Software multitenancy drives operational efficiency

By Nick Hortovanyi

Over the last week, I've been evolving a presentation regarding our multitenancy commercialisation efforts through Business Portal Server. For the most part it has been received positively.

In one session that I gave though, a VC (Venture Capitalist) who was participating in the group, stated that we gave an excellent presentation but our business model was flawed. I of course disagreed prefusely. The argument presented was the classic of the internet as a disintermediation agent between organisations who provide SaaS services and the consumers there of. However, the model I see, is that new channels will evolve through eco systems of organisations working together. These organisations will focus in their particular areas of expertise be it software application focused or technical infrastructure to form stronger composite services.

The larger organisations that I deal with for on-premise consulting are continuously trying to reduce the number of vendors that they interact with. The lower the number, the less points of interactions. The argument being here the more efficient the internal procurement process. I believe also, that there is limits to the number of meaningful relationships that can be maintained to add value.

The complexity of development and support of production SaaS infrastructure is growing rapidly in complexity. Its only natural for consolidation and specialisation to follow. How these organisations work together will form the new software channels. It will also be shaped, rightly or wrongly, by procurement processes which drive how organisations purchase.

Tags models multitenancy services channel subscription saas   |  Comments 0

Open invitation to Oracle Executives to respond - am willing to discuss!

By Nick Hortovanyi

Following is the contents of an email that I sent to some Oracle persons. Someone from Oracle please respond!

In the event that Toast Technology Pty Ltd is not awarded the tender at XXX for the procurement of the Oracle licenses (which has occurred, further info here), we will be divesting from all other pre-sales and development activities into the Adelaide market for Oracle products and services until such time that Oracle can ensure us that this is a viable market to invest in.

I hope you appreciate the position that we are in, and we do enjoy working with the Oracle channel but at the present time we are not finding this to be a viable business. If you believe we are not taking advantage of the Oracle programs such that we may make the Oracle portion of the Toast Technology Pty Ltd business viable and profitable can you please advise.

Am willing to discuss anytime!

Kind Regards,

Nick Hortovanyi

Tags executives channel oracle   |  Comments 0

Is there any value in being an Oracle Partner?

By Nick Hortovanyi

We just lost the purchase of some Oracle software to EDS, explanation here. After calming down from the hype of the chase of the sale, and letting clearer heads prevail etc I started thinking about our involvement with Oracle software, I thought is there any value in continuing to be an Oracle Partner?

The conclusions I drew is that there is not much at all.

Why?

Oracle Middleware is still very buggy, we had to patch the installation process for Oracle SOA Suite 10.1.3.1 on a Linux box before we could even get it to start. We then were getting intermittent errors using Oracle XE (we couldn't use Oracle Std Ed or Oracle Ent Ed as the correct version wasn't available yet), so we then had to find some obscure way of overcoming the restrictions in Oracle XE before the software would work.

We can't guarantee that we will secure some income from promoting and being involved in the sale of a large transaction.

We don't make any recurring revenue off of support renewals.

We seem to be continuously invited to quote such that we can discount to fit into the client's budget as everyone now expects large discounts for Oracle software. So there goes all margin. On the database and Forms/Reports front everyone has DBAs and developers and so don't require any services.

We can't make revenue from product sale into the large accounts as they are all on Unlimited Deployment Programs. We don't want to bid fix price for services, as their software is buggy and everytime we do we get burnt.

We just completed a marketing activity, fully funded by Oracle, where we did not find any valid opportunities. There fore there is hardly any demand. It was very interesting to find the number of organisations as well that have gone Microsoft (and as their IT Strategy, its a Brand not a Stragey)

The Australian Oracle Channel Manager is leaving, going back to his previous role. So there mustn't be any money in it for them as well as they mustn't be making target.

I know this is the crazy month for Oracle, as it is the end of their financial year, but this seems to override as well any loyalty to the Oracle Partners as well as achieving targets and executive bonuses is the goal. It doesn't matter if we burn a partner or two or three to reach it.

Other local Oracle Partners have been in trouble for years (I hope this was not because I was taking their sales) 

We just can't see how we can make money out of Oracle on an ongoing basis.

Tags oracle channel partner   |  Comments 1