The GS|UK Conference is one of the UK’s leading independent enterprise computing and mainframe community events, bringing together professionals, vendors, students, and technology leaders from across the IBM Z ecosystem and wider enterprise IT industry.

Organised by the volunteer-led GS|UK Conference Committee, the conference takes place annually as both an in-person and virtual event, delivering multiple days of technical education, professional development, networking, and community collaboration.

The four-day in-person conference features keynote and plenary sessions, specialist technical streams, workshops, customer case studies, hands-on discussions, and community-led presentations covering a wide range of enterprise technology topics. The agenda is shaped by GS|UK Working Groups, customers, vendors, IBM, and the wider community to ensure content remains practical, relevant, and forward-looking.

Alongside the technical sessions, attendees can take part in networking opportunities, evening receptions, themed social events, pub quizzes, the gala dinner, and a large exhibition featuring organisations from across the enterprise technology industry.

GS|UK is also committed to helping address the growing enterprise computing and mainframe skills gap. Through the WAVEZ initiative and the WAVEZ Student Scholarship Programme, GS|UK supports students, apprentices, graduates, and early-career professionals entering the industry.

Whether you are an experienced practitioner or completely new to enterprise computing, GS|UK provides an opportunity to learn, connect, share knowledge, and engage with the wider technology community.

Conference Streams

• Artificial Intelligence - AI
  This stream explores the practical intersection of artificial intelligence and the mainframe. From GenAI frameworks running on z/OS to governance, risk, and the real-world use cases emerging across the ecosystem… this is the space where the mainframe community gets hands-on with AI. Whether you’re just starting to evaluate AI on Z or already building, come with questions, challenges, and ideas.

• Applications Development
  This stream focuses on z/OS DevOps (covering source control, CI/CD pipelines), languages (legacy and modern), Integrated Development Environments (IDEs), application discovery, platform engineering, as well as release engineering and automated test tooling and best practices.

• CICS 
  This stream focus on new features of CICS, best practices, and new trends relating to CICS functions.

• Data & Storage Management
  Bringing together storage and data practitioners on IBM Z, this stream explores how modern storage management underpins data lifecycle, performance, resilience, and integration with hybrid cloud and analytics platforms.

• Db2 Working Group
  This group focuses on the IBM Db2 for z/OS data base management system and its associated tools and products.

• Hybrid Cloud
  Hybrid Cloud enables organisations to harness the unique strengths of a variety of compute platforms, from mainframe to public cloud. As mainframe continues its evolution, and public cloud adoption matures, the industry has moved beyond either/or decisions, and is embracing both in order to deliver a seamless enterprise IT model. This stream will focus on architectures and technologies that show how mainframe can be first class citizen in the Hybrid Cloud era.

• IMS
  This stream brings together experts and practitioners, at every level, to explore one of the most powerful and enduring technologies in enterprise IT. Sessions typically cover a range of topics including DORA, topologies, helpful software tools, cybersecurity, and best practices for optimizing and modernizing IMS environments. Includes best practises, IMS upgrades and features, including IMS Catalogue migration and exploitation, and best practise for management of databases Fast Path, Full function, and HALDB. Attendees can expect practical insights, technical depth, and real-world experience from those working daily at the core of IMS systems. 

•  Mainframe Audit
  This stream is intended for business and infrastructure auditors who are experienced in their fields but have limited familiarity with IBM mainframe controls, and to support skill development in mainframe auditing.

• Mainframe Skills & Learning 
  This stream focuses on education and skills development for the mainframe community. We are keen to hear about experiences with learning initiatives such as mentoring, internships, academies and training programmes to share best practice. We also value work on realising potential through retention strategies or managing neurodiverse cohorts effectively. We invite thoughts on addressing skills challenges now and in the future.

• MQ
  This stream is aimed at all experiences of MQ professionals. This stream focuses on best practices, new features and updates contained within the latest release, and modernisation techniques

• Networks
  This stream is anything to do with the network hardware and software, SNA, VTAM, TCP/IP, network security and management tools for the network

• New Technology
  The IT landscape is constantly evolving and companies (both mainframe and non-mainframe) continue to embrace these latest technologies.
  This working group showcases these latest innovations and how they might relate to and enhance your IT infrastructure and your business processes.

• Open Mainframe Project
  This stream focuses on best practices, real-world experience and use cases related to the Open Mainframe Project ecosystem - including its projects and working groups - as well as adjacent technologies and communities advancing open source on the mainframe.

• Operating Systems & Core Infrastructure
  Previously Large Systems, this stream covers the core operating systems and operational management of the IBM Z environment, spanning z/OS, z/VM, and Linux on Z. Sessions explore major subsystem technologies such as JES and SDSF, as well as container platform capabilities including IBM zCX. Topics typically include new OS releases and technical actions, system programming best practices, operational resiliency, and disaster recovery across the IBM Z estate.

• Security 
  This stream focuses on modern enterprise security challenges, including identity management, threat detection, data protection, and regulatory compliance across environments. Attendees gain practical insights from experts and real-world case studies, designed to strengthen security posture on platforms the platforms most used by enterprises.

• Systems (Service) Management 
  This stream brings together all the operations disciplines, batch management, system automation, system monitoring and observability, everything the modern-day operator needs at their fingertips. Along with new ideas, updates for the most commonly used products can be heard here. Plus, how they integrate with the newer aids such as AI that aim to pull together a cohesive picture when things go wrong and even suggest possible solutions.

• WAVEZ 101 – Foundation-Level Content for Early-Career Professionals
  This stream is intended for students, graduates, apprentices, and professionals in the first seven years of their mainframe career. Sessions should introduce a technology, concept, or skill area without assuming prior knowledge. Content should focus on building understanding, confidence, and providing attendees with the foundations needed to continue their learning journey.

• WAVEZ 102 – Building on the Foundations
  This stream is intended for early-career professionals who are ready to develop the knowledge and skills gained through WAVEZ 101-style content. Sessions should build upon foundational concepts, providing practical insights, real-world experiences, lessons learned, and deeper exploration of specific technologies or career topics. Content should assume a basic understanding of the subject and help attendees take the next step in their professional development.

• Women In IT
  This stream connects, advocates for, and promotes the role of women in IT, with a mainframe focus. It is vital that we continue to attract & retain more women, new people and returners to mainframe careers by championing the importance of greater diversity in STEM. 

• z Capacity & Performance
  This stream focuses on performance optimisation and capacity management across IBM Z environments. It covers workload management (WLM), system tuning, performance monitoring, and forecasting to ensure efficient use of resources and consistent service delivery. Topics may include tooling, automation, and approaches to managing growth, cost, and resilience.