This is necessary for keeping the audit tools up-to-date and functioning, and also supporting patching of the database when updates arrive. Second, Oracle's pricing and maintenance policies are often considered exceptionally high for the market and are often questioned by customers (Evans, 10). Recommendations for Implementation

In terms of implementing the system significant changes to processes for data capturing including extraction, transfer and load (ETL) and the integration of BI components are necessary. From manufacturers including Quantum who relies on Oracle Enterprise Edition to manage the production of high density tape drives to R.L. Polk and its use for automotive data, Enterprise Edition has been shown to scale globally. Further, the transaction engine component is being used for synchronizing supply chains and production centers as well (Alkhatib, Labban, 102).

Any organization undertaking the use of Enterprise Edition will first need to streamline their most critical business processes, and for manufacturers this is there supply chain and procurement systems areas. Once these processes are in place the company can selectively add in role-based workflows, integrating them in from the diagram shown in Figure 1. Further detailed workflow-to-data set integration to the level of Figure 2 is also critically important as well (McCown, 102, 103). Once processes have been redefined and value stream mapping completed, Enterprise Edition and its modules can be installed on a Linux-based server, running Red Hat implementation of Linux O.S. And scaled to support virtualization. This will ensure a higher level of performance at a lower Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) than if an Intel and Windows system were included in the configuration for example (Turetken, Demirors, 179).

Rating Analysis

Based on an analysis of the thirteen factors captured during this analysis of the Enterprise Edition customer base and form the secondary data sources used in the analysis, scoring was defined for each attribute. These scores are based on an assessment of Enterprise Edition relative to competing applications shown in the following table.

Based on a comparative analysis of these applications and the alignment of Oracle features, functionality and corporate strengths the following table of ratings has been devised.

Rating Factor

Data types and data integrity

10%

Performance and Scalability

15%

Application Development

5%

Database Availability

4%

Database Security

13%

Platform Support

5%

Database Administration

15%

Product Roadmap Alignment To needs

3%

Pricing and Licensing

2%

Company Financials

5%

Training

2%

Systems Integration

5%

Global Presence

1%

Totals

85%

References

Ghazi Alkhatib, and Ronny S. Labban. "Transaction management in distributed database systems: The case of Oracle's two-phase commit. " Journal of Information Systems Education 13.2 (2002): 95-103.

Babcock, C.. "Oracle Adds Grid Features To 11g. ," InformationWeek 7 Sep. 2009, 124, 125.

Babcock, C. "Oracle Touts Virtualization, Apps -- And 11g, Of Course." InformationWeek 19 Nov. 2007: 83, 84.

Mike Cochrane. "The Big Picture: Industry convergence mandates a holistic BI and performance management approach." Information Management 19.4 (2009): 38.

Evans, B. (2009, July)....

InformationWeek,(1235), 10.
Vawn Himmelsbach. "Suites, open source shake up application server market. " Computing Canada 26 Nov. 2004, 35, 36

Kanaracus, C.. "Oracle Puts 11g Database, Other Tools in Cloud" Computerworld

29 Sep. 2008; 45, 46

Sean McCown. "Lab test: Oracle Database 11g shoots the moon. " InfoWorld.com 4 Jun 2008: 102, 103

James Mensching, and Gail Corbitt. "ERP data archiviving - a critical analysis. " Journal of Enterprise Information Management 17.2 (2004): 131.

Aaron Ricadela. "Oracle's Sun Deal: Oracle May Need to Loosen Its Grip. " Business Week (Online) 9 Nov. 2009, 127

Aaron Ricadela. "Can Oracle's Database 11g Deliver? " Business Week (Online) 12 Jul 2007, 14

Oktay Turetken, and Onur Demirors. "People Capability Maturity Model and Human Resource Management Systems: Do they benefit each other? " Human Systems Management 23.3 (2004): 179.

Appendix

Table A: Oracle Corporation Financial Ratio Analysis

Profitability Ratios

5/31/2009

5/31/2008

5/31/2007

5/31/2006

5/31/2005

ROA % (Net)

11.81

13.46

13.44

13.6

17.26

ROE % (Net)

23.25

27.57

26.77

26.16

30.65

ROI % (Operating)

23.91

26.43

26.31

27.38

36.8

EBITDA Margin %

44.06

42.05

40.19

39.24

37.51

Calculated Tax Rate %

28.3

29.3

28.26

29.54

28.76

Revenue per Employee

270,372

265,558

240,994

256,177

236,586

Liquidity Indicators

Quick Ratio

1.47

1.4

1.15

1.45

0.84

Current Ratio

2.03

1.81

1.37

1.73

1.05

Net Current Assets % TA

19.89

17.08

10.11

17.38

2.01

Debt Management

LT Debt to Equity

0.37

0.44

0.37

0.38

0.01

Total Debt to Equity

0.41

0.49

0.45

0.39

0.26

Interest Coverage

23.71

Asset Management

Total Asset Turnover

0.49

0.55

0.57

0.58

0.71

Receivables Turnover

4.55

4.31

4.49

4.55

4.51

Accounts Payable Turnover

71.11

64.09

61.74

57.75

56.05

Accrued Expenses Turnover

13.34

12.33

11.48

10.8

14.43

Property Plant & Equip Turnover

12.88

13.59

12.02

10.15

9.4

Cash & Equivalents Turnover

2.69

3.09

2.8

2.73

2.94

Per Share

Cash Flow per Share

1.63

1.44

1.07

0.87

0.69

Book Value per Share

5.01

4.47

3.31

2.87

2.11

Vendor ?

Product evaluated ?

Product version evaluated ?

IBM ?

IBM DB2 IBM Informix Dynamic Server ?

9.5-11.5 ?

Ingres ?

Ingres Database ?

Microsoft…