TOMS: Um negócio baseado em ajudar ao próximo e como a parceria com a Oracle auxilia a empresa a ganhar escala mundial

O conceito de negócios da TOMS é inusitado: para cada produto vendido, um é doado para quem precisa, em várias regiões do mundo. Atualmente, mais de 100 organizações não-governamentais em mais de 70 países, dos Estados Unidos à China, passando por Honduras, Haiti e Índia, são parceiras da empresa em seus projetos sociais. Um negócio construído a partir da ideia de fazer o bem, mas que, para funcionar bem, precisa contar com uma infraestrutura poderosa.

A história da empresa começa em 2006 na Argentina, onde Blake Mycoskie viu que crianças em favelas não conseguiriam sair daquela situação porque não podiam nem mesmo ir à escola, por uma razão prosaica: não tinham o que calçar. Para ajudar, ele criou a TOMS Shoes, com o conceito “um por um”: cada par de sapatos vendido doa um par para alguém que precise. Uma ideia simples que evoluiu para um modelo de negócios que já vendeu mais de 50 milhões de calçados e ajuda a abrir oportunidades de saúde, educação e crescimento econômico para famílias inteiras, em todos os continentes.

* imagem: página principal website TOMS - Março/2016

Em 2011, o conceito foi expandido paraóculos: a TOMS Eyewear oferece óculos de grau, tratamentos médicos e/ou cirurgias a cada compra de produtos em suas lojas (ou online). Nos últimos cinco anos, mais de 360 mil pessoas receberam tratamento. Em 2014 nasceu a TOMS Roasting, que oferece 140 litros de água potável (suficiente para alimentar uma família por uma semana) para cada pacote de café vendido. Em dois anos, foram distribuídas 250 mil semanas de água em seis países. Em 2015, por fim, a TOMS Bag Collection foi lançada em quatro países e, para cada bolsa vendida, a empresa oferece treinamento para parteiras e distribui kits que ajudam as mães a dar à luz em segurança.

O modelo de negócios da TOMS (uma derivação de Tomorrow Shoes) só funciona, porém, se a empresa vender seus produtos com uma margem de lucro que permita sustentar a doação de metade de sua produção, mais as despesas logísticas dessas doações. Por isso, a empresa conta com parceiros tecnológicos que lhe permita ser extremamente eficiente.

Em 2012, a TOMS percebeu que sua estrutura de e-commerce (lançada em 2010) não seria capaz de dar suporte ao rápido crescimento de seus negócios, tanto nos Estados Unidos quanto no exterior. Ao escolher a solução Oracle Commerce, a empresa ganhou a possibilidade de personalizar a experiência de compra de cada usuário, entregando a eles recomendações de produtos de acordo com o perfil de consumo, conteúdo relevante, um processo de pagamento simples e rápido, reviews e notas de outros clientes para cada produto.

“Crescemos muito rápido nos últimos anos e temos na Oracle Retail uma parceira que não apenas acompanha nossa evolução, como traz flexibilidade para continuarmos a evoluir conforme o mercado exige”, afirma Hilda Fontana, vice presidente global de desenvolvimento Web da TOMS.

Já em 2013 a TOMS lançou sua plataforma de e-commerce na Holanda, França e Alemanha, passando a atuar online em seis países (já estava nos Estados Unidos, Canadá e Reino Unido), com quatro idiomas diferentes. Em 2014, as operações de e-commerce nesses três últimos países passaram a rodar com Oracle Commerce e em 2015 o e-commerce passou a operar globalmente. “Nosso negócio melhorou muito com a nova solução, pois passamos a operar de forma sinérgica e pudemos nos concentrar na evolução do nosso negócio, sabendo que as questões técnicas estariam resolvidas e continuariam evoluindo conforme a demanda”, conta Hilda.

Um exemplo é o design responsivo, um recurso com que a empresa não contava na plataforma anterior e que imediatamente reconhece o tipo de equipamento que o cliente está usando e otimiza o formato, conteúdo e desempenho do site em todas as suas atividades, incluindo o pagamento. Recursos de tradução integrada simplificaram a expansão da TOMS em novos mercados, uma vez que a criação de uma versão do site em outro idioma se tornou bem mais simples. Na retaguarda, o status do estoque em tempo real e a integração dos centros de distribuição permitemà empresa aumentar a eficiência de seus negócios.

Outro exemplo são as possibilidades de personalização. “Hoje podemos segmentar nossos clientes com base em uma série de fatores, como a última data de acesso, a data do último pedido, as áreas mais acessadas pelo usuário, os últimos produtos comprados, geolocalizaçãoe produtos buscados, para oferecer a cada cliente uma experiência realmente personalizada, de acordo com o que os clientes buscam”, diz a executiva.

O próximo passo é a integração das lojas físicas à estrutura online, e não somente as lojas próprias da marca. “Nossos clientes podem comprar online e devolver os produtos, se desejarem, em um de nossos parceiros, como Neiman Marcus e Nordstrom”, conta Hilda. Esse recurso exige não apenas uma visão integrada dos estoques da TOMS, mas também a visualização da posição das devoluções em outras empresas e o desenvolvimento de processos de logística reversa sofisticados. “Estamos trabalhando também em soluções que permitem iniciar a compra online e finalizá-la na loja, caso o cliente tenha dúvidas sobre o produto e prefira ir a loja provar o produto”, afirma Hilda

As possibilidades de integração das lojas físicas ao negócio online contribuirão para uma forte expansão dos negócios de varejo da TOMS nos próximos anos. “Hoje, cerca de um terço de nossas vendas acontecem online e a maior parte do negócio ocorre no atacado. Nos próximos cinco anos vamos duplicar, talvez triplicar, nossa base de lojas e a integração das lojas ao e-commerce, bem como a própria expansão dos sites, deverá fazer com que o online represente metade de nossas vendas”, estima.

