Are you considering Cloud ERP? We recently sat in on a conversation with John Walczak, Corning Data Vice President of Software Solutions, and Richard Garraputa, Corning Data Executive Advisor and Senior Solution Architect, in which they discussed the challenges, strategies, approaches and steps for the Cloudification of JD Edwards. John, CPIM, has 30+ years implementing ERP; Richard more than 25. This is Part 3 of that conversation. You can catch up on Part 2 here.
Richard Garraputa: John, last time we got together we were talking about how the same best practices for ownership of Cloud Software as a Service (SaaS) apply to ownership of JD Edwards. And how failing to follow these best practices present the same ownership challenges in a SaaS environment.
This time we’ve invited Rob Krauter, Corning Data’s Director of Managed Services, to join us. Rob can explain how Oracle has cloudified the JD Edwards software delivery model to enable some of the best features of SaaS while avoiding some of the major issues with SaaS. Issues like forcing customers to surrender control of their deployments.
Rob, can you help us understand what Oracle has done to cloudify the delivery of JD Edwards?
Rob Krauter: Sure, Richard. It really comes down to a few simple points. The first is releasing new software updates and features more frequently in smaller, more manageable chunks. This changes the very concept of what upgrade means. With no major change to the code line, the big upgrade project is now a relic of the past.
John Walczak: This is what Oracle is calling Continuous Delivery, right?
Rob Krauter: Exactly. The past practice of sending out major releases was mostly an artificial event driven by Oracle’s support model for a particular release: five years of Premier Support, three years of Extended Support, and Sustaining Support afterwards. Now that the published support for EnterpriseOne 9.2 extends to at least 2028, we are no longer forced into big upgrade projects.
Richard Garraputa: This is a huge double-win for JD Edwards users. We get more rapid access to the new features and functionality from our maintenance dollars and we get more control over when we take them. That’s even better than an SaaS model that forces customers to take updates as they come out.
Rob Krauter: Continuous Delivery is a great concept, but it really required two other things to make it a reality. In practice, it required Oracle to change the technical process of the upgrade to enable the installation of software updates without the wholesale replacement of code. Basically, the upgrade project moves from “replace all and merge your changes” to “replace what’s changed.” This means less testing and less retrofit effort.
John Walczak: This is the basic idea behind the Simplified Upgrade Process, where EnterpriseOne 9.0 Update 2, 9.1 and 9.2 customers have an easier path forward. The Simplified Upgrade Process is the technical mechanism that enables Continuous Delivery.
Rob Krauter: That was the foundation, John. But Oracle released a slew of tools to make it easier for customers to absorb new features and functionality. There are reports and tools to help customers understand changes in software code, UDCs, Data Dictionary items and Processing Options. These help us figure out the potential impact of a feature update. New tools also help customers understand what applications their systems use. This helps us focus testing where it matters most, reducing the testing efforts required.
Oracle is making their Cloud Infrastructure offerings some of the best options for deploying JD Edwards. It’s exciting. The Oracle Public Cloud, Oracle Platform as a Service and Oracle Bare Metal solutions- combined with rapid deployment and “lift and shift” tools specifically for JD Edwards- make JD Edwards in the Cloud a reality.
Richard Garraputa: Rob, that sounds like a great place to pick up our conversation next time! Thanks for joining us.
Be sure to continue the discussion with us next Tuesday!
