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Last week, I attended COLLABORATE 16 in Las Vegas, Nevada. COLLABORATE 16 is Oracle’s annual technology conference that pulls together users, SMEs, and decision makers of Oracle technology and business applications, including EBS, PeopleSoft, JD Edwards, Hyperion, and more. People come from all over the world to share their experiences, solutions, and strategies with the rest of the Oracle community.

This year’s theme and discussion was all about the cloud. Everywhere you turned throughout the event, from classroom sessions and keynote speakers, to vendor booths and marketing materials, the message was consistent: Oracle Cloud, Oracle Cloud, and more Oracle Cloud.

There was no doubt about it–Oracle Cloud was the hot topic at COLLABORATE 16.

What is cloud computing? By definition, cloud computing is using a network of remote servers hosted on the Web to store, manage, and process data, rather than a local server or a personal computer. Yet, if you ask 10 people the question, “What is cloud computing?” you will likely get 10 different answers. That is because the meaning of cloud computing varies by individual depending on their current use and interaction with Oracle.

What does this mean to Vortex’s customers and users of Oracle ERP systems? Oracle wants you to migrate from on-premise ERP systems to the cloud–or at least start thinking about it and discussing it at your next IT strategy meeting. This is an interesting twist of fate, because it was only 5 years ago that Oracle senior executives questioned the viability and long-term business model of cloud computing and services. Now Oracle has fully embraced the cloud and wants to be recognized as your go-to vendor for everything cloud-related. Oracle offers a full suite of cloud services, including Oracle Cloud Infrastructure as a Service, Oracle Platform as a Service, and Oracle Software as a Service, which includes Oracle ERP Cloud.

The view on the floor at COLLABORATE 16.

At COLLABORATE 16, I had the opportunity to meet members of the Oracle ERP Cloud Team and see a demo of Oracle’s Procurement Cloud application. The product has a modern design, with a dashboard that feels similar to many of today’s Business Intelligence tools. Oracle Procurement Cloud has all the features and functionality of its existing on-premise procurement applications: requisitioning, punchouts, simplified shopping, auto-create, supplier management, purchasing agreements/contracts, and receiving, among others, plus some new features that I saw on the product’s dashboard that provide the ability to collaborate with your suppliers in real time.

Oracle is definitely generating a lot of excitement with its ERP Cloud Applications and is putting forth a large effort to increase product awareness. For customers who are new to Oracle Applications and want to minimize infrastructure costs or resource costs, Oracle ERP Cloud may be the right solution. For existing Oracle ERP customers who are considering Cloud Applications, there are many questions that come to mind: How does an organization migrate from its on-premise ERP system to Cloud ERP? How is data migrated to the cloud? What tools and connectors are available? Can it be done securely and cost effectively? How does Cloud ERP handle existing customizations? These are some initial questions, and certainly there are more to come.

Are you interested in learning more about what Oracle Cloud Applications can do for your organization? If your IT team is positioned to start talking about what a transition to the Oracle Cloud platform will look like, be sure to contact us at Vortex Consulting. We’re ready to help you make the move to a cloud-based future.