With tight competition to maintain the strongest employee pool, today’s Chief HR Officers and HR leaders are constantly asking themselves strategic questions. Here are a few:

• Do we have effective employees? How do we analyze our talent: Its ability to produce? Its teamwork capability? Its financial ROI?... • Are we paying employees a competitive wage? What are the risks of losing valued employees to the competition? How are similar companies doing…by industry? …by company size? …within our geography? 
• Are we hiring the best employees available? Where can the best candidates be found? What is the perception of my company by the candidate pool? What are the employment conditions and perks expected by today’s candidates?  

Undoubtedly, the more relevant information that a CHRO and HR leaders have available, the clearer the picture of the company’s ability to attract, develop, and maintain the best employees becomes. It’s also evident that some of this information isn’t available from the traditional HR data sources.

When comparing the analytics needs of  HR leaders with what’s available to them I find that, for many HR departments: 

• The information in the data repository is limited and often the data isn’t available from a single system. 
• Use of analytic and automated reporting is scarce. In fact, many reports are manually compiled in Excel and, often, the information is stale even before it’s produced. 
•  Reports tend to focus on history and summarize factual events. How is an HR leader to answer the strategic questions, today, with the information that is readily available? 

TOMS: un negocio basado en ayudar al prójimo y como la asociación con Oracle ayuda la empresa a ganar escala mundial

El concepto de negocios de TOMS es inusitado: para cada producto vendido, uno de ellos se dona a quien lo necesita, en diferentes regiones del mundo. Actualmente, más de 100 organizaciones no-gubernamentales en más de 70 países, de los Estados Unidos a China, pasando por Honduras, Haití e India, se asocian a la empresa en sus proyectos sociales. Un negocio edificado a partir de la idea de hacer el bien, pero para que funcione, necesita contar con una poderosa infraestructura.

La historia de la empresa se inicia en 2006 en Argentina, donde Blake Mycoskie vio que los niños que vivían en villas no podrían salir de esa situación porque no podían ni mismo ir a la escuela, por una simple razón: no tenían qué calzar. Para ayudarlos, se creó TOMS Shoes, con un concepto de "uno por uno": porcada par de zapatos vendidos, uno se donaba a alguien que lo necesitaba. Una idea simple que evolucionó hacia un modelo de negocios que ya vendió más de 50 millones de calzados y ayuda a abrir oportunidades en salud, educación y crecimiento económico para familias enteras en todos los continentes.

* imagen: página principal website TOMS - Marzo/2016

En 2011, el concepto se expandió a los anteojos: TOMS Eyewear ofrece anteojos de aumento, tratamientos médicos y/o cirugías por cada compra de productos en sus tiendas (o en línea). En los últimos cinco años, más de 360 mil personas recibieron tratamiento. En 2014 nació TOMS Roasting, que ofrece 140 litros de agua potable (suficiente para abastecer una familia durante una semana) por cada paquete de café que se vende. En dos años, se distribuyeron 250 mil semanas de agua en seis países. En 2015, se lanzó TOMS Bag Collection en cuatro países y, para cada bolsa que se vende, la empresa ofrece entrenamiento para parteras y reparte kits que auxilian a las madres a dar a luz en seguridad.

El modelo de negocios de TOMS (una expresión que deriva de Tomorrow Shoes) solamente funciona si la empresa vende sus productos con un margen de ganancias que permita soportar la donación de mitad de su producción más los gastos logísticos para dichas donaciones. Es por eso que la empresa cuenta con socios tecnológicos que le permiten ser extremadamente eficiente.

En 2012, TOMS entendió que su estructura de e-commerce (lanzada el 2010) no sería capaz de soportar el rápido crecimiento de sus negocios tanto en los Estados Unidos como en el exterior. Al elegir la solución Oracle Commerce, la empresa tuvo la posibilidad de personalizar la experiencia de compra de cada uno de los usuarios, entregándoles recomendaciones de productos según el perfil de consumo, contenidos relevantes, un procedimiento de pago simple y rápido, comentarios y observaciones de otros clientes de cada producto.

"Crecimos muy rápido en los últimos años y tenemos en Oracle Retail una asociación que no solamente nos acompaña en nuestra evolución, sino que también nos brinda flexibilidad para seguir evolucionando según las exigencias del mercado", dice Hilda Fontana, vice-presidente global de desarrollo Web de TOMS.

Ya en 2013 TOMS lanzó su plataforma de e-commerce en Holanda, Francia y Alemania, y pasó a actuar en línea en seis países (ya estaba en Estados Unidos, Canadá y Reino Unido) en cuatro idiomas distintos. En 2014 las operaciones de e-commerce en estos tres últimos países pasaron a ejecutarse con Oracle Commerce y, en 2015, el e-commerce pasó a operar de modo global. "Nuestro negocio mejoró mucho con la nueva solución, ya que pasamos a operar en concordancia y pudimos concentrarnos en la evolución de nuestro negocio, al saber que las cuestiones técnicas estarían solucionadas y continuarían evolucionando según la demanda", nos cuenta Hilda.

