Oracle marks 12 years in RP

MACTAN, Cebu – Oracle Systems (Phils.) Inc. marks its 12 years in the country without the signs of wear and tear that eventually put some of its fiercest competitors out of business.

Since as a start-up office in 1990, Oracle Phils. has continually brought to the country the latest enterprise management software – from database to applications – from its headquarters in Redwood Shores, California. Many local private businesses and government agencies run on Oracle today, which is what Oracle expects to continue.

Bernard Yu, managing director of Oracle Phils., said the company wants to focus more than ever on being a principle-centered and values-centric organization. "We are a value-creating organization and one that is living the values," he added.

Of prime importance to Oracle, he said, are integrity, customer-centricity, trust, respect, innovation, professionalism, social responsibility and quality leadership.

Rey Paragas, Oracle Phils. e-business solutions manager, explained that the global Oracle organization strives to do these through the years by consolidating and simplifying its own IT operations, moving to shared services and adopting self-service, automating all processes, leveraging low-cost computing and building a culture of agility.

Innovation has marked Oracle’s technology roadmap in the last decade, said Oracle Phils. solutions manager Joel Garcia, in reference to the continuous release of Oracle application solutions and platforms, especially from 1992’s Oracle7 to today’s Oracle9i.

During that period, the Oracle E-Business Suite was launched and made the company a market leader, said Jojo Añonuevo, Oracle Phils. sales director for communications and financial services industries.

Oracle Phils. is particularly keen on providing enterprise management software for the public, financial services, manufacturing and telecommunications sectors. Its first installation in the country was at the Social Security System in 1987 through its first local distributor, MCC Associates.

Oracle Corp. has a $1-billion global program called the Oracle Academic Initiative (OAI), and its Asia-Pacific part is managed by its Manila office. OAI equips schools with IT training tools at a fraction of the retail cost, including business application software, curriculum, professional development and certification. After its US launch in 1997, it was next rolled out in the Philippines after former President Fidel Ramos signed an OAI agreement with Lawrence Ellison, chairman and CEO of Oracle, in San Francisco on Nov. 20, 1997.

OAI investments in the country have reached $5.41 million, covering 15 colleges and universities and benefiting some 20,000 students. It was first initiated in five charter member-institutions: Ateneo de Manila University, De La Salle University, Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology, University of the Philippines in Los Baños, Laguna, and the University of San Carlos, Cebu City. Its thrust is to have at least one OAI school in each of the country’s 13 regions.

Meanwhile, Oracle Phils. pursues at least three other social programs: the Soup Kitchen, Project Freed and HelpUsHelp. The Soup Kitchen tries to feed street children from depressed communities, while Project Freed helps provide electricity for the poor. HelpUsHelp is a local foundation that has provided 100 NIC branded machines (network computers) to select grade schools in the country.