Torrie McLaughlin

Torrie excitedly recalls, “I listened to a welcome presentation given by the department head on what a mainframe career could provide, and it hit everything I needed, so I decided to jump in.” Key points from that presentation which stood out to Torrie were the higher-than-average salary and a wide range of disciplines spread across many industries. As she pursued her mainframe learning journey, the path was sometimes challenging yet very fulfilling. “I actually got a C in my first COBOL programming class. I got frustrated, but I stuck with it, and I told myself I could do it.” With the encouragement of her professor, Torrie got an A in her next COBOL class. She says everything snowballed from there.

Living the dream

Torrie was hired at a large financial institution even before she graduated. She went into an internship program with their mainframe engineering team. “Being put on call was, by far, one of the scariest things–that first phone call at two o’clock in the morning when there’s a problem, and you have to fix it. But these were all learning opportunities for me, and I continued to grow. And now, I’m in a position where I never expected to be, and I feel like things are just getting started.”

Today, Torrie works for ATPCO–the airline industry's primary source for airline merchandising and pricing data. She is responsible for the automation required to process tens of millions of data record updates within a 15-minute window every hour. She is also responsible for ensuring the mainframe that processes these records performs efficiently in a cost-effective manner.

All in a day’s work

Torrie creates and updates scripts that are used to process and transmit data to and for customers. She also coordinates system updates and assists in problem diagnosis and remediation – troubleshooting is a big part of her job. As a ‘newer’ team member, Torrie found that asking a lot of questions helped her find new and efficient ways to do things and she is always looking for ways to help the system run more efficiently. For any new system components that they’re applying or installing, she looks at how those are interacting with the system to ensure optimization. This curiosity and passion for learning led her to train and mentor other people on how to use the new components.

What she enjoys the most about her work is the community of people she gets to work with and the variety of tasks she gets to do, knowing how critical they are to her company’s business and ecosystem.

What she loves about the Mainframe

The IBM Z® mainframe provides the performance and security that her company’s data-driven enterprise requires. “In May 2024, our mainframe processed more than half a billion updates to the airline merchandising and pricing data and transmitted the necessary information to more than 400 airlines worldwide.”

Torrie knows that the same holds true across many industries. She says that in a world where data volumes are increasing exponentially, the mainframe is the one platform that can process large amounts of data with speed, accuracy, and dependability. Mainframes offer near zero downtime, various data encryption options, and AI capabilities on the processor.

Words of wisdom

For anyone starting a career in mainframe, Torrie recommends the IBM Z Xplore learning platform, as well as the New to IBM Z User Group. They provide information, resources and education on what the mainframe is, how mainframe technology powers the world’s economy, and the different career paths you can take. Then from there, you have access to industry-recognized digital badges, apprenticeships, internships, and various other avenues to help pave the pathway to a career in mainframe.

“A mainframe career path is full of opportunity and options. Most companies you work for will need you to have general knowledge of many mainframe subjects and expert knowledge of a few. You should be willing to pivot to meet the business needs of your team and company.”

“If I could go back and say something to myself, or to somebody who’s in the process right now, it’s to stick with it. You can be frustrated, but don’t let that stop you because every failed attempt is a learning opportunity. Just keep going; don’t stop.”