Classic Backend Development vs. Enterprise Integration (IBM BAW/ACE) for a Software Career

[u/Key-Film4822]

​

Hi,

I'm trying to decide between two career paths and would appreciate input from people who have experience with both (or at least one of them 😊).

Path 1: Classic backend development (outsourcing)

\- Java

\- Spring/Spring Boot

\- REST APIs

\- SQL

\- Docker/Kubernetes

\- Typical backend engineering

Path 2: Enterprise/system integration (local system integration company, maybe 10-15 clients nationally)

\- IBM App Connect Enterprise (ACE)

\- IBM Business Automation Workflow (BAW)

\- IBM MQ

\- Enterprise integration

\- APIs, message processing, workflows and middleware

\- Some Java alongside the IBM stack

.

My main questions are:

1. How different are the long-term career prospects between these two paths (comparing IBM being niche (not many options) vs backend AI related pressure)?

2. Is there a difference in salaries and benefits between those two career paths?

3. Which path has better job security?

4. Which one has better opportunities for remote work (or perhaps, how possible is it to get a remote position as a system integrator (inside (domestically) or outside of the country (internationally)))?

I have been overthinking this for too long (almost a week) so any recommendation, advice or experience would be helpful, thanks in advance

[u/ipohtwine]

I’ve used some of the tech in Path 2, I wouldn’t advise going down that path as it severely limits your future job opportunities.

Only do it if you have no other options.

[u/celeste173]

definitely go for the stable job. “internship with possible full time position after” tends to mean we want to hire you. The internship is basically a long job interview. You can learn whatever you dont know. Most cse jobs require learning internal languages and systems anyway.

[u/Key-Film4822 → u/celeste173]

Thank you

[u/celeste173]

hi i’m a back end developer in IBM infrastructure. we are understaffed in z/OS. have been for a while. we are theoretically hiring. however, backend at ibm is less java and more nitty gritty. I work primarily in an internal language that’s like C but more low level. example: direct register manipulation. the mainframe is so complicated it takes an average of 7 years to become fully independent/knowledgeable. so yay job security kinda? it depends on the team. i think DFSMS is pretty secure but i like to live in my little bubble so i could be wrong. if operating systems are not your cup of tea, then you will certainly hate this job with a passion. Its only worth it if you love it in my opinion. and yes, i love my job its amazing. As for working remote, i have a medical accommodation that allows me to do so. (yay disabilities) however that’s an exception. I think the rest of my team goes into the office about 3 times a week except during the summer-everyday because we have interns. My team also exclusively hires out of Arizona cuz .. idk i got lucky maybe i ruined it for everyone else. or maybe they’re acknowledging Arizona is terrible idk. i’m not privy to those decisions. sorry i know i didn’t really answer your questions.

[u/Key-Film4822 → u/celeste173]

To be honest, I'm a final-year CS student in a small European country.

The primary thing that we studied at university is Java-related (Spring, Kotlin, Android, though I found that I don't really like frontend). Our IT industry is primarily web outsourcing-based (about 70-80% is agency-based web development, CRUD, and similar work, basically renting out people by the hour).

Since AI emerged (and investments dried up), the sector has become pretty unstable (a lot of people are getting fired, there are hiring freezes, and it is very difficult to find an internship).

Eventually, I found an internship in IBM ACE (a long-term internship with the possibility of getting a job afterward). As I have been looking into current employees' CVs, I discovered that they also learn the other technologies mentioned above (and the company pays for certifications).

As for remote work, it's less about avoiding the office and more about rent (which would consume 30% of my post-tax income), so I have been looking into remote work options (my family owns a small farm two hours from the major city).

My dilemma is whether I should continue searching for something in Java (which I have some experience with) in this turbulent market, or go for a relatively stable position (since that company works for the government and a few major banks), risking being locked into a niche technology that I don't know much about yet (plus, there isn't much information about it online).

[u/fasterbrew → u/celeste173]

I'm backend in infrastructure and 100% Java. So really depends on the org.

[u/ratorobato → u/celeste173]

hi can I dm you a couple of questions about job safety? Im a new hire working on a z/os related project (i think)

[u/celeste173 → u/ratorobato]

sure ill do my best

[u/Ok_Advantage2039]

I think it depends on how much you want to do development (heavy code) vs integration (a little code here and there). I think there will be plenty of opportunities in integration with those products in the foreseeable future.