SINCE 1998 · DIRECT HIRE, CONTRACT & CONSULTING · NATIONWIDE, USA
The deepest bench in the IBM i market — because we've been building it since 2004.
Talsco is the recruiting partner for companies whose business runs on IBM i — and for the RPG developers, admins, and modernization pros who keep it running. The people you need aren't answering job ads. But they answer our calls.
Submit a search request → Browse roles →
Tell us the role. If we don't have someone right, we'll say so.
THE IBM i STACK
RPG — ILE, Free Format, RDi, CL, etc
ERP — Infor XA, Infor LX, JDE, PRMS, etc.
Open source on i — PHP, Node.js, Python, etc
AI on i — IBM Bob, frontier LLMs & AI
TALSCO WEEKLY SINCE 2017
400+
Talsco Weekly briefs keeping the industry up to date with the latest IBM i news, career insights and hiring trends.
500 + IBM i PLACEMENTS
Est. 2004
Nationwide. One market, one focus. Direct Hire and Consulting.
WHO WE SERVE
Hiring managers
Your RPG team is retiring faster than you can replace it, and every generalist recruiter sends you Java developers. We only work the IBM i market — and the people you want to hire already know us.
IBM i professionals
You won't be talked into a role that isn't right. We'll tell you what a company is actually like to work for — the tech mix, the culture, the manager — before you spend an evening interviewing.
WHAT WE DO
One stack. Four ways to staff it.
Whether you need one engineer or a full department, we map the engagement to your reality — not the other way around.
DIRECT HIRE
Direct placement
RPG developers, IBM i administrators, business analysts, EDI coordinators, ERP specialists, and IT leadership — placed for the long term. We stay involved from brief through offer negotiation, so the person you choose gets hired and stays hired.
STAFFING
Contract & consulting
On-demand IBM i contractors and consultants when timelines are tight and skills are scarce — ERP upgrades, backfills, and special projects. Interim, project-based, and long-term assignments across the United States.
HIRE & TRAIN
Build the next bench
Hire new talent, then train them in modern RPG through our partnership with imPower Technologies and IBM Champion Jim Buck. In as little as 8 weeks after hire, a productive junior RPG developer — or an experienced developer retrained in modern RPG — on your team. Solve the talent pipeline at the root.
ADVISORY
Modernization talent
The future of IBM i mixes RPG with SQL, APIs, web services, open source and AI. We place the rare senior consultants who span both worlds — ERP, integration, and open-source development on i — and help you shape the team your modernization actually needs.
WHY TALSCO
We have conversations others don't.
The best IBM i people aren't on job boards. Most of the professionals we speak with aren't looking at all — they take our call because we've served this community since 1998, not just recruited from it. That's talent no generalist firm can reach.
Specialists, not tourists.
One market since 1998. We know which shops run Infor XA and which are mid-migration, which teams mentor juniors and which burn them out, and what a senior RPG developer with API experience is actually worth this year. You don't spend the first three calls educating your recruiter.
Every candidate, personally assessed.
No algorithms. We speak with every candidate — the way you would. Thoughtful, open, honest conversations about skills, motivation, and fit. You only meet people you'd genuinely want to hire, so your time goes into choosing, not filtering.
Honest about who will thrive.
We're looking out for your company, its culture, and the candidate at the same time — because a placement that doesn't stick helps no one. If someone isn't right for your environment, we'll tell you. Clients tell us that's uncommon in this industry.
You are always looking out for us… I know that you are not only looking out for our company, its culture and well-being but also the candidates. It's uncommon in your industry.
Director, Information Technology
HOW A SEARCH RUNS
A systematic search. A human at every step.
- Brief — We learn your organization: the people, the culture, the vision for IT, and the real requirements behind the job spec.
- Source — We tap a database of candidates and companies built over decades, and recruit locally, regionally, and nationally.
- Assess — We speak with every candidate. Skills, motivations, and fit — judged in conversation, not by keyword match.
- Interview — Complete, honest feedback in both directions through every round, so nothing falls over at the finish.
- Offer — We play an active role in negotiation, then stay involved so the candidate gets hired — and stays hired.
We can't thank you enough. You have helped us build a world-class team. A year ago our department did not come close to performing the way it does now.
Applications Manager
FOR IBM i PROFESSIONALS
The job you actually want. Not the one that's easiest to place you in.
Recruiters have a reputation for bending candidates to fit an open req. We do the opposite: we listen to what you want — the work, the tech mix, the kind of team — and only put you forward where it genuinely lines up. That's why our candidates walk into interviews already knowing the company, the culture, and the manager they'd be working for.
We know these companies from the inside.
Every IBM i shop glues its stack together differently — RPG-heavy, best-of-breed, mid-modernization. We've worked with these teams for years and can tell you what a role is really like before you invest an evening in it.
Confidential, even when you're not looking.
Most people we talk to aren't job hunting — they're keeping a pulse on the market. A quiet conversation now means that when a genuinely better situation appears, you hear about it first.
A career-long corner.
Resume and interview preparation, honest feedback after every round, salary and market intelligence, negotiation support — and advice on the skills that will keep your career compounding as the platform transforms.
You are the first recruiter I have worked with that does not try to adjust me to fit the position… You listened to me and have a clear understanding of what I want.
Software Engineer / Team Lead
Browse open roles → Schedule a confidential call →
If it runs on IBM i, we staff it.
IBM i / AS400 / iSeries: RPG (ILE, Free Format), RDi, SQL, DB2, CL, Synon, Lansa, WebSphere
Open source on i: PHP, Java, Node.js, Python, JavaScript
ERP: Infor XA (Mapics), Infor LX (BPCS), JD Edwards, SAP, Harris Data
Adjacent: EDI, WMS, web services & APIs, modernization tooling
IT Directors · RPG Developers · Business Analysts · IBM i Administrators · EDI Coordinators · ERP, Java, PHP & Web Developers · Modernization Leads
TALSCO WEEKLY
Field notes from the IBM i frontier.
We cover the enterprise IBM i market unlike anyone else — curated news, hiring trends, and modernization insight, every week. We sift so you don't have to.
MODERNIZATION
IBM i Was Built for This Moment
Let's build the team your next decade depends on.
Tell us the role. We'll come back with a qualified shortlist — and if we don't have someone right, we'll say so and tell you what we'd do instead.