Oracle Acquisition Strategy Continues Part 2 + Safra voted 15th most powerful woman

It looks like Oracle's acquisition plan continues to roll along as we have just bought ClearApp:

Oracle buys ClearApp

Two key points I think that this acquisition addresses are:

1) ClearApp addresses the increasingly difficult task of managing composite applications built on SOA platforms by providing visibility of business services across all related application components.

2) ClearApp products and Oracle Enterprise Manager are expected to provide customers with a comprehensive application management solution providing enhanced service levels, reduced system down-time and improved return on SOA investments.

Locally I have seen our SOA based solutions grow from strength to strength and I think technically we are leading the way in the market place.

As a separate comment it is good to see recognition for all of Safra Catz's work in making Oracle as succesful as we are as she has been listed in Forbes magazine recently:

Safra voted 15th most powerful woman in the world

Oracle APAC Graduate Recruitment Program

The Oracle Graduate Recruitment Team has been hard at work since the beginning of the year and has done a fantastic job in identifying and hiring a large number of Graduates in ASEAN and have put in place plans to have Graduates start in Australia and New Zealand in January next year.

I think the Oracle Graduate Program is unique to many of the Graduate Programs available. The difference is that instead of just being a Graduate Developer or Graduate Sales Person, here at Oracle what we do is over the course of 2 years our Grads get to work in numerous business groups like Sales, Consulting, Development, etc... and at the end of two years they can then pick which area best suits them.

I think this is great because it gives people a chance to try a number of different jobs rather than just working in one area without getting to see how the whole business operates and they can see the differences in each group. Many people just starting in their career do not yet know what direction they want to take in their career and I think this program helps give our Graduates the information they need to help them make their individual career choices.

The closing date for this year in Australia and NZ was August 31st, but for Graduates graduating in 2009 you can register your interest at campusrelations_au@oracle.com for Australia campusrelations_nz@oracle.com for New Zealand.

The link to the Oracle Graduate Recruitment Website is: https://campus.oracle.com/HR/Globe.aspx

10 tips to build your network

10 tips to build your network

Posted using ShareThis

I found this great blog entry by Michael Specht about 10 ways to build your network. If someone mentioned the word social networking 10 years ago you would probably think of a room full of sales people passing business cards out. Things have certainly changed.

With the advent of Web 2.0 technologies we are now able to expand our networks exponentially and tailor them to the purpose we need (whether it is fact finding, looking for jobs, looking for candidates, research, personal, etc....).

With networking these days, I find the best way to effectively network is to reach out to both your online and real life communities. So yes - being on LinkedIn, Facebook, etc... is a good way to network but there are still relationships that will be formed and developed only by meeting someone face to face. I think by combining the two and not just relying on your online or real network it will give you the best chance for success.

Employee Retention - Some Thoughts

I came across an article by Rosalie Marshall from the itnews.com.au website earlier today, the link to the article is: Companies Urged to Address Staff Turnover

It was interesting to note that the survey of 71 IT organisations found that those with stronger education and training programmes have lower than average turnover rates, and that staff prefer good training to increased pay.

"IT managers often worry that investments in training will be reaped by other organisations when IT workers shop their new skills around," said John Longwell, director of research for Computer Economics.

"But this study indicates that investing in training is actually the best way to retain employees."

The factors commonly perceived as influencing staff turnover are:

-Education and training opportunities
-Flexible schedules
-Work environment
-Social environment
-Pay
-Insurance benefits
-Employee recognition programmes
-Paid time off
-Retirement programmes
-Telecommuting opportunities

"While offering competitive salaries and benefit packages may be important for recruitment, providing quality-of-life incentives and enhancing working environments are more important for retention," Longwell concluded.

In my role where I am talking to candidates on a daily basis about why they are looking to change jobs, I often find that people change companies because they are looking for new challenges, or looking to develop their career, etc.... When I ask people why are they looking to move the answer is hardly ever "because of lack of pay or benefits".

I enjoy telling people about what it is like to work here at Oracle because I do believe we have some great people and a great culture that makes it enjoyable to be here. I may be a bit biased I know, but I do think we are one of the more progressive companies when it comes to looking after our employees.

