The Oracle ecosystem is extremely complex and it can be confusing to keep straight all the different Oracle representatives that reach out to your company.
This blog will explore the Oracle ecosystem and provide recommendations for navigating the many Oracle representatives that may reach out to you regularly.
What you need to know about Oracle salespeople
With about 20 different product lines—and multiple salespeople covering your account for each product—you have a lot of Oracle people calling you to try and sell their products. It can be overwhelming getting all those calls, especially when you’re not sure who exactly is calling. Here’s a little cheat sheet below.
The important product lines to be aware of are:
Technology Products
Application Products
Industry Specific Apps
Cloud
Oracle Linux and VM
Each product line has multiple salespeople responsible for your account, adding to the confusion. Here are the three most common salespeople you will hear from:
The Field Rep is your main representative and is local to you
Each Field Rep has an inside salesperson, called Oracle Direct, typically located in hubs like Boston or Texas
There are additional reps supporting Oracle Direct, called Business Development Consultants (BDCs), they also may be located in these hubs or even in India
Another important person you will hear from every year, without fail, is your Oracle Support Representative. As an Oracle customer, you pay annually for Oracle Support, so when your annual renewal approaches, or even several months prior, that’s one more salesperson you’ll be hearing from.
Tips for getting what you need from Oracle
Now that you have a basic understanding of the Oracle ecosystem, here are some tips for how to handle all the calls you get:
If you’re interested in a particular product, we recommend speaking to your Field Rep vs. the lower level reps if possible. We’ve seen CIOs calling back the lowest level rep without realizing it—which isn’t who an executive should be calling back!
If you’re not sure who’s who, ask the person on the phone or check out their email signature before you respond to an email. If the person is in your region, it’s likely your Field Rep. If they’re based across the country or overseas, they are likely an inside sales representative.
You may want to talk about something related to Oracle, but a salesperson contacting you only wants to talk about their product. Ask about (or investigate) their role and product line before committing to a conversation.
If you have Oracle issues, you can always reach out to Oracle support for assistance (they are not sales), however if you are having a slow response, even after escalating properly, you may want to reach out to your Oracle primary account representative to help get a response.
Need some help sorting out all the Oracle product lines and understanding your account team? Olitech can help you with this, we act as a single point of contact for all things Oracle for our clients. We get our clients the information they need, quickly and efficiently. If you want help navigating the Oracle ecosystem. Contact us today!
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By Melissa Cortale
Founder & President, Olitech Solutions
Melissa Cortale is an Oracle licensing expert and a frequent speaker at industry conferences and trade shows. Most recently at IBSMA’s June SAM Summit she shared her expertise in breakout sessions including: Making sense of Oracle's most complex licensing terms and Managing Oracle for an Enterprise. In addition, Melissa has taught IBSMA’s Practitioner’s Certificate in Oracle License Management (PCOLM) course across the US and abroad.