IDUG NA 2026: Full Schedule

10:20am EDT

C1 | Growing the Next Generation of Db2 Professionals: Frameworks for the Future

Monday October 26, 2026 10:20am - 11:20am EDT

Organizations running Db2 increasingly face a shortage of experienced administrators while environments grow more complex. This session explores a structured approach to developing new Db2 professionals using guided learning, hands-on labs, and coaching from experienced practitioners. We’ll share lessons learned from building scalable training models that accelerate time-to-productivity for new Db2 administrators.

Speakers

Mark Bylok

IBM Systems Tech Training Manager, IBM

Mark Bylok leads IBM Systems Training programs focused on developing technical skills for enterprise platforms including IBM Z, Power, and Storage. His work centers on building scalable learning paths, hands-on labs, and mentorship models that accelerate the development of new system... Read More →

Shelly Meierarend

IBM Z and LinuxONE Client & University Academic Global Skills Leader, IBM

Monday October 26, 2026 10:20am - 11:20am EDT
Magnificent 4

Track C, Special Interest Group

Audience All
Subject z/OS
Area User Stories

11:30am EDT

C2 | A 50 Cent tour of DB2

Monday October 26, 2026 11:30am - 12:30pm EDT

Magnificent 4

With fewer schools teaching DB2 for z/OS, it often falls on the DBAs to provide instruction for the programming staff. This is a very basic introduction to DB2 concepts and vocabulary, aimed at the novice user of DB2, or anyone who must train novice users.

Speakers

Mark McNary

DBA, umb bank n.a.uu

I have been working with DB2 since 1989 in a variety of positions, from heads-down development, to systems design to database design and DBA work. . I love to talk about databases in general, and especially DB2. I also have extensive experience with Oracle, SQL Server, and Sybase... Read More →

Monday October 26, 2026 11:30am - 12:30pm EDT
Magnificent 4

Track C, Technical Session

Audience All
Subject z/OS
Area Back to Basics, User Stories

11:30am EDT

D2 | Db2 Practically Speaking: 40 Years in the Trenches

Monday October 26, 2026 11:30am - 12:30pm EDT

Magnificent 5

In this engaging and experience-rich session, Craig Mullins shares hard-earned lessons from four decades working with Db2 in real-world environments. The session goes beyond theory to explore what actually works—and what doesn’t—when managing, tuning, and evolving mission-critical Db2 systems and applications. Drawing on stories from the field, Craig highlights key pitfalls, performance insights, and practical strategies that have stood the test of time, offering attendees actionable guidance they can apply immediately in today’s complex data landscape.
In essense, this session is a walkthrough of things I have learned throughout my career as a developer, a DBA, an industry analyst, and a consultant. It will discuss best practices and experiences with an eye toward offering practical advice for all Db2 practitioners.

Speakers

Craig Mullins

Principal Consultant, Mullins Consulting, Inc.

Craig S. Mullins is a data management strategist, researcher, and consultant with over four decades of experience with database systems. He is president and principal consultant of Mullins Consulting, Inc. focusing on mainframe, data, and database issues. He has worked with Db2 since... Read More →

Monday October 26, 2026 11:30am - 12:30pm EDT
Magnificent 5

Track D, Technical Session

Audience All
Subject z/OS
Area Best Practices, Performance and Monitoring, User Stories, Working with SQL

11:30am EDT

E2 | Conversations with IBM Bob On Database Modernisation

Monday October 26, 2026 11:30am - 12:30pm EDT

Magnificent 6

IBM Bob makes a huge difference to understanding, modernising and administering systems developed with Db2 (both LUW and z/OS) as the underlying database. I will talk about my real-world experiences bringing IBM Bob into my workflow and the benefits it made in terms of efficiency and quality of the outcomes. I will also explain why I turned from an AI sceptic to enthusiast once I got hold of the right tools.
After struggling to get value out of other AI assistants when modernising and administering Db2 applications (both LUW and z/OS), I turned to IBM Bob when it became available. Having become an "AI assistant cynic" I quickly became a real enthusiast. IBM Bob understands the technology I am working with and provides real value, but in a way that leaves me always in control. This presentation describes my journey from initial experimentation to real world business value. I'll describe how IBM Bob facilitated system understanding, assisted with structural change and application modernisation.

