Enterprise Software Suites: Oracle
Sullivan directed particular praise toward the local channel organization. “We are a 60-person systems integrator, and all we do is implement applications,” he said. “To grow, we need to get on the radar screen of Oracle’s sales reps, and the channel manager spends a lot of time counseling us on how we can add value and get on their radar. There’s nothing more important to us.”
Oracle might be the turnaround king of channel satisfaction. Long known for an almost adversarial relationship with its reseller and systems integrator partners, Oracle has spent the past year improving its programs, responding to complaints and forcing its own sales and consulting organizations to “play nice” with partners.
The results have paid off, as evidenced by the 2005 CRN Channel Champions Survey in the enterprise software suites category. The Redwood Shores, Calif., software vendor nearly swept the competition, beating PeopleSoft and SAP in 14 out of 16 technical and channel criteria.
The category was as tough as the market itself, encompassing the big boys of the enterprise applications space. These include Oracle’s E-Business Suite, PeopleSoft’s Enterprise and EnterpriseOne suites (now part of Oracle), and SAP’s mySAP and mySAP All-in-One.
Oracle’s biggest strengths were in technical criteria. It came in 5.4 points ahead of PeopleSoft in scalability and bested SAP by a similar margin in customization tools. It took first place in all six technical areas, beating SAP by 3.9 points.
The contest was much tighter in channel areas, where Oracle faced setbacks in ratings it received for licensing policies and sales margins. But it scored big on technical education, and its lead over PeopleSoft and SAP in channel-program satisfaction overall, however narrow, was interpreted by solution providers as a sign of improvement.
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“In the past year or so, I’ve seen a very clear increase in Oracle reaching out to us,” said Robin Kearon, president of Mi Services Group, Wayne, Pa. “I’m being invited to share my opinions, and they are listening and acting on what we tell them.”
“Oracle is definitely reaching out to the community,” agreed Richard Sullivan, a partner with ThoughtDigital, New York, an Oracle partner that was recently acquired by SOA Software. “I’m constantly being invited to bimonthly partner updates where [Oracle’s channel chief] Rauline Ochs gets on the phone to talk about Oracle’s progress with the PeopleSoft acquisition or about tools, training and resources that partners can take advantage of.”