Before the dust settles on Oracle OpenWorld 2012, I wanted to update the Quest community on the initiatives Quest pursued on our members behalf during the week in San Francisco, as well as on the major announcements that came from the JD Edwards and PeopleSoft divisions.

Throughout the conference, members of the Quest board and staff held meetings with executives from more than five Oracle divisions – including PeopleSoft, JD Edwards, Fusion, Primavera and Oracle Support  - to discuss joint initiatives and strategic alignment to support the JD Edwards, PeopleSoft and Primavera customers over the next 12-18 months and further strengthen our relationships with the many Oracle constituencies.

JD Edwards Announcements

Among the JD Edwards highlights are two more releases of OneView reporting, one of the most well-received new features of EnterpriseOne 9.1. Service Management and Transportation Management are both now available for OneView reporting, which allows the end user rather than IT staff to create reports and simplifies the process. 

JD Edwards Tools 9.1, update 2 is also now available, part of which is support for the Google Chrome browser.  

Also free for download is the Object Analyzer, which produces an object customization report so users can see exactly what customizations they have and create a plan for retrofitting or eliminating these customizations.

PeopleSoft Announcements

First and foremost among PeopleSoft news was the push-back of the release date for 9.2, now scheduled for general availability in the early part of 2013. Lots of great information as shared on 9.2 including details around these 5 themes:

Global Search – a beginning to the end of menus!

Activity Guides – trainstops to make self service more intuitive

Pivot Grids – easier access to actionable data

Workcenters – to increase job user effectiveness

Mobile Solutions – HTML5

PeopleSoft Update Manager

9.2 will introduce the PeopleSoft Update Manager (PUM) . This is a paradigm shift in maintenance – the end of bundles and maintenance packs.  Alleluia!  PUM will make pre-requisites a thing of the past by allowing customers to install any and all (pick and choose) available updates and bug fixes.   I’m really excited about this new feature because it will facilitate emergency maintenance and allow for a less frequent “strategic maintenance” strategy.

Additionally, three new  9.1 PeopleSoft Mobile applications were announced as generally available - expense management, approvals and company directory.  These apps are now ready to go mobile on both tablets and smartphones and do not require additional licensing fees. 

Extended support windows were also announced: 9.0 will be supported through June of 2015, and extended support fees are waived for both versions 9.0 and 9.1. 

Fusion News

Quest board and staff met with Oracle representatives of Fusion Applications to discuss identifying and better communicating the viable options for JD Edwards and PeopleSoft customers related to Fusion Applications, with a particular focus on “interoperability” with a company’s current product. Fusion is obviously not a new topic. Oracle has been talking about it for years. The difference is that more of our members are ready to listen/learn if the Fusion content is relevant to them. 

Nearly 400 customers have adopted all or part of Oracle Fusion Applications, including Red Robin, ConAgra foods, Nikon and Elizabeth Arden, whether on-premises or in private or public cloud deployments. Oracle Fusion for HCM expanded with the company’s recent acquisition of Taleo and its plans to purchase SelectMinds, whose software aids in recruiting and hiring through social media.

In keynotes from Oracle executives Larry Ellison, Mark Hurd and Thomas Kurian, and additional application-focused sessions with executives Steve Miranda and Chris Leone, Oracle reiterated that Fusion Applications are mobile via the iPad and are not just for cloud computing and Web services. They also continued to spread the message that Fusion operates well in conjunction with other Oracle products, including JD Edwards and PeopleSoft, and is not a “rip and replace” solution.