Speakers

Philip Nelson

Senior Database Software Engineer, Lloyds Banking Group / ScotDB Limited

Philip Nelson has worked with Db2 since 1989. He likes to explore new functionality and is always exploring new techniques for enhancing Db2 usage. He is a frequent presenter at IDUG and has also supported IDUG in many other ways, including the IDUG EMEA CPC and the Content Commi... Read More →

Monday October 26, 2026 11:30am - 12:30pm EDT
Magnificent 6

Track E, Technical Session

Audience All
Subject Cross Platform
Area Modernization in Development, User Stories

2:00pm EDT

C3 | Challenges for the Successful Db2 13 Lock Structure Async Duplex Implementation at Itaú Unibanco

Monday October 26, 2026 2:00pm - 3:00pm EDT

Magnificent 4

Ensuring high availability and resilience is a core requirement for modern enterprise data platforms. In Db2 Data Sharing environments, lock structures are a fundamental component for maintaining system stability and consistent performance under continuous, mission-critical workloads.
At Itaú Unibanco S.A., Db2 for z/OS supports essential banking applications operating 24x7, across transactional and batch workloads in a large-scale production environment. As part of its ongoing resilience and architecture evolution strategy, Itaú adopted the Db2 Lock Structure Asynchronous Duplex capability.
This implementation strengthened the platform’s resilience posture by increasing fault tolerance, enhancing operational continuity during infrastructure maintenance, and reinforcing overall system stability.
In this presentation, specialists from Itaú and IBM share practical insights from the initiative, including architectural motivations, implementation considerations, testing approaches, and results achieved. The discussion highlights how close collaboration between client and vendor supported the successful adoption of advanced Db2 z/OS capabilities in a complex enterprise environment.

Speakers

Paulo Rogério Petrachini

Db2 z/OS Specialist, Banco Itaú Unibanco S.A.

Paulo Rogério Petrachini has worked with Db2 z/OS for over 30 years, acting both as a Systems Programmer and DBA in large private banks in Brazil, which have complex and heavy Db2 mission-critical workloads processing in data-sharing groups.

José Eduardo Pol

IBM Certified Expert Technical Specialist & IBM Premium Support, IBM Brasil

José Eduardo Pol, is a consulting IT specialist certificated, with over 30 years of experience working at IBM Brazil supporting clients in a variety of subject in Db2 for z/OS area. Currently works as Db2 for z/OS IBM Premium Support for a large Bank in Brazil acting as focal point... Read More →

Monday October 26, 2026 2:00pm - 3:00pm EDT
Magnificent 4

Track C, Technical Session

Audience All
Subject z/OS
Area Database Resiliency, User Stories

3:20pm EDT

A4 | JC Greatest Hits, War Stories and Best Practice 2026

Monday October 26, 2026 3:20pm - 4:20pm EDT

Magnificent 3

This session will share experience from client studies and engagements: sharing proven recommended best practice; learning good, bad and ugly; providing answers ti important, frqeeunt or difficuly questions. This session will cover the following topics: Complacency about component failure and ability to absorb workload failover in a dat asharing environment; missed opportinity for elapsed time performance improvementnfor skip sequnetial batch processing; misteps in evaluating the performance benenfit of CICS-Db2 thread reuse and RELEASE(DEALLOCATE); SQL coding to avoid update anomaly when using cursor stability isolation; misadventures when using High Performance DBATs;monitoring WLM policy achievement; options for mass data recovery following logical data recovery and data loss; performance issue with remote DDF batch workload; tuning ogf GBPs; thorough Disaster Restart testing.

