Oracle cites gains in SME market

Oracle Phils. marked the end of its third quarter for fiscal year 2005 (ended Feb. 28, 2005) with significant gains in the small and medium enterprise (SME) sector even as it continues to maintain leadership in the enterprise market.

Among Oracle’s new SME customers announced during the third quarter are Odyssey Records and Video, the country’s largest retailer of music and video products and accessories, which acquired Oracle’s e-Business Suite to help it manage its inventory more efficiently, and Max’s Fried Chicken, which adopted Oracle’s Financials and Manufacturing solutions.

Other new key customers include Glee Electronics, Mighty Corp. and Davao Light and Power Co.

"Oracle’s strength in enterprise solutions can bring equal benefits to SMEs," Yashi Kant, Oracle Phils. country manager, said in explaining the company’s growing presence in the SME sector.

"Here in the Philippines, a big portion of the economy is driven by small and medium businesses. By enhancing the IT capabilities of these companies, we are able to help them improve their overall performance and contribute further to economic stability and growth," Kant said.

In addition to enhancing customers’ business processes, Oracle solutions also help companies meet regulatory standards to achieve efficiency, transparency and good corporate governance in general.

In the case of Davao Light and Power Co., the biggest electricity distributor in Mindanao, Oracle enabled the utility firm to meet the strict requirements under the Electric Power Industry Reform Act or EPIRA.

The law requires electricity companies to "unbundle" their business activities and create separate business segments within the company, resulting in a virtual overhaul of its systems.

By adopting Oracle’s Financial Management solution under the e-Business Suite, Davao Light was able to successfully "unbundle" its business according to EPIRA regulations and at the same time, seamlessly integrate information among these different business segments.

Davao Light went live on Oracle e-Business Suite last Feb. 1. It has implemented the Accounting to Financial Reports and Procure to Pay Business flows of the Oracle e-Business Suite.

The solution includes modules on general ledger, accounts payable, fixed assets, purchasing, inventory and costing. The modules have also been successfully integrated into the company’s core systems like billing and collection and Standard Work Management (SWM) systems.

"Now more than ever, information has become a vital component in business. CEOs and entrepreneurs make decisions based on the amount, timing and quality of information made available to them through a reliable IT infrastructure. Throughout the entire business process, Oracle is there to provide that vital IT framework," Kant said.

Meanwhile, Oracle has expanded the operations of its Oracle University call center in Manila to service clients in the United States, in addition to those in the Asia-Pacific.

"Oracle has long believed in the potential of the Philippines and the world-class skills of Filipinos," Kant said.