Oracle's best-of-breed strategy, as described by president Mark Hurd

Oracle's new Fusion applications and plans to win in the evolving server market

By John Gallant, Computerworld | Cloud Computing, insider, java

November 04, 2011, 10:40 AM —

Mark Hurd, president of Oracle, speaks at Oracle OpenWorld in San Francisco on Sept. 20, 2010

Oracle/Hartmann Studios

It used to be easy journalistic shorthand to write 'database-giant Oracle Corp.', but that labeling no longer fits a company that's now a key player in applications, appliances, servers, development tools, operating systems and, yes, even cloud computing. How do all these components gel into a coherent plan for IT customers? What makes Oracle better than the other big integrated systems players like HP and IBM? In this latest installment of the IDG Enterprise CEO Interview Series, Oracle President Mark Hurd spoke with IDGE Chief Content Officer John Gallant about Oracle's strategy and why the company is uniquely positioned to help IT leaders deal with the difficult challenges they're facing today. Hurd also clarified Oracle's stance on cloud -- a position clouded -- sorry -- by some earlier comments from CEO Larry Ellison -- and what makes Oracle's approach better than 'very old' cloud solutions like salesforce.com. He explained more about customer migrations to Oracle's new Fusion applications and discussed how Oracle plans to win in the evolving server market.

Talk about the unifying strategy at Oracle today. We hear a lot about Oracle wanting to be the 'one-stop shop' or owing the entire computing stack. But put it in your own words: What's Oracle's strategy?

Right now we're working on four things. We're trying to be best-of-breed at every layer of the stack, whether that's at the hardware layer, silicon or storage. We're trying to be best-of-breed in OS's, in databases, in middleware and applications. We want to work in heterogeneous environments and have a high level of enterprise fit -- to be the best at everything we do. And we line up -- engineering to sales -- to do that.

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John Gallant brings more than 28 years of editorial and technology experience to his role as Senior Vice President and Chief Content Officer of IDG Enterprise. In this role, Gallant works with the editorial leaders of IDGE’s CIO, CSO, Computerworld, InfoWorld, ITworld and Network World titles, setting content strategy and ensuring that the brands serve their respective audiences with the best online and print products and services in the industry. Gallant also helps drive IDG Enterprise's strategic efforts around social media. Gallant, one of Network World’s founders, was formerly CEO and editorial director for the company, where he guided content and business development for print and online, as well as Network World’s seminars and events programs. Gallant is highly visible in the marketplace and frequently speaks at industry conferences. In 2010, Gallant was inducted into min’s Magazine’s Editorial and Design Hall of Fame. He has been named by Technology Marketing magazine as one of the most influential people in computer journalism, and was cited as one of the “most visionary editors-in-chief” by Press Access. Gallant’s expertise in covering the technology industry has been tapped by top-tier television media outlets, including CNN, CNNfn, CNBC, NPR, and Bloomberg. He often hosts roundtable discussions on technology and other topics for a wide variety of organizations, including leading vendors, I.T. buyers and industry associations. Gallant also chairs the executive committee of the Boston College Technology Council and is on the board of Dream Big, a non-profit that helps underprivileged girls build confidence through sports.