Speakers

John Campbell

Distinguished Technical Consultant, Broadcom

John is an IBM Alumni, a retired IBM Distinguished Engineer, and now works as a Distinguished Technical Consultant for Broadcom Inc. He has worked with Db2 for z/OS for over 40 years and has extensive experience with Db2 in terms of systems, database and application design. He specialises... Read More →

Monday October 26, 2026 3:20pm - 4:20pm EDT
Magnificent 3

Track A, Technical Session

Audience All
Subject z/OS
Area Best Practices, Database Resiliency, Latest and Features z/OS, Performance and Monitoring, User Stories

4:30pm EDT

F5 | You should concentrate (your literals) - Dynamic SQL performance tips

Monday October 26, 2026 4:30pm - 5:30pm EDT

Magnificent 7

In today's world, dynamic SQL usage is on the rise.The presentation will show ways to enhance dynamic SQL performance,Focusing on CSWL feature with actual big savings achieved.Skeleton:Dynamic vs static SQL Literals vs parameter markersDSC Cost vs benefit LimitationsCSWL How does it work Cost vs benefit Where can I use it Real life savings from mataf Limitations Should I use it globally?

Speakers

Shay Miller

DBA, FIBI

I'm a DBA of DB2 for zOS for 25 years, both system DBA and application DBA.I've worked as a DBA in the IDF and for the last 18 years in FIBI.
I've attended IDUG EMEA 2015 at Dublin.I've attended and presented a session in IDUG NA 2024 at Charlotte.
I hold the following IBM certif... Read More →

Monday October 26, 2026 4:30pm - 5:30pm EDT
Magnificent 7

Track F, Technical Session

Audience All
Subject z/OS
Area AppDev, Best Practices, Latest and Features z/OS, Performance and Monitoring, User Stories, Working with SQL

10:20am EDT

C6 | Mining db2mon

Tuesday October 27, 2026 10:20am - 11:20am EDT

Magnificent 4

The folks at the Db2 Lab provide us with a great tool to monitor Db2. It's free and already installed with Db2. This session will show you how db2mon works and how to use it. Then, we'll discuss how to run it in different ways for different use cases. Next, we'll present a way to run db2mon for historical data gathering and trend analysis. Finally, we'll show examples of the data db2mon provides and what to look for in various performance scenarios.

Speakers

Ken Shaffer

Db2 Consultant, Aerodata, Inc.

Ken has been a Db2 Consultant for over 20 years, specializing in LUW systems. He has worked on a variety of large databases for large corporate and government clients. Most of these projects have involved deploying and supporting mission-critical applications where constant availability... Read More →

Tuesday October 27, 2026 10:20am - 11:20am EDT
Magnificent 4

Track C, Technical Session

Audience All
Subject LUW
Area Best Practices, Performance and Monitoring, User Stories, Utilities

11:30am EDT

D7 | Why UTS Conversion Can’t Wait Anymore

Tuesday October 27, 2026 11:30am - 12:30pm EDT

Magnificent 5

The future of Db2 for z/OS is Universal Table Spaces (UTS) with IBM signaling that the next version of Db2 will no longer support legacy structures.
At the same time, Db2 itself is evolving toward UTS, with catalog and directory objects already being prepared for conversion through future Db2 13 function levels—reinforcing that UTS is the long-term foundation of the platform.
Despite this, many environments continue to delay conversion. The result is growing data volumes, increased complexity, and higher risk when the transition eventually becomes unavoidable.
This session focuses on why UTS conversion is essential. Beyond the “why,” we will dive into the “how”—sharing real-world examples of conversion failures and lessons learned from the field.

Speakers

Rahul Bajaj

Software Engineer, Broadcom

Rahul is a Db2 for z/OS professional at Broadcom Inc., working as part of the Db2 tools development team. His work focuses on supporting and evolving database management solutions that power critical enterprise systems.

Sreenivas Javvaji

Software Engineer, Broadcom

Sreenivas Javvaji is an experienced mainframe professional specializing in Db2 for z/OS at Broadcom. As an R&D Engineer, he focuses on the maintenance and optimization of Broadcom Database Management Solutions, helping global enterprise customers ensure the stability and performance... Read More →

Tuesday October 27, 2026 11:30am - 12:30pm EDT
Magnificent 5

Track D, Technical Session

Audience Intermediate
Subject z/OS
Area Best Practices, User Stories

4:30pm EDT

B9 | Db2: Explain EXPLAIN

Tuesday October 27, 2026 4:30pm - 5:30pm EDT

Magnificent 1

Technical details to Db2 LUW usage and optimization of queries
There are many sessions about the EXPLAIN facility in Db2 LUW, but they all lack the concise statements to find the right SQL queries, set everything up, do the EXPLAIN and draw the right conclusions by examples and working statements to copy-and-paste.This is a back-to-basics session, enhanced with experiences from real situations and best practices.This session was presented at IDUG NA 2025 in Atlanta. It was in the Top10 of the user sessions. I will update the material to version 12.1 and preferrably include details regaring AI optimizer

