Special Insight

Two years ago, I initiated—with the invaluable support of the Oracle PartnerNetwork (OPN) staff— a series of partner news stories on Profit Online. Working through dozens of these stories, I came to realize that the engagements between OPN Specialized partners and Oracle customers represent some of the most interesting, high-risk, and high-reward IT projects that have crossed my desk.

So when OPN management approached me about creating a special Profit edition featuring OPN Specialized partner projects, I did not hesitate to agree. As the Profit editorial team worked on the story lineup, a few obvious themes emerged:

Customers are choosing Oracle PartnerNetwork Specialized partners. As IT projects become increasingly intertwined with the core operations of modern business and budgets remain flat in our volatile economy, customers have little tolerance for project delays or failures. Connecting with an OPN Specialized partner ensures a level of competence (and confidence) when the IT rubber hits the road.

Specialized partners demonstrate a depth of offerings. At first we saw just a smattering of Specialized competencies trickle through as the program was ramping up. But the trend is favoring Oracle partners that seek Specialized certifications in multiple product areas and industries—making sure they can address increasing customer demand.

The results speak for themselves. Take a look at the variety of products, industries, geographic regions, and business challenges in this edition. It’s clear that OPN Specialized partners can deliver under extremely demanding business conditions and that the expertise Oracle requires them to demonstrate is effectively put to work in the field.

The OPN team has worked very hard over the past year to roll out a new Solutions Catalog that can help Oracle customers connect with a Specialized partner that’s right for their needs.

I hope that by reading through the content of this Oracle Specialized Partner Edition 2012, you’ll come to the same realization that some of the best IT projects, that deliver real business results, come from Oracle PartnerNetwork Specialized partners.

Aaron Lazenby
Editor in Chief, Profit
aaron.lazenby@oracle.com