Un ejemplo es el diseño responsivo, un recurso con el que la empresa no contaba en la plataforma anterior y que inmediatamente reconoce el tipo de equipo que el cliente está utilizando para acceder al sitio web para optimizar el formato, contenido y desempeño de la página en todas sus actividades, incluso las de pagos. Los recursos de traducción integrada simplificaron la expansión de TOMS hacia nuevos mercados, ya que la creación de una versión del sitio web en otro idioma se volvió mucho más simple. En la parte de apoyo, el status del inventario en tiempo real y la integración de los Centros de Distribución permiten a la empresa incrementar la eficiencia de sus negocios.

Otro ejemplo son las posibilidades de personalización."Hoy podemos segmentar nuestros clientes en base a una serie de factores, como los son la última fecha de acceso, la fecha del último pedido, las áreas a las que más accede el usuario, los últimos productos que compró, la geolocalizacióny los productos buscados, para ofrecer a cada cliente una experiencia realmente personalizada, según lo que los clientes buscan", dice la ejecutiva.

La siguiente etapa es la integración de los establecimientos físicos con la estructura en línea, y no solamente los establecimientos propios de la marca.“Nuestros clientes pueden comprar en línea y devolver los productos si así lo desean, en uno de nuestros asociados, como Neiman Marcus y Nordstrom”, nos cuenta Hilda. Ese recurso exige no solamente una visión integrada de las existencias de TOMS, sino también la visualización de la posición de las devoluciones en otras empresas y el desarrollo de procedimientos sofisticados de logística reversa. “Estamos trabajando también en soluciones que permitan iniciar la compra en línea y concluirla en la tienda, en caso de que el cliente tenga dudas sobre el producto y prefiera ir al punto de venta a probar el producto”, afirma Hilda.

Iterative Periodic Average Costing (IPAC) in Oracle Cost Management

Date: March 8, 2015 at 11:00 am ET, 8:00 am PT, 3:00 pm GMT, 8:30 pm, India Time (Mumbai)

This one-hour advisor webcast is recommended for Oracle Cost Management functional users and consultants who are interested in the features of Iterative Periodic Average Costing.

Topics will include:

• Concept of Periodic Costing
• Recursive Inter-Org Transfers
• Iterative Period Average Costing (IPAC) - Features
• IPAC Setup
• Running IPAC

Details & Registration

The Demantra Analyzer and Log Parser

Date: March 9, 2015 at 11:00 am ET, 8:00 am PT, 3:00 pm GMT, 8:30 pm, India Time (Mumbai)

During this webcast we will review the latest Demantra Analyzer data points. We will discuss the scope of the analyzer input/output and recommended solutions. We will cover the analyzer execution logic and options when executing.

Functional Super Users and technical staff can gain insight into the environment where the Demantra Analyzer is submitted.

Understanding the technical nature of the output will give you a better understanding of what to expect from a performance perspective.

Topics will include:

• Profile Options
• Data Health
• Worksheet Setup
• RDBMS Health
• System Dates
• Processes

Details & Registration

We are honored and privileged to work with 30 customer speakers from 23 global retailers. The schedule will be set this week and published on the Oracle Industry Connect Website. We hope you will join us to learn from this dynamic line up of insightful speakers.

Who's Who (alpha by company)

Paul Sperling, Director of IT at Retail, A’GACI
Nick Oswald, Senior Manager - Demand Planning Operations, Best Buy
Rikke Alderson, Senior Digital Marketing Executive, Big 5 Sporting Goods
Chad Petersen, eCommerce Director, Carolina.com
Eddy Lecointe, Omnicommerce & Digital Transformation Director, Decathlon
Bryan Podgorny, Manager, Global Store Operations at Deckers Outdoor Corporation
Julius Odian, Vice President Business Development, Falabella
Fernando Jacome, CIO, Corporación GPF
ArMand Nelson, Director IT, Gander Mountain
Carissa Rollins, CIO and Executive Vice President, Gander Mountain
Paul Lamoureux, Senior Director, Enterprise Architecture, Gap Inc
Connie Santilli, Vice President Corporate IT and Strategy, Gap Inc.
Amy Stanberry, Vice President, Enterprise Systems & Strategy, Gap Inc.
Rick Whicker, Senior Director of Information Technology, Gap Inc.
Jesus de Francisco Garcia, CIO IT Director, Livraria Cultura
John King, Vice President - IT Merchandising & Product Development, Kohl's Department Stores
Mario Castano, Vice President, E-Commerce, Lenox
Jason Richard, CIO, Lucky Brands
Mark Baxendale, Senior Vice President, Planning & Allocation, lululemon athletica
N.C. Nagarajan, Director, Design, Merchandise Planning and Allocation Systems, lululemon athletica
Andrew Anosenko, COO, SPAR RUSSIA (SPAR TULA)
Cory Day, Sr Business Analyst, Pacific Sunwear
Eduardo Smaniotto, Director of Retail, Paquetá The Shoe Company
Daniel Moure, CMO, Pureformulas.com
Jackie Johnson, BT Business Partner, Red Wing Shoes
Marc Kermish, CIO, Red Wing Shoes
Mike Austin, Director, Ecommerce, Rooms to Go
Keith Costello, North America Consumer Facing Lead, The Estee Lauder Company
Bill Boezinger, Systems Manager, The Walt Disney Company
Bob Krohn, Director Merchandise Info. Systems, The Walt Disney Company

We are thrilled with the progress on the program so far. We have a few more confirmations expected this week. Please confirm your participation in the retail program today by registering at Oracle Industry Connect. Attendance is limited to retailers and our program sponsors to ensure that the focus remains on retailers learning from one another. We will also have participation from key industry analysts and publications in Orlando.