Speakers

Roland Schock

Principal, tasdevil Consulting

Roland is installing, using and tuning Db2 on distributed since 1993 or Version 2.1 for OS/2. After working for 25+ years for ARS Computer und Consulting GmbH as a Db2 expert he is now an independent consultant.His expertise and engagement for the community allowed him to be IBM Champion... Read More →

Tuesday October 27, 2026 4:30pm - 5:30pm EDT
Magnificent 1

Track B, Technical Session

Audience All
Subject LUW
Area Back to Basics, Best Practices, User Stories, Working with SQL

4:30pm EDT

D9 | Db2 DDF and DBATs and Connections re-explained from a user perspective

Tuesday October 27, 2026 4:30pm - 5:30pm EDT

Magnificent 5

Distributed client applications (from a server) are the most important and common of new workload using Db2 Z.
There are many concepts and terms thrown around which we often too often gloss over without a complete understanding.
This presentation will re-explain basic terms from my user perspective plus share some experiences learned (the hard way?) over recent years.
This presentation covers THREADS and DBATS and CONNECTION. What they mean and how they work and what our Db2 can tell us about their usage and importance.

Speakers

Brian Laube

Db2 DBA, Manulife Financial

Brian Laube is an application DBA for Db2 Z working for Manulife Financial in Canada. Brian has experience with performance monitoring, SQL, application developement, security and everything else in the mainframe world.
Brian has been an IBM Champion since 2017. Brian is one of the directors of the Central Canada Db2 User Group which still holds an annual TWO day in-person user-group event! Brian Laube has presented at many IDUG conferences since 2015 in both NA and EMA. Brian is a volunteer with... Read More →

Tuesday October 27, 2026 4:30pm - 5:30pm EDT
Magnificent 5

Track D, Technical Session

Audience All
Subject z/OS
Area AppDev, Back to Basics, Performance and Monitoring, User Stories

4:30pm EDT

E9 | Basic Automation, Or, How To Make The Database Do Your Job For You

Tuesday October 27, 2026 4:30pm - 5:30pm EDT

Magnificent 6

In today’s busy environment, there is a lot of pressure to automate as much as possible. To that end, and lacking AI tools to do my job, I have come up with a few shortcuts that allow me to automate some normally onerous tasks. In this presentation, I will describe and document some tasks I have automated in my shop. Hopefully some of this will prove useful.

Speakers

Mark McNary

DBA, umb bank n.a.uu

Tuesday October 27, 2026 4:30pm - 5:30pm EDT
Magnificent 6

Track E, Technical Session

Audience All
Subject z/OS
Area Automation, Back to Basics, User Stories

10:20am EDT

A10 | Revisiting Parallelism: Targeted Use of zIIP Processors for Db2 Queries

Wednesday October 28, 2026 10:20am - 11:20am EDT

Magnificent 3

This presentation explores the nuances of query parallelism in Db2, focusing on how to effectively tune queries for optimal zIIP exploitation. Attendees will gain insights through real-world query examples, highlighting the critical distinction of query access paths between iterative and merge strategies that are key to achieving successful query parallelism. Practical use cases will illustrate these principles in action, showcasing tangible improvements. Additionally, we will discuss how ChatGPT can assist in the query tuning processs. Join us to rediscover the power of parallelism and leverage zIIP processors to their fullest potential.

