Ten Things to Consider for Rapid Implementation
Oracle’s approach to SMB applications gets your business up, running,
and productive quickly
Introduction
In today’s business climate, small and
midsize companies are competing
with everyone—one another and big-
ger firms alike—for customers and
revenues in every niche. Large-scale
enterprises get most of the press, but
SMBs are subject to the same pres-
sures and influences—to do more
with less, to streamline processes
and speed go-to-market, to achieve
near-perfect levels of service and reli-
ability for their customers—and they
have much lower tolerance for delay
or failure.
IT and software applications can
play a huge role in getting work
done quickly and efficiently. The right
tools, and the right support, can help
a company differentiate from the
pack and deliver a superior level of
service. The problem is, SMBs don’t
have time for lengthy assessments,
consultations, solution designs, and
phased rollout schedules. Smaller
players need the job done right, on-
time, the first time.
The best way to make that happen,
far more quickly and productively than
via customized or tailored software,
is with an intuitive, easy-to-deploy
and easy-to-use suite of applications
that already has best practices and
smooth workflow built in.
O r a c l e A c c e l e r at e i s t h e
Ri g h t A p p r o a c h
Oracle Accelerate is a fixed-price,
rapid-implementation approach, de-
livering dozens of configurable solu-
tions that are designed to fit the needs
of specific industries. Oracle solutions
launch quickly, scale easily, and ex-
pand effortlessly, bringing powerful
tools and enterprise-class service to
the SMB.
As the largest enterprise software
company in the world, Oracle has
the know-how to pinpoint successful
workflows and best practices that ap-
ply regardless of company size. These
elements—called Accelerators—are
built into the industry-focused appli-
cation suites that Oracle and its part-
ners deliver for SMBs.
Jim Rodgers, vice president of sales
at Oracle partner Baytree Associates,
Inc., explains: “Based on industry-
specific leading-practice Business
Flows, the Oracle Accelerator is a wiz-
ard-driven toolset that provides tre-
mendous flexibility for personalizing
the [customer’s] implementation of
Oracle E-Business Suite without mak-
ing modifications or customizing the
core Oracle code. The result is a high-
ly configured instance that is quickly
deployed and completely protected
during future version upgrades. This
toolset is delivered with a variety
of out-of-the-box assets, including
training videos, how-to guides, test
scripts, and implementation guide-
lines that provide immediate value to
the client.”
Oracle’s experts have identified ten
important factors for SMBs to keep
in mind when considering their
software and business process needs
and the narrow timeframe in which
1
they have to work. Making the right
decision will mean the difference be-
tween a successful deployment and a
quagmire that drains precious time
and money from the company.
1. C
 osts of implementation
and ownership
Whenever you’re shopping, a glance at
the price tag is enough to determine
whether you’ll pick up or reject an
item. But with business software, ini-
tial cost is just the tip of the iceberg.
Does the price include enough licens-
es, integration help, and training? Will
an army of expensive consultants in-
vade the office? How much will main-
tenance cost? How long before we see
a positive return on investment? And
what happens as the company grows?
Oracle Accelerate takes the guess-
work and headache out of business
software implementations by deliv-
ering a focused suite of applications,
Business Accelerators, and support
for one affordable price. You can stay
on your version of the software for
as long as it suits your needs, with
regular upgrades and feature-set ex-
pansions readily available, ensuring
that changes and growth don’t end up
costing more than necessary.
2. Fitting your business
Depending on the provider, SMB so-
lutions can be stripped-down versions
of enterprise applications, or heav-
ily customized and specialized offer-
ings that fit a niche industry but don’t
scale or adjust easily. You don’t have
time to spend adjusting an application
to fit your workflow style; you need
tools that are preconfigured and pre-
loaded with the best and most efficient
elements for your company’s focus.
Oracle Accelerate delivers solu-
tions that meet the workflow needs of
specific verticals, from automotive
to technology and over 70 others.
With product lines such as JD Edwards,
PeopleSoft, Siebel, and Oracle E-Busi-
ness Suite, Oracle delivers complete,
suite-based solutions that focus on
specific industries. The solutions in-
clude comprehensive business flows
across front office, back office and in-
dustry-specific processes. Local channel
partners add an even finer level of
focus, adjusting applications to account
for regulatory and tax requirements in
specific regions and countries.
3 . I m p ro v i n g y o u r b u s i n e s s
The pressure to improve processes
and workflows is high; the tools you
deploy must be streamlined and task-
specific, enforcing step-by-step ex-
ecution and integrating seamlessly
with management and database ap-
plications. Oracle Accelerators con-
figure end-to-end business flows us-
ing your data, with industry-specific
and country versions that meet your
business’s requirements.
Accelerators include flow models,
videos, scripts and other training ma-
terial to help you map processes to the
software quickly, and a setup tool that
uses your responses to a simple ques-
tionnaire to integrate your business
information into the application suite
quickly and accurately.
“The combination of Oracle’s pre-
integrated applications and Solbourne’s
public sector expertise was a good fit
for the City of Englewood—and we
were impressed with the rapid, on-
budget implementation,” says Don
Ingle, director of IT for the City of
Englewood, CO.
4. Smooth takeoff
As we’ve mentioned, rapid imple-
mentation only works if the solution
installs and configures quickly, and if
end-users can learn the new applica-
tions with minimal time investment.
The Oracle Accelerate approach le-
verages the expertise of local chan-
nel partners who tailor Business Ac-
celerators for quick, wizard-driven
deployment and provide videos and
training guides for users. The tools
are preconfigured for specific indus-
tries and localities, ensuring smooth
integration and rapid uptake.