I hope you will join us. Send me a direct message if you have any questions.

Small and midsize businesses have traditionally been slower at adopting supply chain management solutions, simply because the barriers to entry were not ideal for smaller companies. The cost was too high, the implementation time too long, and the functionality offered was simply more than what they needed. Many of these companies run on a bare bones budget, and don't have the IT resources available to support complex, enterprise applications with complicated integrations. But times they are a'changing with new Oracle cloud-based supply chain solutions that are now available.

In a recent article in Industry Week, "How SMEs Can Win with Supply Chain Management Systems," the author writes "While daily business life is, even in SMEs, increasingly global, complex and fast paced, with information flowing into a company from various directions, the human being can only handle a limited amount of data. Even a very small company can have thousands of products and hundreds of customers and several suppliers that must be managed daily or weekly.  SCM systems offer huge process, customer satisfaction and direct cost reduction potential for SMEs. Without proper SCM strategy, action plan and processes, SMEs will lose business to competitors who have already implemented SCM."

Small and midsize companies can now take advantage of Oracle's end-to-end supply chain suite that offers solutions to manage logistics, procurement, order management, manufacturing, planning and innovation--all in the cloud. To small and midsize companies, this means they can now leverage enterprise-level solutions without having to worry about having to invest in a costly IT infrastructure to support them. No more worry about cobbling together integrations for point solutions--they can easily connect process to process within the Oracle Cloud SCM suite. To find out more about Oracle SCM Cloud solutions, visit www.oracle.com/scm  or cloud.oracle.com/scm.

One of the key objects in the Oracle Utilities Application Framework is the To Do object. It is one of the most commonly used objects and I am asked by customers and partners on various techniques they can use to manage the To Do records generated efficiently. Part of the issue with the To Do object is that it is sometimes used incorrectly causing implementation issues long term.

Before I outline some advice on how to optimize the use of To Do's I want to spend some time describing the concept of the To Do object.

Primarily the product is used to automate business processes within a utility organization (gas, electricity, water, waste water etc).  Sometimes, due to some condition or data issue, typically an exception, the product cannot automatically resolve the condition or data to satisfy the business process. In this case, a human needs to intervene to correct the condition or data and allow the process to proceed (usually on the next execution of the process). In this case the automation of the business process will create a To Do record outlining the type of exception (expressed in a To Do Type), the priority of the issue,  extra information, as well the links back to the relevant record that created the issue (for navigation). The product will allocate the To Do record to a To Do Role which presents the group of people that are allocated to address the exception. One of the people allocated to the To Do will work on the exception to resolve it and then mark the To Do as complete. The product will reprocess the original object that caused the exception whenever it is scheduled within the product.

In summary, whenever an exception is detected that requires human intervention, a To Do is created and then managed by designated individuals to resolve the exception for reprocessing. For example, say you are billing a customer and that customer has some information that is not complete for a successful bill to be generated. The product would raise a relevant To Do of a particular type and indicate a group of people to resolve the missing information so that the product can successfully bill that customer.

With all these facts in mind, here is my advice:

• To Do's are transient. They should be treated as such. They are created as needed and then once they are completed they should be only retained for a short time and then removed. We supply a purge process, F1-TDPG, in the products to remove completed To Do's after a period of time. We also supply an ILM based solution for To Do's as well if you wish to retain the data for longer periods. There is an article outlining the purge process.
• Do not use the To Do object for anything other than managing exceptions. I have seen it used to record business events and other data (including using it for a bespoke analytics). There are other methods for satisfying business requirements. For example, log entities can be used on most objects to record events and we also have a generic FACT object that can be used for all sorts of extensions.
• Examine each To Do Type and see if someone in your organization is actually doing anything with those To Do entries. If there is no business process to deal with the exceptions then you should reexamine whether you need to actually generate the To Do in the first place. Having To Do entries sit there and not be closed is not recommended as it would just build up slowly. If you do not have a business process for the exception then consider turning off that To Do generation. You must do this for base To Do Types as well as any custom To Do Types.
• For custom To Do Types, check for duplicate To Do entries. This does happen with customizations. When an exception occurs where a To Do needs to be generated, the customization should check if an existing To Do is already created before creating a new one.
• Examine anywhere within the product where a To Do is created and completed within the same transaction. This is a sign that probably the To Do should not be created in the first place. Consider turning off the To Do creation. If this is needed for some business process, look at running the purge process regularly to keep these optimally.
• Optimize the To Do Roles allocated to the To Do Type. The demonstration database is shipped with a single To Do Role per To Do Type. This is not the only configuration. You can use To Do roles to manage teams of people and then allocate them to the To Do Types they work on. You can have many To Do Types with many To Do Roles (and visa versa). You do need to nominate a default To Do Role on the To Do Type, which represents the default group of people to manage the To Do's of that To Do Type if no To Do Role is specified at creation time.
• The To Do Type has a number of algorithms that allow for greater control of the To Do:
  • Calculate Priority - By default the priority on the To Do record is inherited from the To Do Type but it is possible to alter the Priority based upon additional information in the object or in your processing using this algorithm.
  • External Routing - Routing To Do information to external systems or other objects.
  • To Do Post Processing - Process the To Do after it is created or updated. For example, if the To Do is updated you can use this algorithm to pass additional information or state to another system or dashboard application.

