platform.
Technical and Functional Consulting: Ability to understand business requirements, analyze application behavior, investigate technical issues, and translate findings into workable solutions.
Enterprise Application Troubleshooting: Demonstrated success diagnosing complex application defects, processing issues, integration problems, or data inconsistencies within established enterprise systems.
Stakeholder Collaboration: Ability to work effectively with business users, application support teams, technical resources, and project stakeholders while explaining complex technical problems clearly.
