Boston meetup is go!

EPM in Massachusetts

Another EPM meetup, another success.  Monotonous, isn’t it?

Here’s Mark Rinaldi and Norman Williams kicking off the meetup.  We had almost 20 people attending.  I (and others) think if it hadn’t been 6 Fahrenheit/-6 Celsius we may have had more.  No matter, those who attended had a fantastic time.

Here we are, we happy few:

As promised, if you weren’t there you missed:

1. Lunch (always important)
2. An EPM game.  Yes, really.  And it was awesome.  We’re sad.
3. Presentations

1. Oracle’s Mark Rinaldi:  “EPM Product Roadmap & Strategy”
2. Yr. most hmbl. & obt. svt.’s “Hybrid:  Theoretical promise, real world success”
3. TopDown Consulting’s Ron Moore:  “Delivering Business Transformation with PBCS”
1. Information about What Must Be The Very Best Oracle User Group In The World aka WMBTVBOUGITW aka much more sensibly ODTUG’s Kscope17 early bird specials and deadlines as well as cool ODTUG swag.

Dine well

The food was pretty good.  If I were in charge of things we’d be eating The Elvis.  Good thing I’m not in charge.

Let the games begin

The room was split into groups of three.  We were given a single sheet of requirements – just about on par for real world requirements documents (I kid, I kid), given 15 minutes to come up with a single page design so just about on par with most design documents (I’m not totally sure I’m kidding), and then had to present our design.

Here’s one of the teams figuring out their plan for world domination a fantastic solution.

Then a lucky chap got to present his team’s solution.  One thing I can say about EPM geeks is that we’re not afraid of speaking in front of others.

Even when we’re mostly wrong.

With the icebreaker out of the way, the true knowledge sharing began.

All present and correct

Here’s Mark Rinaldi explaining Oracle’s EPM roadmap.  It’s exciting stuff, particularly for on-premises customers who have been waiting, waiting, waiting for good news.  It is almost upon us.

What does work?  Not me.

Here’s a picture of Steve Liebermensch graciously not correcting me on my Hybrid Essbase presentation.  Could I have been that boring or that wrong?  Could be.

And finally Ron Moore telling us about a functional (gasp) view of PBCS. It was a refreshing change of pace.  I’ve known Ron for literally decades (just two or so) and as always he delivers excellent work.  Seriously, you need to hear Ron present on this – visionary is the way I view it.

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

One of the many joys of business travel is the ever-present risk of flights being cancelled.  Shall I mention the airline that left me stranded at Logan?  Why yes, here they are.  Bastards.

Instead I got to sample All Aboard With Amtrak’s service from Providence to (almost) home.  Would you believe that the train doesn’t leave till 10 pm?  And yet arrive at o’dark thirty?  Not that I was awake for it, but apparently there’s a two hour layover in Penn Station.

Rhode Island is Famous for You

Steve was nice enough to drive me to the Providence, RI Amtrak train station.  Thus another state is crossed off my bucket list of visiting every one of the lower 48.  I can’t tell you much about the state other than its train station is pretty small.  

At the same time, OMG taking the train is nicer than a plane.  I think next time, I’ll take the train.

And then I was in beautiful Trenton, New Jersey, my home state.  To be fair, there are some fantastic places in NJ, e.g. Baldpate Mountain.  However, I was not there but pondering how something could be “anytime” and yet be closed at 4:30 am.  A mere $40 cab fare home (Who at 4:30 am is going to complain about cost?  Not me.) and I was home.  

And so to bed for 40 winks before my 9 am development touch point meeting.

So what do we have?

Beyond my whining?  What we have is yet again a fantastic manifestation of the passion for learning and sharing that defines ODTUG.  It’s just a fantastic group of enthusiasts about all things Oracle.  

Your EPM community…

ODTUG is here to help you get that meetup off the ground.  Why wait?

Be seeing you.