“Our implementation with Oracle
Business Accelerators was completed
on time and under budget, with a re-
markably smooth transition from our
legacy system. Oracle’s technology,
applications, and implementation
partner have been a winning combi-
nation for our company,” says Sylvia
Trujillo, CFO of The Jewelry Exchange
in San Francisco.
5. Regular upgrades
When you sign on with an enter-
prise software provider, their SMB
offerings, being customized subsets
of larger-scale offerings, may not up-
grade easily. If the code is tweaked
further to adapt the application for
a specific industry, upgrades can be
drawn-out and complex tasks.
Oracle Accelerate applications are
built on comprehensive, open soft-
ware that allows for eminent config-
urability and requires no alterations
to the code. Oracle and its partners
release upgrades every 12-24 months
for each of product line. In addition,
the Accelerate program ensures has-
sle-free, non-disruptive upgrades by
isolating data from application logic,
providing automated patching and
upgrade tools, and by leveraging an
extensive network of expert partners
who know your business.
6. Managing changes
SMBs are intimately familiar with the
speed of business, and the agility need-
ed to seize opportunities quickly. If an
acquisition or product line expansion
comes into play, how smoothly can
you adapt your processes and work-
2
flow to the new rules? Heavily cus-
tomized applications are not flexible
or easy to reconfigure once they’re
in place, but Oracle Accelerate’s ap-
proach enables effortless scaling and
compelling flexibility. With Business
Accelerators encompassing more than
a thousand potential workflows, ad-
justing the software you have in place
is fast and easy.
Oracle’s plan for brand-new re-
leases, regular enhancements, and
feature upgrades is called Applica-
tions Unlimited. And while the op-
portunity to upgrade and expand is
available, it is not forced on custom-
ers. Oracle’s Lifetime Support Policy
ensures you will receive the support
you need whether you follow the up-
grade path or not.
7. Managing scope
Although their needs for application
features and functionality sometimes
mirror those of larger organizations,
SMBs rarely have the luxury of long,
complex, expensive implementations.
The most successful rollouts for SMBs
tend to focus on solving acute issues
and then branching out to leverage
more comprehensive capabilities.
Oracle’s competitors find this type of
deployment challenging—they either
force an entire package on clients, so
all of the applications can be custom-
ized together, or, if they start small,
their custom enhancements and future
scale-ups are even more expensive and
challenging down the road.
Oracle Accelerate implementations,
on the other hand, are laser-focused
on meeting acute concerns, such as
supply chain management, procure-
ment, or CRM, and you pay for what
you need, not more. Once the high-
priority processes are optimized and
brought into alignment with business
goals, Oracle Accelerate partners de-
liver applications to target specific task
areas and raise their levels of efficiency
and productivity for across-the-board
gains. Oracle delivers successful im-
plementations because Accelerate ap-
plications are not customized; they’re
configured to reflect industry-specific
workflows. This approach allows easy
modification or addition of capabili-
ties as your business needs evolve.
8 . I n t e g r a t i o n w i t h I T
infrastructure
SMBs aren’t always standardized on
one particular IT infrastructure pro-
tocol, and business applications must
integrate seamlessly with existing
environments. The Oracle Accelerate
approach encourages high degrees
of interoperability with other Oracle
and non-Oracle applications. Each
product line includes integration
‘hooks’ that translate and transform
disparate systems into a unified, ser-
vice-oriented whole.
Oracle’s JD Edwards EnterpriseOne
solutions, for example, integrate all
financial processes into one database
and link seamlessly with all the other
applications in the suite. “Our 100%
revenue growth over the past three
years has been supported with JD
Edwards EnterpriseOne applications,”
reports Timothy J. Schultz, director of
IT at Denver-based TUFF SHED, Inc.
9. Support system in place
SMB solutions must be covered by
responsive and helpful technical sup-
Sponsored by Oracle
Copyright © May 2007 Ziff Davis Media Custom Publishing.
The information contained herein is accurate only as of the date of publication, and is subject to change without notice.
port to ensure prompt problem-solv-
ing and smooth operations. Oracle
is the largest and most respected
business software provider, with a
network of support experts in every
niche industry.
Oracle’s comprehensive support
policies cover everything from data-
bases to middleware to applications,
with implementation help, integra-
tion assistance, customer-driven up-
grade strategies, and full updates,
maintenance, and security/regula-
tory patches.
Because all Oracle Accelerate solu-
tions undergo an industry-focused re-
view process, Oracle and its partners
understand how to provide seamless
support to SMB customers.
1 0 . C h o o s i n g t h e r i g h t
partner
Channel partners in specific industry
areas are the best route for SMBs
to take when seeking comprehensive
business application solutions, as
they deliver the best technology
coupled with an intimate knowledge
of the industry.
Oracle Accelerate partners are
chosen for their dedication to
customer needs and their deep
technical expertise. In addition,
Oracle provides partners with valuable
tools, such as assessment tests and
education courses, so they can
gain proficiency in Oracle software
implementations and put that expertise
to work for you.
Oracle’s network of over 330 chan-
nel partners ensures that specialists
are there for you in your location and
in your industry. “We looked at the
other big names, but ultimately Ora-
cle and Baytree offered a more flexible
solution that is easier to implement,
easier to use, and easier to maintain,”
says Mark Slaven, CFO of Cross Match
Technologies, Inc., in Palm Beach
Gardens, FL.
C o n c l u s i o n : A c c e l e r at e
with Oracle
Small and midsize businesses need
rapid implementation, minimal
learning curve, ease of use, and a
smooth upgrade path for their busi-
ness process applications. Oracle Ac-
celerate delivers these tailored appli-
cations through software and chan-
nel partners in every major industry,
helping customers enhance their
processes and service levels, com-
pete more effectively, and grow ever
more successful. To learn more, visit
www.oracle.com/accelerate. n