These are some of the techniques that will optimize your experiences with To Do. Remember the volume of To Do's is really an indicator of your data quality so improving the quality of data is also a valid technique for minimizing the management of To Do.

There is additional advice on optimal managing of To Do in the whitepaper Overview and Guidelines for Managing Business Exceptions and Errors (Doc Id: 1628358.1) from My Oracle Support.

以前2回関連するブログを書いていました。
昨日 SQLcl の中で Ruby 実行するところまでたどり着けましたが結論から言うと
まだうまく動かないことがわかりました。まだトライ中です。今回は失敗例の紹介です。

Oracle_DB_Tools/SCRIPTING.md at master · oracle/Oracle_DB_Tools

There are a few globals pushed into the scripting engine for use.

正確に言うと上記で説明されている"グローバル"を参照できません。

Ruby初心者であることがばれてしまいました。Rubyにはグローバル変数参照の書き方があるので次回ご紹介する予定です。

Javascript の場合はここにサンプルがあるように"global"を素で書けば動きます。Python も私自身で確認して
以前このブログで書きましたがグローバル変数を"素"で書けるようです。。Rubyではjavascript、pythonと同じように書くと以下のようにエラーになります。

$dir lib/jruby*
lib/jruby-core-9.0.5.0-complete.jar  lib/jruby-stdlib-9.0.5.0.jar$cat simple.rb
sqlcl.setStmt('@numbers.sql')
sqlcl.run()$CLASSPATH=lib/* /c/c/sqldeveloper/sqlcl/bin/sql /nolog
SQLcl: Release 4.2.0.16.067.1107 RC on 火 3 08 08:45:54 2016SQL>script simple.rb
script simple.rb
NameError: undefined local variable or method `sqlcl' for main:Object<top> at <script>:1
javax.script.ScriptException: org.jruby.embed.EvalFailedException: (NameError) undefined local variable or method `sqlcl' for main:Object
        at org.jruby.embed.jsr223.JRubyEngine.wrapException(JRubyEngine.java:104)
        at org.jruby.embed.jsr223.JRubyEngine.eval(JRubyEngine.java:93)
        at org.jruby.embed.jsr223.JRubyEngine.eval(JRubyEngine.java:142)
        at oracle.dbtools.scripting.ScriptingUtils.runScript(ScriptingUtils.java:35)

What are your options for extending cloud applications Oracle ERP and HCM? Oracle ACE Director Debra Lilley, Vice President of Cloud Services for Certus Solutions, explains the basics of PaaS4SaaS and the use of the Java Cloud Service to extend cloud apps.

See Debra's blog for more Cloud insight.

Want more 2 Minute Tech Tips? Click here.

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Photo credits: Original photograph taken by Stephanie Eley

There's no denying that stereotyping occurs despite our best efforts. Women in IT are sometimes deterred from even considering their desired career because the preconceptions and stereotypes built on this subject keep damaging gender diversity and professional opportunities alike.

No sooner had I looked into gender stereotyping than I realized how easy it is to disarm it. I took this experiment in my own hands and met some incredible individuals along the way - take Maggie Huston for instance. From her 7-year experience as a professional journalist for one of the biggest news channels in U.S.A, to Senior Content Manager for Oracle Social Cloud, Maggie’s blend of capabilities both as a successful woman in tech and as a renowned writer got me thinking: there’s definitely more to someone than what first meets the eye.

And for those who still think that being a woman in a tech company goes hand in hand with a stereotype personality, Maggie shows us that breaking patterns is not only happening at Oracle, but also something that every woman can do if she is determined to hold on to her own path for success.  

So what patterns are we exactly talking about? Let’s consider the most common ones and disprove them one by one.

Myth: Women in tech are born to love technology

Which came first, the chicken or the egg? In this case, it’s more like “does technology pick you or do you get to pick technology”? Let's have a look at this argument from Maggie's perspective: “Leaving journalism and learning an entirely new industry was challenging. I started at zero”.

Changing industries is like changing passions – tough and abrupt, yet empowering and meaningful at the same time. “Being an outsider to this industry has helped me see connections that others might not make”, says Maggie, highlighting her experience that she confidently describes as a step up in her career.

Little by little, she soon discovered that technology and writing can indeed come together and bring even greater outcomes for her career. In short, passion beats stereotypes – and it’s the one key ingredient that truly makes a difference in the long run. So if you don’t have the “crazy about tech” gene from the very beginning, don’t dismiss the possibility of working in this field. Be curious enough to explore different options and you’ll be surprised to find opportunities that you initially might have overlooked.

Myth: Women in tech are only passionate about tech

Some people might find women in tech with different passions as peculiar as Brian May, guitarist of legendary rock band Queen, having a PhD in astrophysics. But as we get to the root cause of this misconception, there’s so much we can uncover.

Even though Maggie works in a tech company, she admits that writing is actually one of her guilty pleasures. “I’ve always enjoyed writing, and I’d like to think I’m pretty good at it. Writing a weekly blog has sharpened my pen.” While working on two apparently unrelated passions is not easy, or as Maggie puts it, “it’s a never-ending quest for excellence,” the journey is quite literally priceless –“I wouldn’t change a thing about it,” she says.

