Senior Staff Software Engineer
Gerber Life Insurance Company
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Benefits offered by this job
Job summary
Gerber Life Insurance Company is seeking a Senior Staff Software Engineer to lead mainframe/COBOL modernization efforts in Fremont, MI or White Plains, NY. The role guides architecture and transformation for life policy administration, supervising 15–20 engineers and shaping the future of core technology.
You’ll drive real‑time capabilities, oversee legacy modernization, and partner across teams to align people, processes, and technology while maintaining data security and regulatory standards.
Qualifications
- Extensive leadership experience in a tech organization.
- Deep COBOL/mainframe experience and modernization expertise.
- Experience with life insurance policy administration tech is a plus.
Responsibilities
- Own architecture and modernization blueprint for mainframe-based life admin systems.
- Lead 15–20 software engineers; drive real-time processing goals.
- Oversee legacy COBOL app development and modernization efforts.
- Advance policy administration capabilities across product configuration and billing.
- Drive agile delivery, sprint planning and engineering practices.
Skills
Education
Tools
Job description
Gerber Life Insurance is seeking an accomplished software engineering leader with deep COBOL, mainframe modernization and life insurance policy administration expertise to help shape the future of our core technology environment.
- Onsite – Fremont, Michigan or White Plains, NY
- Mainframe / COBOL Engineering Leadership
- Life Insurance Technology
- Legacy Modernization & Transformation
- Hiring Salary Range: $141,600-$170,000
This position requires onsite work at our Fremont, MI office. Candidates must be able and willing to work onsite upon starting in the role.
Relocation: Relocation assistance may be available for qualified candidates based on position eligibility, individual circumstances and applicable company guidelines. Relocation assistance is not guaranteed.
Gerber Life Insurance Company, a member company of Western & Southern Financial Group (Western & Southern), is committed to helping families protect what matters most. With career opportunities in Fremont, MI, and White Plains, NY, and select roles in Cincinnati, OH, Gerber Life Insurance Company offers associates the opportunity to contribute to meaningful work while building rewarding careers.
This is a highly influential, hands‑on technology leadership role responsible for the architecture and continued modernization of Gerber Life's mainframe‑based life insurance policy administration applications. You'll provide technical leadership and direction to 15–20 software engineers while helping modernize systems supporting 3.8 million policies and approximately 1 million service calls annually. This isn't just a people‑leadership position. We're looking for someone who can operate at the architectural and strategic level while remaining deeply connected to the technology and hands‑on engineering work.
- Own the architecture and modernization blueprint for mainframe-based life insurance policy administration
- Provide technical leadership and oversight for a team of 15–20 software engineers
- Lead custom legacy COBOL application development and modernization
- Advance policy administration capabilities across product configuration, billing, collections, policy servicing and claims
- Drive the evolution from batch-centric processing toward real-time capabilities
- Introduce and integrate modern technologies across the mainframe ecosystem
- Lead agile delivery, sprint planning and engineering practices that accelerate software delivery
- Partner across the organization to align people, processes and technology
- Recruit, mentor and develop highly skilled technical talent
- Maintain strong data security, architectural and regulatory standards
Legacy/Mainframe: COBOL, CICS, APS, IMS, VSAM, JCL
DevOps/Delivery: Docker, Git, Maven, Jenkins, JIRA
- Extensive agile software engineering and change-management experience
- Significant leadership experience, including executive-level reporting
- Deep experience with end-to-end life insurance policy administration technology
- Proven leadership of COBOL/mainframe software engineering teams
- Strong understanding of both legacy mainframe environments and modernization strategies
- Ability to simplify complex, large-scale technology changes while considering total cost of ownership
- A hands‑on engineering mindset combined with the ability to lead enterprise‑level transformation
- Master's degree in Computer Science, or an acceptable combination of education, technical training, certifications and extensive relevant experience
If you're a mainframe/COBOL technology leader who understands life insurance policy administration and wants the opportunity to modernize business‑critical systems at scale, we'd like to connect.
We know people do their best work when they feel valued and are supported. That’s why we offer a comprehensive benefits package designed to help you succeed both at work and at home, including:
- Paid time off increasing with tenure.
- Tuition reimbursement and individualized career development plans.
- Medical, dental, vision, and life insurance.
- 401(k) savings plan with pension options.
- Parental leave and maternity leave.
Western & Southern is a Fortune 500® company recognized as one of America’s Best Midsize Employers by Forbes1. Our family of companies has received awards and recognitions for being a top workplace, including gold badges in Growth and Early Career from Where You Work Matters, reflecting a focus on creating opportunities for career development and advancement. We are dedicated to creating opportunities for our associates to grow and succeed.
We also recognize that talent comes from many different backgrounds and experiences. If you're excited about this opportunity but don't meet every qualification, we encourage you to apply.
Gerber Life Insurance Company and Western & Southern share a culture driven by integrity, top‑notch performance, teamwork and collaboration. We’re committed to hiring and developing professionals who strive for excellence, demonstrate strong ethics and make fact‑based decisions. Our associates are empowered to chase their career dreams while being supported every step of the way.
Gerber Life Insurance Company is not just a place to work — it’s somewhere to grow, lead, win and make a difference in your career and community.
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