Speakers

Thomas Baumann

Data Evangelist, Swiss Mobiliar

As Data Evangelist at Swiss Mobiliar in Bern, Switzerland, Thomas is dedicated to optimizing databases and managing database risks. When he's not in the office, he can be found sharing his expertise on database optimization and risk management at various speaking engagements. Thomas... Read More →

Wednesday October 28, 2026 10:20am - 11:20am EDT
Magnificent 3

Track A, Technical Session

Audience All
Subject z/OS
Area Best Practices, Performance and Monitoring, User Stories, Working with SQL

10:20am EDT

B10 | Hard Lessons Learned with High Performance DBATs for Db2 for z/OS

Wednesday October 28, 2026 10:20am - 11:20am EDT

Magnificent 1

High Performance DBATs (HP DBATS) is a very important performance feature of Db2 for DDF workloads. If applied and used intelligently this feature can generate significant savings in CPU resource consumption. This session will cover the following topics: what is a connection?; what is a DBAT (THREAD)?; thread (DBAT) pooling and DRDA inactive connections; what are High Performance DBATs; good candidate application workloads for High Performance DBATs; general guidance for configuring High Performance DBATs; performance metrics and monitoring; WLM and High Performance DBATs; Issues; Summary.

Speakers

John Campbell

Distinguished Technical Consultant, Broadcom

Wednesday October 28, 2026 10:20am - 11:20am EDT
Magnificent 1

Track B, Technical Session

Audience All
Subject z/OS
Area Best Practices, Performance and Monitoring, User Stories

11:30am EDT

A11 | RTS-/Utility History and preparations for Vnext

Wednesday October 28, 2026 11:30am - 12:30pm EDT

Magnificent 3

This presentation will cover how to benefit from using Real Time Statistic (RTS) and Utility History. I will explain a useful established example of Real Time Statistic History, share which usecases are covered by RTS History and why RTS Temporal out of the box is not sufficient for everyone.
Second part will share some necessary preparations for Vnext and will cover one path and best practices to get rid of deprecated non-UTS tablespaces, what to consider and why utility history is really helpful. It will give some early experiences on FL509 support to migrate remaining Catalog&Directory tablespaces. Relevant topics like “workfile separation” will be covered as well.

Speakers

Ute Kleyensteuber

Principal Product Owner, Commerzbank AG

Ute Kleyensteuber is a Principal Product Owner, Senior Infrastructure Engineer and Director at Commerzbank AG in Germany, responsible for Db2 for z/OS since more than 35 years. Knowing and working with Db2 since Version 1.2 I've extensive experiences of Db2 in terms of system- and... Read More →

Wednesday October 28, 2026 11:30am - 12:30pm EDT
Magnificent 3

Track A, Technical Session

Audience All
Subject z/OS
Area Best Practices, Latest and Features z/OS, User Stories

2:00pm EDT

C12 | Efficiently Finding and Fixing High Resource Consuming SQL

Wednesday October 28, 2026 2:00pm - 3:00pm EDT

Magnificent 4

This presentation will demonstrate how to find, analyze and tune the top 40 expensive queries. Special emphasis will be on finding the cursors that could benefit from multi-row fetch. In addition, discussions on designing perfect indexes, MQTs and AQTs, along with manual query rewrite, SQL exploitation and most important, proper use.

Speakers

Sheryl Larsen

President, Sheryl M Larsen LLC

Sheryl Larsen is an internationally recognized researcher, consultant and lecturer, specializing in DB2 and is known for her extensive expertise in SQL. Sheryl has over 30 years’ experience in DB2, has published many articles, several popular DB2 posters, and co-authored a book... Read More →

Wednesday October 28, 2026 2:00pm - 3:00pm EDT
Magnificent 4

Track C, Technical Session

Audience All
Subject z/OS
Area AppDev, Back to Basics, Best Practices, Latest and Features z/OS, Modernization in Development, User Stories, Working with SQL

9:00am EDT

F14 | No-Outage Db2 Version Upgrade

Thursday October 29, 2026 9:00am - 10:00am EDT

Magnificent 7

This session should be considered because it addresses a high-value challenge for Db2 customers: performing a version upgrade with little to no application outage while preserving a reliable backout path. Based on real production experience, it covers failed upgrade scenarios, post-upgrade risk, and the operational realities of switching active workloads across versions and hardware. Rather than staying conceptual, it presents a practical, repeatable approach using Q Replication and Automatic Client Reroute (ACR), along with lessons learned on synchronization, clustered cutover behavior, and risk reduction. Attendees will leave with actionable ideas they can apply in their own environments.
This session presents a practical approach for performing a no-outage Db2 version upgrade using Q Replication and Automatic Client Reroute (ACR). It explains the drivers behind the solution, including online upgrade capabilities in competing platforms, prior failed upgrade attempts, and the need for a reliable backout strategy. The session then walks through replication setup, synchronization of an active source to the target, online cutover steps, and operational challenges in clustered environments. Attendees will learn how to move from an older Db2 version to a newer one with minimal disruption and lower upgrade risk.

