As Published In
Oracle Magazine
November/December 2007

CHANNELS: Peer-to-Peer


Managing the Middle

By Blair Campbell

Oracle ACEs stay current on the latest and greatest technologies.

Atul Kumar

Peer Specs

 

Company: Self-employed
Job title/description: Independent Oracle consultant, responsible for managing, designing, and deploying Oracle Applications
Location: London
Oracle credentials: Oracle Certified Associate (Oracle Application Server 10g), with 7 years of experience using Oracle
Oracle ACE
How has Oracle University helped you move forward in your career? My first Oracle University training course was sponsored by my first employer, Triniti Corporation. Since then, I've taken additional classes to get a quick but thorough overview of new products. I prefer to take online classes and use self-study materials—then I can utilize my business travel time for reading Oracle University's self-study guides and have them on hand to reference later.

What new products or features have you been exploring lately? I'm using a shared application tier for multinode applications, because of reduced maintenance overhead. It's cost-effective, because the same shared drive is used to mount the file system—and software—across various servers, which reduces hardware costs.

If you were going to the International Space Station for six months and could take only one Oracle reference book, what would it be? The Oracle Applications Concepts documentation—because every time I read it I find something new.

Srinivas Polsani

Peer Specs

 

Company: Satyam Computer Services, a global consulting and IT services company
Job title/description: Principal consultant and general manager in the Oracle Fusion Middleware Practice of Satyam's Enterprise Applications Group, responsible for technical competency and global presales
Location: Hyderabad, India
Length of time using Oracle products: 10 years
Oracle ACE
What's your favorite tool or technique on the job? Service-oriented architecture [SOA] is my favorite concept, as this architecture isn't tied to a specific technology and can be implemented using a wide range of technologies. It can also support integration and consolidation activities within complex enterprise systems. SOA can help businesses respond more quickly and cost-effectively to changing market conditions.

What advice do you have for those just getting started with Web-based database development? The advice I've got for anybody working on Oracle Forms, Oracle Reports, Oracle Developer Tools, or related technologies is to start getting into object-oriented programming and Java. Take some introductory classes on both technologies, buy a good book, and start practicing. To be very successful at Web and database development, it's important to have a good foundational understanding of the technology you're going to be working with.

What's your favorite thing to do that doesn't involve work? Reading reviews on the latest electronic gadgets and keeping track of developments in technology that affect day-to-day life.

Nathalie Roman

Peer Specs

 

Company: iAdvise, an IT consulting firm
Job title/description: Competence leader of the iAdvise Oracle Fusion Middleware team, responsible for presales, learning tracks for new members and employees, workshops, seminars, and internal and external courses

Location: Antwerp, Belgium
Oracle credentials: Oracle Fusion Middleware Sales Champion, Oracle Implementation Champion, and Oracle Presales Champion, with 6 years of experience using Oracle
Oracle ACE
What technology has most changed your life? Web services, Oracle BPEL Process Manager, and Oracle's Enterprise Service Bus. I consider these technologies a fun playground that has given me lots of opportunities. The passion I feel for my job has everything to do with Oracle SOA Suite and the different technologies I like to work with. By giving seminars and blogging, I'm able to transfer that passion to customers and other developers.

What's your favorite tool or technique on the job? Oracle JDeveloper and Oracle SQL Developer are my favorite IDEs; Oracle Enterprise Manager in Oracle SOA Suite is my favorite environment, from a management point of view; and blogging is my favorite technique.

What would you like to see Oracle, as a company, do more of? I'd like to see more opportunities to engage in beta testing. Working more closely with Oracle would also help us know what the company is looking for and how we can help—for example, if Oracle needs articles, tutorials, or experience in a certain technology or wants to test a new approach.