Reconsidering the Importance of the Mainframe, a Tech Field Day Extra at SHARE Delegate Roundtable

In this Tech Field Day Delegate Roundtable discussion led by Stephen Foskett at SHARE Kansas City 2024, the delegates explored the enduring relevance of mainframes in modern IT. Foskett initiated the conversation by questioning the necessity and continued importance of mainframes. The delegates highlighted that mainframes remain crucial for certain applications due to their unique qualities such as high security, performance, and reliability, which are essential for specific business needs like those of airlines and financial institutions. The discussion underscored that while mainframes are not suitable for all workloads, they are indispensable for tasks requiring millisecond response times and high transaction rates. The delegates also emphasized the importance of making decisions based on business requirements rather than technological trends, criticizing the industry’s tendency to adopt new technologies like Kubernetes or cloud solutions without fully considering their appropriateness. They pointed out that procurement decisions often prioritize cost over technical suitability, leading to suboptimal outcomes. The conversation also touched on the risks of centralization and the need for better alignment between technical and business teams to ensure the right platform is chosen for each application.