Why Quest?

The business case and value proposition for how Quest membership helps you and your company

Quest exists to enhance value through collaboration and partnership within the user community worldwide. Our rapid growth from a handful of members in 1995 to more than 50,000 subscribers and members today demonstrates the value of the education, networking, solutions, collaboration, and cost savings Quest provides to the user community. Today's members have an even bigger advantage – they're getting more for their money, as our services are increasing on a daily pace, and our focus remains on creating value for our memberships and creating relationships with Oracle and our 70+ affiliated user groups worldwide.

Need more reasons why Quest is an important resource for your business? Hear from customers just like you -- listen to members of Quest's Board of Directors as they tell you the value they find in being a member of Quest.

Our Community:

• Affiliated User Groups. The networking within Quest isn't limited to just our members. The more than 70 affiliated user groups are also part of our community, and their own meetings are a perfect supplement to the larger conference Quest presents each year. By making these affiliates part of your total Quest experience, you'll increase your contacts and knowledge tenfold.
• Vendor Partners. Getting in touch with the right solutions/services providers, setting up meetings to talk about their services – even finding them in the first place – can be time-consuming, costly and difficult. That's why Quest provides you multiple ways to locate, talk with and learn about the vendors who are tried-and-true in the Oracle world. You can access them online, at our conferences, and read about them in Q&A – all standard parts of our membership package.
• Oracle. Under Oracle's user group model, Quest is viewed as an umbrella group representing the needs and views of a large number of our individual members as well as our affiliate groups. Oracle relies on Quest for strong customer input – we believe being a part of Quest is the No. 1 way you'll have the chance to let Oracle know what you think about the development of Fusion, service and maintenance issues, and what you want out of your current applications. Oracle's support of Quest's mission has resulted in them providing an ex officio member for our Board of Directors, incorporating our sessions and receptions for users into their own schedule at OpenWorld, and providing content for our website and magazine.
• Committees. Quest's decisions are based on one factor: What our members tell us they want. And one of the best ways we get that feedback is through our volunteer members who sit on committees, planning everything from our events to the content of our magazine.
• Evalubase. An agreement with Evalubase allows Quest members an additional benefit that would cost thousands elsewhere – access to research and results on the IT marketplace, ranging from vendor performance and satisfaction rankings to ROI timelines, allowing you to measure your organization against the rest of the IT world. 

Our Events:

• COLLABORATE. The COLLABORATE conference provides an opportunity for users to network, learn from one another, and share their thoughts and ideas. Also, from main stage speakers to education sessions and demo areas on the show floor, Oracle is providing a high level of involvement in our event. COLLABORATE is an experience like no other conference, as we've expanded our opportunities by co-locating with the Oracle Applications Users Group and the Independent Oracle Users Group.

Our Communication:

• Q&A Magazine. The information in Q&A is more than valuable – it's essential to making sure your applications run smoothly. Get forward-looking insight from Oracle executives. Get tips and techniques you can implement right away. All in a magazine produced exclusively for Quest members – the only one in the industry. Subscriptions to other leading IT publications will cost you nearly $100 alone – without the additional benefits of Quest membership, or the focus on you and your organization.
• e-News and President's Letters. When you become a member, we want you to become connected. Our e-News and monthly President's Letters will help you stay current with what's new in our organization and what's new in the Oracle community – delivered straight to you.

Our Membership:

• Corporate. We want your company to take full advantage of the benefits Quest provides. Our corporate membership includes 10 members from your company. With a corporate membership, each person listed takes full advantage of Quest's services, and full advantage of the conference discounts a membership provides – that's a savings of $300 for each full conference registration.
• Individual. If you're the only Quest member from your organization, your membership is a vital link. Your Quest membership pays for itself – you receive a discount greater than your actual price of membership when you register for a Quest event. Why not get more for your money?

Our Online Tools:

• Enhancement Process. There is finally a valid way to get your ideas to Oracle – and with the backing of your fellow customers. This process gives Quest's community a way to submit and discuss their ideas and proposals for the Oracle products you use by involving Quest's affiliated SIGs, IUGs and PUGs and their Oracle points of contact.
• Infocast. When you have a question about your software, turn to Infocast, where thousands of your fellow users are available as resources. You have their expertise and practical knowledge of what actually works – and full access is a part of your membership package, so there's no additional cost.
• Vendor Directory. As a part of your membership, we want to give you access to the highest-quality third-party vendors out there. And we don't want you to waste your organization's valuable time and money searching. So we give our members access to a directory that houses information on the vendors that are pertinent to them – easy to find and easy to contact.
• Ask the Experts. Much like Infocast, Ask the Experts is designed to give you easy access to the folks who can actually answer your ERP question. Don’t waste time searching for the right resources or wondering what the real problem is. Go directly to our industry experts, where you'll be able to ask unlimited questions for no additional fee – your membership is all you need.
• Member Directory. When you're not at a Quest event, there's still an easy way to get in touch with members from your state, from your country, or from companies similar to yours. Using our member directory, available to all our members, will put you in touch with fellow Quest members who know what it's like to be you – and who have answers that can make your job easier.
• Applications Advocacy Pages. QuestDirect is not only a resource for tools, it's also a resource for information – all in one place. Our applications pages break down the most important facts and resources for your product. Their content, driven by our three Product Advocacy Committees, represents what our users think is most vital to making their software run. No more searching on sites that are hard to navigate – it's all right here on QuestDirect.
• Job Bank. Whether you’re looking for opportunities or looking for the perfect addition to your work team, our job bank makes your contact list grow by leaps and bounds. As a member, you can search for your dream career or, if you’re an employer, sit back and wait for the perfect candidate to come to you.
• Staples Business Advantage. Our partnership with Staples is specifically designed so that Quest members like you can save money on all your office supply needs. Complete the online form here. As a Quest member (U.S. and Canada only), you are eligible to participate in the brand new agreement and can start saving with Staples right away -- through discounted products online, expedited shipping, free shipping on all orders of $30 or more, $5 instant order consolidation rebate on all single orders over $200 and 10 percent credit on copy jobs at the 1,100-plus Staples retail stores in the United States.

Our Leadership:

• IOUC. Quest is playing a huge role in the future of user groups in the Oracle community. As a key leader of the International Oracle User Community (Quest Treasurer John Matelski is the IOUC Chairman as well), the questions, concerns and opinions of our organization are represented within the IOUC, which is the highest level of communication from users directly to Oracle senior management and leadership. Together with the other organizations making up the IOUC, we're driving users' futures.
• Board of Directors. Quest is led by a volunteer board of directors who are users just like you. The direction they set for our organization comes from you, based on your needs as a user. They're focused on bringing the most value to users as possible – without outside influence and without bias. Our Board of Directors is comprised of Oracle application users and includes a non-voting Oracle representative, increasing our collective voice and the weight of our opinion.