Myth: Women in tech are not fun

This particular misconception is quite funny because in reality not only can women be amazing professionals in tech companies, they can also bring a unique flavor to them. As Maggie can tell us, she is far from “handcuffing” her personality –“Beyoncé is my spirit animal. I listen to her every time I need to be pumped up,” she admits.

The truth is, working in tech doesn’t define you as a woman, but you, as a woman, can define working in tech. And sometimes that has to do with never letting go of who you really are or what makes you truly happy –“There’s just something about singing, “I woke up like dis” that makes me feel invincible”, Maggie said.

From staying true to your passions and work, to being inspired when singing Queen songs if working from home (just like Maggie), as a woman in a tech company you are free to design your own path and develop your skills in your own way. No exceptions.  

Myth: Women in tech don’t diversify their skills

Some misconceptions about women in tech revolve around the idea that limiting their knowledge to technical skills is like an unwritten rule. Maggie however, is one of the women who broke this pattern and proved that you can indeed build other skill sets while working in tech, aside from technical ones:

“I’ve been building on my budget management know-how. I’m currently in the process of setting up a paid media campaign for the Oracle Social handles. This is entirely new to me, but it’s essential to running an effective social media campaign.

I’m also learning a lot on editorial planning: As a journalist, the news comes to you. As a content creator, you have to plan your content strategy across multiple platforms. Creating content that is useful, entertaining, and timely is extremely difficult. Having a solid editorial plan in place makes this a lot easier.”

So if we actually had to write a rule about women in tech and learning new skills, let’s ask a real writer to help us rephrase it:

“If you want to improve your career in tech, I’d strongly recommend getting on social media and following industry hashtags. There are tons of very strong blogs out there. Get involved in the conversation. Build connections with industry leaders. Network and establish yourself as a thought leader,” Maggie says.

Conclusion: Think twice before stereotyping

Getting to know more about the women behind a tech company is just the first step to overcoming the misconceptions groomed by society on this subject. But the true challenge is for people to accept realities based on facts and achievements rather than stereotypes. So if you’re wondering whether women in tech are actually making a difference, get out there and get to know them, both as individuals and as professionals - and you’ll be pleasantly surprised to discover there’s definitely more to their story than meets the eye.

About the author:

Check out some of my other articles you might enjoy.

Andreea Clair: My writing is penned to inspire those who are looking for that tailor-made message that brings in top talents, or simply for those who want a breath of fresh air in their personal and professional development.

Connect with me on LinkedIn and Twitter.

We proudly invite you to the AMIS Anniversary Conference ‘AMIS 25 – Beyond the Horizon’ on June 2 & 3 in Katwijk, The Netherlands.

Themes
‘AMIS 25 – Beyond the Horizon’is the largest Oracle conference in the Netherlands and beyond. The Conference will present technology related topics in the same spirit in which AMIS has surfed the latest technology waves throughout its existence and has shared knowledge with the Oracle community. You can choose from more than 70 presentations and demo’s on:

· UX & UI development

· SOA, Integration & API’s

· Database (Platform & Development)

· Business & IT Agility, Continuous Delivery, DevOps

· The Oracle Cloud Applications User Experience team from the US will also contribute.

Early Bird fee
Take advantage of our Early Bird Fee and register now! You will get 2 days filled with Oracle knowledge and you will get the chance to exchange ideas with numerous speakers and peers. Many of them will be Oracle ACE Directors and Oracle Product Managers.

The Conference fee includes breakfast, lunch and on June 2 also dinner and an anniversary party. For details please visit the registration page here.

WebLogic Partner Community

For regular information become a member in the WebLogic Partner Community please visit: http://www.oracle.com/partners/goto/wls-emea ( OPN account required). If you need support with your account please contact the Oracle Partner Business Center.

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Technorati Tags: WebLogic,WebLogic Community,Oracle,OPN,Jürgen Kress

Clientes de bases de datos Oracle que la ejecutan sobre Engineered Systems, Exadata y Supercluster, podrían dudar de las ventajas de implementar la opción In-Memory.

Hay importantes razones para ejecutar In-Memory sobre los Engineered Systems de Oracle:

• Se obtiene una solución In-Memory que es tolerante a fallos

En los Engineered Systems se puede configurar una solución In-Memory tolerante a fallos utilizando el mecanismo denominado In-Memory Duplication (In-Memory mirroring). Este mecanismo permite que las extensiones in-memory sean replicadas a través de un cluster RAC para prevenir cualquier degradación de rendimiento si se pierde un nodo RAC. Esta característica sólo está disponible para los Engineered Systems.

• Se pueden exceder los límites DRAM y escalar de forma transparente a través de Memoria, Flash y Disco

En los Engineered Systems la base de datos puede exceder los límites de la DRAM y escalar a cualquier tamaño de memoria, disco y flash con transparencia completa para la aplicación. Se combina el más alto rendimiento analítico en memoria, con el más alto rendimiento en flash (incluyendo cache columnar) y el rendimiento en disco. La combinación de In-Memory con flash y disco provee una solución más efectiva en coste que una solución de sólo memoria, que requeriría tener todos los datos en memoria DRAM.

• La carga inicial de los datos en el almacenamiento de columnas In-Memory es muy rápido

Debido al rendimiento extremo en IO de los Engineered Systems, la carga inicial de los datos en el almacenamiento In-Memory es un proceso mucho más rápido.

