Francisco Munoz Alvarez
ORACLE ACE DIRECTOR OF THE YEAR
Oracle ACE director hones skills while
helping others.
2010
When it comes to learning something new, Francisco Munoz Alvarez
doesn’t look for a teacher; he looks for someone who has a problem.
“One of the best ways to learn is by helping others,” says Alvarez.
“When someone has a problem on an OTN [Oracle Technology
Network] forum, I enjoy trying to assist them with it. I’ve learned a lot
by trying to help other Oracle users to solve their problems.”
Over the years, he has learned enough to become an Oracle
ACE, an Oracle ACE director, and now Oracle Magazine’s Oracle ACE
Director of the Year. Alvarez is also the founder and CEO of Database
Integrated Solutions.
For Alvarez, learning—and helping others—takes legwork. This
year, as an Oracle ACE director, he has appeared at 22 conferences
in 18 countries, where he not only gives talks but takes the time to
answer questions and assist users with complex Oracle challenges.
In addition, he frequently helps his blog visitors (about 25,000 per
month) solve difficult Oracle-related problems.
PHIL WALTER/GET T Y IMAGES
Given that he’s also president of the New Zealand and Chilean
Oracle user groups and the Latin American Oracle User Group,
Alvarez’ energy seems to have no limits when it comes to the Oracle
community. He himself puts it best: “I never get tired of helping
people learn how to share their knowledge and experience.”
Name: Francisco Munoz Alvarez Job title: Founder and CEO Company: Database Integrated Solutions Location: Auckland, New Zealand Award: Oracle ACE Director of the Year 2010
WINNER STATS
Roxanne Shelton
ORACLE APPLICATIONS IMPLEMENTER
OF THE YEAR
“Finance is the first step” in managing change.
2010
You might think that big companies can’t move quickly. But that’s not
the case with AT&T.
“It’s been fast and furious over the past few years,” says Roxanne
Shelton, executive director, Sarbanes-Oxley and financial systems
integration, for AT&T and Oracle Magazine’s Oracle Applications
Implementer of the Year. AT&T is a communications powerhouse,
with more than US$123 billion in revenue. But it’s also a company that
continues to grow and change through acquisitions, which have a direct
impact on AT&T’s financial systems and applications.
“Finance is the first step for other groups within AT&T to standardize
the processes of an acquired company,” says Shelton, and she explains
that having common financial language, methods, and procedures lays
the groundwork for other organizations.“ Our financial applications
meet our needs very well, and we have only a few customizations in
place,” she continues, adding that the financial systems in place have
enabled the company to streamline the close process, while reducing
journal lines by 63 percent and facilitating the reduction of its chart of
accounts by one third.
PAUL S. HOWELL
Shelton attributes AT& T’s success to the strong partnerships
developed over many years: “No one does anything by themselves.”
Name: Roxanne Shelton Job title: Executive director, Sarbanes-Oxley and financial systems integration Company: AT&T Location: San Antonio, Texas Award: Oracle Applications Implementer of the Year 2010 Oracle Applications in use: Oracle E-Business Suite, including accounts payable, accounts receivable, general ledger, profitability manager, financial services hub, fixed assets, and project accounting modules.
