Alex Andrew is an Oracle Licensing Specialist, an ex-Oracle Sales Executive, an independent poacher turned gamekeeper who now assists customers in Oracle Licensing and Compliance based on the ISO 19770 Standard for Software Asset Management.

He is one of the leading independent Oracle License Specialists in the UK. He has over 7 years experience in Oracle licensing and over 3 years experience in Software Asset Management. In 2007 he created his own Java based licensing technology for Oracle Technology and Apps.

Alex can be contacted via our EMEA Regional office.
Alex took time out to answer our “top ten” questions!

How many years of Oracle Apps experience do you have?

9 years

How did you come to work with Oracle Apps?

I started to work at Oracle in 1999, as one of the Unilever account team quickly had to get to grips with not only technology but all the BI apps that Oracle had acquired.

When did you become an Oracle Contractor?

I first became a contractor in 2005, when I worked with an Oracle partner on the south coast.

What is the most enjoyable part of your work?

Making simple changes that effect major results.

What is the least enjoyable part of your work?

The bad news day. As a review/auditor – inevitably I have to break the news that an organization is significantly out of compliance with their licensing.  Even though most would like to think that they are complaint, I have only met a very few who are.  –  It’s not normally anyone’s fault, just the complexity of the agreements they enter into. The challenge is to explain to them that Software Asset Management should be looked at like any other business process that has to be kept up to date with.

What has been the most satisfying project you have worked on and why?

When I deployed my own tool to complete an Oracle Audit for a local government organization, we knew it was going to work but to see the results appear quickly and accurately meant a lot.

Which consultant / contractor have you learnt the most from / enjoyed working with the most and why?

Those that know the answers! Having worked on projects from all sides, pre-sales – sales, implementation, and review, the sheer amount of knowledge that consultants and contractors I have worked with is phenomenal, so it would be hard to name any names, but there are those with a wider view of the issues who always command my respect.

What do you see happening in Oracle Apps as we move towards “Fusion”?

I remember Thomas Kurian (Head of Server Tech for Oracle) talk extensively about Fusion a few years back on the basis of SOA, when Oracle’s biggest challenge was to get integration up to speed, getting the middleware to plug the gap, it took some time but the BEA acquisition was no surprise to me or many others. In terms of Oracle Apps, the real challenge will be what Oracle will do with its other acquisitions, even with lifetime support policies in place.

What are the hot topics in your area of expertise?

ISO 19770 Standard for Software Asset Management, and the push by all vendors for compliance in the install base.

What do you do when you are not working?

Reading, writing short stories and enjoying fatherhood.