• La optimización de la agreagación In-Memory puede ser descargada a las celdas de almacenamiento Exadata

La introducción de la opción In-Memory viene con la nueva optimización de la agregación In-Memory, denominada ‘Vector Group By’. Los vectores clave, utilizados por VGB para mejorar ‘join’ y agregación son descargados en el almacenamiento Exadata habilitando una agregación más rápida independientemente de donde resida.

• Optimización para RAC, con protocolos de baja latencia sobre Infiniband

Exadata y Supercluster están especialmente optimizados para RAC, con protocolos específicos sobre Infiniband para interconexión de baja latencia. El cluster de RAC es como se consigue la tolerancia a fallos de la Base de Datos In-Memory y como las grandes bases de datos pueden escalar en memoria. Ninguna otra plataforma soporta RAC con in-memory como lo hacen Exadata y Supercluster.

• Exadata y Supercluster son plataformas de consolidación de bases de datos y Oracle Database In-Memory habilita más oportunidades de consolidación

Exadata y Supercluster son las plataformas idóneas para consolidar y la opción In-memory incrementa ese valor. En varios aspectos Oracle Database In-Memory completa Exadata aplicando técnicas que son similares a aquellas utilizadas en disco y flash. Esta consolidación permite a los clientes optimizar rendimiento y coste de forma simultánea, al poner en memoria tablas o bases de datos específicas al tiempo que se utiliza el rendimiento extremo de flash y se usa el disco de alta capacidad para incrementar la capacidad de consolidación. El resultado es una solución que da la velocidad de la DRAM, las IOPS de la flash y la eficiencia en coste del disco.

• Uso de Oracle VM Trusted Partitions y de Hard Partitioning

Exadata y Supercluster permiten Trusted Partitions y Hard Partitioning respectivamente. Esto es especialmente relevante para opciones de bases de datos que requieren menos capacidad de computación que el sistema físico completo.

• Configuraciones elásticas

Exadata y Supercluster permiten configuraciones elásticas que están perfectamente adaptadas a cargas de trabajo a medida. El cliente compra nodos de almacenamiento o cómputo según las necesidades específicas de cada momento.

• Soporte NUMA para la ejecución paralela

Para grandes conjuntos de datos se ha utilizado la ejecución paralela de Oracle para mejorar el rendimiento de escaneado asignando múltiples procesos paralelos en el sistema. Sucede lo mismo para la opción In-Memory. En Exadata y Supercluster, In-Memory y la ejecución paralela son conscientes de NUMA, permitiéndoles entender la estructura de la memoria y su interconexión. Asegurando de esta forma el acceso más rápido a los datos contenidos en memoria.

• Ventajas adicionales del procesador SPARC M7 en Supercluster

A todas las ventajas anteriores se deben añadir las específicas del procesador SPARC M7:

SPARC M7 tiene aceleradores SQL para consultas analíticas

• La ejecución de determinadas operaciones SQL se aceleran en dos y tres órdenes de magnitud cuando se ejecutan sobre el procesador SPARC M7. Determinadas consultas inviables sobre plataformas tradicionales son ahora posibles en SPARC M7.

SPARC M7 tiene compresión / descompresión por hardware

• Las unidades de descompresión de SPARC M7 permiten disfrutar de una DRAM que es aproximadamente el triple de la memoria física disponible. Esta característica permite tener muchos más datos en memoria mejorando drásticamente el rendimiento.

SPARC M7 tiene mecanismos de protección de la memoria

• Adicionalmente los datos estarán más seguros en SPARC M7, el procesador incluye mecanismos de seguridad implementados en hardware que impiden a un proceso leer o escribir en segmentos de memoria que no son propios.

Link para más información : http://www.oracle.com/us/corporate/features/database-in-memory-option/index.htm

y:http://www.oracle.com/us/products/database/options/database-in-memory/overview/index.html

Manuel Vidal

Director Iberia Hardware Presales

• Parameter Recommendations for Oracle Database 12c - Part I
• ==> Parameter Recommendations for Oracle Database 12c - Part II

---

Time for a new round on Parameter Recommendations for Oracle Database 12.1.0.2. The focus of this blog post settles on very well known parameters with interesting behavior. This can be a behavior change or simply something we'd like to point out. And even if you still work on Oracle Database 11g some of the below recommendations may apply to your environment as well.

We've several articles around using Regular Expressions, and this quick-tip adds a handy little shortcut. In simple terms, Groovy allows you to use regular expressions when evaluating String values in a quick way, compared with using a Java String class methods, such as replaceAll() or matches(). Incidentally, we'll be looking at more Java String methods accessible in Groovy in another article later this week.

So coming back on topic, if you include a tilde (~) in your Groovy evaluation expression (after the operator) you can follow it with a regular expression. The tilde implicitly creates a regular expression Pattern for use in the evaluation. This simple shortcut makes the script easier to write (and read), helping many non-developers.

