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Public Sector User Groups Bring Unbiased, Independent Advice to Oracle
Savvy IT veterans have long known the value of user groups. Find one that's in tune with your vertical market or IT interests, and you immediately connect with peers around the world who understand your unique challenges and opportunities.
Nowhere is the right user group more important than in the public sector, where an ingrained culture of sharing best practices helps agencies reduce costs and enhance the return on their IT investments. 'Public sector organizations using Oracle applications join user groups because they value the educational aspects of membership and want to network with other users and partners worldwide,' says Jan Wagner, president of the Oracle Applications Users Group (OAUG) and branch chief for operations and internal review for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
A Group for Every Need
'By participating in user groups, public sector organizations can leverage the strength of a worldwide community with the free flow of unbiased, independent information,' adds John A. Matelski, chief security officer and deputy chief information officer for the City of Orlando, Florida.
A wide range of groups serve the public sector's specific needs. For example, the International Oracle User Council (IOUC) promotes the collective interests of the affiliated Oracle global user groups, including Quest International Users Group, the OAUG, the State and Local Government Industry User Group (SLGIUG), the Federal Users Network (FUN), the Higher Education User Group (HEUG), and the Independent Oracle Users Group (IOUG).
Each group in turn may include numerous special interest group (SIG) subsidiaries. The OAUG oversees individual federal, higher education, and public sector SIGs. (For a complete list of Oracle user groups, go to the Oracle User Group Center.)
Bottom-Line Results
The exchange of information can produce bottom-line results. When the City of Orlando upgraded from Oracle's JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Xe to JD Edwards EnterpriseOne 8.10, it looked for ways to reduce an anticipated US$250,000 in upgrade costs. By tapping the expertise of Quest and IOUC members, the city gathered lessons from the communities that cut the costs in half, Matelski says.
'Through the sharing of project plans, lessons learned, and information about integration consultants, the city was able to complete much of the upgrade on our own, because we had a support mechanism to turn to,' he says.
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