Social Networking: The Art of conversation

I have written a few entries on the increased use of Social Networks in the IT and the Recruitment Industry. It seems there are new sites created weekly and the lines can get blurred between which sites provide what services.

The image below from Brian Solis' Blog
I think gives a nice summary of the some of the sites out there and what forum they provide for sharing information, ideas and conversations.

I use many of the sites listed below for different reasons whether its for research, finding great candidates, telling people about Oracle, etc....

I do think there are so many sites available you could spend more hours than there are in a day on them, so you need to work out what message you are trying to broadcast and what audience you are trying to reach to make sites like these really add value to your business.

Oracle wins National Australia Bank Work

Earlier this week we had a great sales win in Melbourne which has been in the local press and IT news.

The link is to an article in from Computerworld.com.au and is:Oracle Wins NAB Work

This is going to be a great opportunity to partner with the NAB and help them put together the technical solutions they are looking for to achieve their business goals. From what I have heard and read about it sounds like it will be an exciting project to be involved with.

We had some great new projects last year that we won and it good to see that we are continuing to lead the way locally in the IT market.

Oracle Acquisition Strategy Continues

It appears Oracle's Acquisition Strategy continues....

Oracle announced that is has agreed to acquire Global Knowledge Software.

The link to the Oracle Website outlining the details is: Oracle Buys Global Knowledge Software

Oracle's acquisition strategy has seen us acquire 40+ companies in approximately 4 years. The strategy has paid off quite well and we have been able to extend our range of services, solutions and support to our new and existing customers.

From an Employee perspective this has been an exciting time to work at Oracle. With all the new Business Groups we are forming it has created more and more opportunities to move into new roles and try work with new technology or in new industries.

It is always great to welcome our new colleagues into Oracle and I look forward to meeting any GKS employees and hopefully will get the chance to work together soon.

Why would a high caliber individual who has a great job jump ship?

I receive a regular email from Kennedy Information each week which has interesting articles on the Recruitment Industry including Trends, Ideas, Stories, etc...

This morning I received the email as normal and immediately clicked to the following article.

The link to the site is: Landing Talent: Keeping Focused on Both the Emotional and Analytical Elements

It is an article by Vicki Pachera and the title that got me immediately interested was the line "Why would a high caliber individual who has a great job jump ship?"

When I work with my managers we are always looking for the best people for our roles, and when I in turn talk to people this article reminded me that it is not just about $$$$ or Title of a role that gets people to change jobs. I think when approaching people about a potential role, you need to find out what a person's circumstances are and what the plan is for themselves from a work perspective and otherwise. In talking to people in detail like this it is then that you can see if a role may be of interest to them and see if your current opportunities fit what they are looking for.

There are so many opportunities at Oracle, the right one may not exist for a person today, but I cannot count the number of times I have called somebody back after 1, 2, 6, 12 months etc... as the ideal role has come up for them at a later date.

Finding a new role needs to be a collaborative effort. I think the role needs to fit the candidate as much as the candidate needs to fit the role and it is in talking to people that we get to put that fit together.

So if I am talking to you about work with us, don't be shy to tell me your aspirations, plans and goals - we may have a role that helps get you there.

Oracle Corporation is on Facebook

For those of you who use or are on Facebook, Oracle Corpoation has a group set up for anyone interested in sharing information or learning more about Oracle.

The link to the site is: Oracle on Facebook


Here you can join discussion groups and conversations about a range of topics from technical conversations to the business side of Oracle.

There is a lot of information in general about Oracle available, but let me know if you have any questions locally in the region and I can help where I can.

Are Permanent Roles more attractive than Contracts in today's market

I recruit for multiple business lines for Oracle and one trend that I have been noticing for the past while is that more and more contractors are approaching me for permanent work with Oracle.

This trend started late last year with a number of contract candidates with a specific skill set approaching me and again I have seen this happen this year over the past few months. I think that contractors are looking for permanent work now as an option due to a number of factors.

1) In the industry a number of large implementation projects have come to a close and I do not believe there have been similar sized projects requiring the contract numbers there was a few years back.

2) I think people are interested in working at Oracle to get the chance grow and develop their careers and get the opportunity to do some industry leading work. I think people have seen Oracle's success over the past few years and want to be associated with that. We have some great employees that really drive our culture here that attracts people to us.