Here is a simple example. In this case my regular expression ignores the case of the value, so when I enter a mixed case value in the page it evaluates appropriately. Obviously there are other ways to achieve the same thing, but it illustrates this handy shortcut.

def val = getAttribute('rb_Reference_c')
if (val =~ /(?i)richard/) {     throw new oracle.jbo.ValidationException('Hello There')   } 

Die Ausgaben für Servermanagement und -verwaltung haben sich in den letzten Jahren nicht nur mehr als verdoppelt, sondern machen heute auch den größten Teil der IT-Betriebskosten aus. Mit vorkonfigurierten, integrierten Systemen aus Oracle Hardware und Software kann ein deutlicher Teil der IT-Betriebskosten eingespart werden. Oracle Engineered Systems werden betriebsfertig ausgeliefert und sind in kürzester Zeit einsatzbereit. Analysten sehen die Oracle Engineered Systems im Bereich der integrierten Systeme hervorragend platziert. Welche Modelle, Einsatzgebiete, Vorteile und Kostenersparnisse die Oracle Systeme bieten, erfahren Sie und ihre Kunden bei der Informationsveranstaltung unseres Oracle Partners Graef Computer GmbH:

Wann:   Donnerstag, 7. April 2016, 12 Uhr bis 17 Uhr
Wo:       Graef Computer GmbH, Fallgatter 5, 44369 Dortmund

Jetzt hier anmelden

Agenda:
ab 12 Uhr Imbiss

ab 13 Uhr Begrüßung

Oracle Database Appliance (ODA)
Michael Reick, Technischer Account Manager Broad Market, Oracle

• Die Oracle Database Appliance (ODA) im Überblick
  
• Vorteile der ODA, insbesondere die „Capacity on Demand“-Lizenzierung
  
• Wie komme ich zur ODA?
  
• ODA und VM
  

ab 14 Uhr Private Cloud Appliance (PCA)
Jörg Meiners, Director System Architects, Oracle

Die Private Cloud Appliance (PCA) ist die schlüsselfertige Lösung von Oracle für eine private Cloud. Das System enthält die komplette Hard- und Software um Cloud Service Modelle (wie z.B. IaaS oder DBaaS) schnell und einfach zu realisieren. Zudem ermöglicht die PCA ein einzigartiges Cloud-konformes Lizenzierungsmodell für Oracle Datenbanken und Middleware. 

• Die PCA im Überblick 
• Cloud Service Modelle mit der PCA 
• Lizenzierung von Oracle Software auf der PCA 
• Anwendungsbeispiele aus der Praxis

ab 15 Uhr Oracle Lizenzierung in virtuellen Umgebungen
- auch besonders für Oracle Database Enterprise Edition wichtig
Wolfram Schmitz, Geschäftsführer, Graef Computer GmbH

ab 16 Uhr 1:1 Experten Talk zu allen Themen

Wir laden alle Interessierten ein, sich für die Veranstaltung in Dortmund zu registrieren. Aufgrund der begrenzten Teilnehmerkapazität wird um eine kurzfristige Anmeldung gebeten.
Wir freuen uns auf Ihren Besuch!

Die Ausgaben für Servermanagement und -verwaltung haben sich in den letzten Jahren nicht nur mehr als verdoppelt, sondern machen heute auch den größten Teil der IT-Betriebskosten aus. Mit vorkonfigurierten, integrierten Systemen aus Oracle Hardware und Software kann ein deutlicher Teil der IT-Betriebskosten eingespart werden. Oracle Engineered Systems werden betriebsfertig ausgeliefert und sind in kürzester Zeit einsatzbereit. Analysten sehen die Oracle Engineered Systems im Bereich der integrierten Systeme hervorragend platziert. Welche Modelle, Einsatzgebiete, Vorteile und Kostenersparnisse die Oracle Systeme bieten, erfahren Sie und ihre Kunden bei der Informationsveranstaltung unseres Oracle Partners Graef Computer GmbH:

Wann:   Donnerstag, 7. April 2016, 12 Uhr bis 17 Uhr
Wo:       Graef Computer GmbH, Fallgatter 5, 44369 Dortmund

Jetzt hier anmelden

Agenda:
ab 12 Uhr Imbiss

ab 13 Uhr Begrüßung

Oracle Database Appliance (ODA)
Michael Reick, Technischer Account Manager Broad Market, Oracle

• Die Oracle Database Appliance (ODA) im Überblick
  
• Vorteile der ODA, insbesondere die „Capacity on Demand“-Lizenzierung
  
• Wie komme ich zur ODA?
  
• ODA und VM
  

ab 14 Uhr Private Cloud Appliance (PCA)
Jörg Meiners, Director System Architects, Oracle

Die Private Cloud Appliance (PCA) ist die schlüsselfertige Lösung von Oracle für eine private Cloud. Das System enthält die komplette Hard- und Software um Cloud Service Modelle (wie z.B. IaaS oder DBaaS) schnell und einfach zu realisieren. Zudem ermöglicht die PCA ein einzigartiges Cloud-konformes Lizenzierungsmodell für Oracle Datenbanken und Middleware. 

• Die PCA im Überblick 
• Cloud Service Modelle mit der PCA 
• Lizenzierung von Oracle Software auf der PCA 
• Anwendungsbeispiele aus der Praxis

ab 15 Uhr Oracle Lizenzierung in virtuellen Umgebungen
- auch besonders für Oracle Database Enterprise Edition wichtig
Wolfram Schmitz, Geschäftsführer, Graef Computer GmbH

ab 16 Uhr 1:1 Experten Talk zu allen Themen

Wir laden alle Interessierten ein, sich für die Veranstaltung in Dortmund zu registrieren. Aufgrund der begrenzten Teilnehmerkapazität wird um eine kurzfristige Anmeldung gebeten.
Wir freuen uns auf Ihren Besuch!

Dear Oracle EPM Partner,