digibyte - Welcome to The Madness aka Oracle OpenWorld 2014
- Summary:
- Oracle OpenWorld 2014 is one of the giant conferences of the year. It's already causing mayhem at the city by the ocean.
I'm told that 65,000 people will descend on the city this week. At least that's the number given to me by the all knowing cab driver who tore through the back streets of the city to avoid the 1-280 crush from the airport into the center of San Francisco. That guy earned his tip and then some. Howard Street is not just closed off for the event - it's closed off for a full 10 days. Wow!
Thankfully, the lines at the downtown Hilton check in on a Saturday afternoon were not so bad. Only a 10 minute crawl. I pity the poor folk arriving today. The lobby was crammed with people when I went for the obligatory Starbucks refueling at 9am.
And it's all made worse by the fact that much like SAP SAPPHIRE, there is so much to take in that it's impossible for one person to cover the bases. Even having Jessica on the ground isn't enough. We. Need. More. Bodies. Just not this year.
Agendas get packed very quickly and on this occasion I've already had to turn down something I really REALLY wanted to attend and have shuffled another meeting around twice to accommodate another person's somewhat full dance card. Impromptu meetings are also on my card but I suspect there will be a fair bit of 'walk and talk' this coming week.
The meat of this program looks intriguing. Early soundings suggest mixed messages but we will see. I'm not rendering any judgment until the show is over.
Larry Ellison's two keynotes are 'must attend' for everyone. I have a bird's eye view seat booked already. Side note: Renée J. James, President, Intel is on stage with Ellison for the first session, discussing software defined data centers. They're late to this particular party - wonder what they have on offer? Oh - and did you know - Aneel Bhusri, CEO Workday and one of Oracle's main competitors these days, is also on Intel's board. It's a small world in enterprise land.
Vishal Sikka, CEO Infosys session on Tuesday will garner more than its fair share of eyeballs as everyone waits with baited breath to see what, if any, bombs (not f-bombs) he drops. And of course now we have the shared CEO position at Oracle, we will be listening intently to see what tone Mark Hurd - one of the CEO's - sets.
Time to go. Walking shoes (check); caffeine and vitamin supplements (check); brain in gear (sort of.) Let The Madness begin.
Bonus points - when I think of #OOW I think of Emerson Lake and Palmer's Welcome To The Show. It has that kind of pace. Enjoy.
Disclosure: Oracle, SAP and Workday are premier partners at time of writing.