3) I believe that to a smaller degree the economic uncertainty, rising interest, petrol prices, etc.... has caused some contractors to look for that stability that a permanent role provides.

I read a number of the job reports that are published in the market and while they give mixed results depending on whose reports you read, these comments above are just what I have seen in my role talking daily to people in the IT industry that I have noticed mover the past 6-9 months more than in previous years.

Is Twitter (twitter.com) the new LinkedIn

I started using LinkedIn just over two years ago and it was one of the first of the social networking tools that I started using regularily in the day to day responsibilities of my job. LinkedIn now has over 20+ million using the site and the number is growing exponentially. It seems LinkedIn is mentioned in almost every conversation about online networking and in ANZ it has become a much more widely accepted recruitment tool than it once used to be.

Since LinkedIn, we hear more and more about Social Networking Tools and Web 2.0 technology. Over the past few years I have been invited to join countless networks (plaxo, spoke, facebook, myspace, oldfriends etc.......) and I find that it is too much to try to be on every network that is out there. Outside of regional networks (for example oldfriends.co.nz in New Zealand) I tend to use 3 main sites which are:

1) LinkedIn - usedmainly for work and professional contacts
2) Facebook - used for work, professional, family and friends
3) Spoke - used as a tool for performing targetted search and selection.

I find many of the other sites available replicate the information provided from these sites. One site however that I have been hearing a fair bit about lately is Twitter (twitter.com). A number of people I have spoken to think that Twitter is the next generation of Online Social Networking sites. I have signed up for it earlier this week and while I have not had an in-depth look into it, from first glance it looks very similar to the other sites out there - so I am not sure where all the hype is coming from.

I think it partially maybe due to the fact that the uptake of these sites in ANZ is usually 12-18 months behind the US so it may be that this site is not as widely accepted or broadcast yet locally - but if anyone is using Twitter or has comments/suggestions about it, I would love to hear your thoughts.

Oracle's Q4 Results

I read this analysis this morning on Oracle's Q4 Results. I thought it was interesting reading to share with everyone. It looks like we are continuing to take away business from SAP.

Oracle’s Q4 results analysis by ZDNet's Dennis Howlett -- Oracle’s Q4 earnings call has just finished. According to Safra Catz, Oracle CFO, the company delivered the company’s highest operating margin at 41% for the quarter with software license updates and product support exceeding $10 billion for the year. By the numbers for the quarter: New software licenses: $3.1 billion, an increase of 27% in US$ Software [...]

Oracle ANZ Sales Kickoff - Sydney

I have just come back this afternoon from Oracle's ANZ Sales kickoff which was held in Sydney (thanks to the Management and the Sales Teams for the invitation). It was a great chance to meet up with a number of people I have not seen for some time and meet some new faces as well.

More importantly I thought was that this was a great opportunity to review and see the success of our Sales Teams last FY and come together as an organasition to make sure we succeed next year as well.

The day was run quite well and the team at the Sheraton Hotel did a great job. It has been a big couple of days with a number of meetings over the course of the week as well and while I probably am a little worse for wear today, it was certainly well worth the time to go to Sydney and meet with the rest of the Oracle Sales Business.

New Section: What it is like working at Oracle

Hi all,

I mentioned earlier that I wanted to give people some insight into what it is like to work here at Oracle. With all the new industries and solutions we now offer and work in we have a number of Business Units in Oracle who all work together to provide solutions to our customers.

What I am plan to do is provide a quick overview on what it is like to work with some of the Business Groups in Oracle that I deal with. I have created a new tab on this Blog below titled "What it is like working at Oracle".

Here, I plan to explain what some of our Business Groups do and what makes it exciting to work in each group. The first group I have written about is our Applications Business Development Team. They are a great group of people I really enjoy working with.

I hope you like this new section and feel free to let me know your thoughts, questions, etc....

BEA Employees Joining us and Lunchtime Basketball

The BEA acquisition is finally complete and we will get the opportunity to meet the new employees coming over from BEA. It will be good to meet everyone and I think this will certainly strengthen our position in the Middleware space.

On a side note, we played our first basketball game here at Oracle Melbourne in a long time at lunch today, we had a good turn out with 11 people and while we were all a bit rusty it was good to get out and play again.

More updates to come!!!