Speakers

Kedar Shetye

Principal Technology Engineer, Norfolk Southern

Kedar Shetye is a Principal Technology Engineer and database professional with over 20 years of experience in enterprise database technologies. His expertise includes IBM Db2 LUW, PostgreSQL, CockroachDB, and Cassandra, with a focus on high availability, disaster recovery, performance... Read More →

Samer Bashir

Principal Technology Engineer, Norfolk Southern

Samer Bashir is a database professional with more than 25 years of experience across enterprise database platforms, including Sybase, IBM Db2, Oracle, Cassandra, and CockroachDB. He specializes in replication technologies such as IBM Q Replication and Change Data Capture (CDC), with... Read More →

Thursday October 29, 2026 9:00am - 10:00am EDT
Magnificent 7

Track F, Technical Session

Audience Intermediate
Subject LUW
Area Best Practices, Database Resiliency, User Stories

10:20am EDT

D15 | Db2 Z and the CIA

Thursday October 29, 2026 10:20am - 11:20am EDT

Magnificent 5

Db2 Z and the CIA is a powerful informational combination. To be clear, the CIA is the Compliance Information Analysis product available for free to many users of Db2 Z (if you have Broadcom products). Broadcom introduced the CIA as a subproduct of ACF2. It is now an independent product available to most users of their products. The CIA provides a series of Db2 tables that can contain all the information from your external-security-manager (ESM), whether it is ACF2, RACF, or TopSecret. Once your ESM is loaded into the CIA, it is relatively more accessible to the curious end-user! SQL SELECT can be used to easily build interesting and useful and focused reports about your security configuration. This presentation will go over the basics of mainframe security and the basics of the CIA and how to build and populate. Finally, interesting CIA tables and views (and sample SELECTs) will be highlighted to show why it is useful.

Speakers

Brian Laube

Db2 DBA, Manulife Financial

Thursday October 29, 2026 10:20am - 11:20am EDT
Magnificent 5

Track D, Technical Session

Audience All
Subject z/OS
Area Back to Basics, Best Practices, Security and Compliance, User Stories, Working with SQL

11:30am EDT

A16 | Wowe Zowe...APIs not AIs

Thursday October 29, 2026 11:30am - 12:30pm EDT

Magnificent 3

I have a passion for all things mainframe especially Db2 for z/OS.
I like to tell non-technical folks what I do is make the mainframe & its databases a little easier to work with—and maybe a little less intimidating for the next generation of users.”
“honestly—when people hear ‘mainframe,’ they don’t always think modern, developer-friendly, and easy to integrate with.
But that’s exactly what we’re going to challenge today.”
“What I’m hoping to show you is that modernization isn’t about replacing the mainframe—it’s about unlocking more value from it, making it easier to use, and integrating it seamlessly into how we already build and deliver applications today.”
“So whether you’re deeply familiar with the platform, or just curious about how it fits into a modern development lifecycle—there should be something useful here for you.”

Speakers

Chris Muncan

Lead Mainframe DBA, Sun Life

I started my career by accident by saying I want to learn COBOL as a fresh college graduate. Best mistake of my life. Now nearly 20 years on the mainframe with the first 10 years as a COBOL/CICS/Db2 developer and fell in love with Db2 and worked with Db2 since V9.

I am an Infrastructure DBA working on Db2 for z/OS at Sun Life Financial, a global insurance provider., Main responsibilities are taking the Db2 DBA space to the next level by exploiting the capabilities of current tools along with adopting new modern technology & tooling such as... Read More →

Thursday October 29, 2026 11:30am - 12:30pm EDT
Magnificent 3

Track A, Technical Session

Audience All
Subject z/OS
Area AI GenAI and Machine Learning, Automation, Modernization in Development, Modernization in Operations, User Stories

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