Board of Directors 2020–2021 Election
It’s that time of year again—time to vote for the ODTUG Board. Articles IV and VI of the ODTUG bylaws call for an election of five (5) members to the 2020–2021 Board of Directors. Voting opens on October 7, 2019 and ends on October 30, 2019 at 11:59 PM PDT. Submission of accepted votes of five percent (5%) of the membership in an election, whether submitted by mail or electronic means, shall also constitute a quorum.
This year, we have eleven (11) candidates to choose from for five (5) positions. Be sure to read all the campaign statements and biographies of the candidates to learn about their passion and drive for ODTUG.
One of the many benefits of being an ODTUG member is the opportunity to vote for the leaders of ODTUG. If you are an individual or corporate member of ODTUG, you should have received an email from Association Voting providing you with an email address and Member ID. Please use that information to log in. Can't locate the email? Click here and then click on the help button to request the information be resent.
*To be eligible to vote, your ODTUG membership must have been paid and up-to-date as of September 30, 2019.
| Danny Bryant | Celvin Kattookaran |
| Jay Chapman | Jorge Rimblas |
| Gary Crisci | Sean Suskind |
| Roel Hartman | Jake Turrell |
| Heli Helskyaho | Wayne Van Sluys |
| Jason Jones |
Danny Bryant, Snowflake |
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Campaign Statement I have had the privilege and pleasure of serving on the ODTUG Board of Directors for the last four years, and I seek your support in re-election. Biography Oracle ACE Alumni, Danny Bryant, is a senior solution architect at Snowflake, Inc. working with cloud-based Data Warehouse technology. Currently an ODTUG Board member, Danny was also an adjunct instructor with the Oracle Academy, teaching throughout the US and Europe. Prior to Snowflake, Danny held the Oracle ACE Director designation and was a manager with Accenture Enkitec Group, where he focused on private cloud architecture on Oracle Engineered Systems, OEM, and a bit of Oracle GoldenGate. He received a BS in computer science from the Georgia Institute of Technology. In his free time, he scuba dives, enjoys training in various forms of martial arts, tweets from @dbaOnTap, and blogs at www.dbaontap.com. Danny resides in Roswell, Georgia with his family. Questions How would you describe ODTUG in 10 words or less? The best and most progressive Oracle User Group, hands down. What is your motivation for joining the board? The technology landscape is changing. The opportunity to help and direct how ODTUG adapts to it is my primary motivation. To continue to grow, ODTUG must engage in new ways, create learning opportunities for the ever-changing membership. I want to be a part of this evolution. What attributes do you feel you would bring to this position? Perspective. Seeking re-election for a third term, experience and institutional ODTUG knowledge are key for growth in this transformative time. Do you have a principal goal you would like to achieve as a board member? My goal is to foster ODTUG’s continued commitment to embrace the new and emerging technologies that are surfacing in our members’ workplaces. Please describe the traits, qualities, and experiences that qualify you to serve on the ODTUG Board. I have served on ODTUG’s Board for four years. During this time, I have served as vice president, and conference chair for Chicago and San Antonio. My experience in these areas along with my ability to communicate across the various communities and partnerships positions me well for continued service on the ODTUG Board. |
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Jay Chapman, Sierra-Cedar |
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Campaign Statement Throughout my short career as a consultant, ODTUG has nurtured and enriched my professional life and relationships. Yes, it’s the best technical user group in the world. But to me, it is much more. ODTUG is a vibrant intellectual community that facilitates collaboration and learning and connects me with my peers from around the world. It is also a user group where many seasoned individuals both on the consultant and client side give generously of their time and insights when it comes to Oracle products. Inspired by their example, I have tried to emulate that graciousness and selfless service to the organization through serving as: Biography Jay Chapman is a consultant with Sierra-Cedar and holds a bachelor's in economics, master's in organizational management, and is working on his doctorate in business. Jay has 15 plus years of client-side and consultant experience working with Hyperion, PeopleSoft, and Oracle’s Enterprise Performance Management Cloud, which includes Planning, Narrative Reporting, and Oracle Analytics Cloud. He has presented at several national and regional conferences on reporting and Oracle’s Narrative Reporting. Jay is an Oracle Ace Associate and certified in both Hyperion Planning and Narrative Reporting (EPRCS). He lives in Southern California with his wife, three children, three cats, two dogs, and a bearded dragon. In his spare time, Jay likes to blog on his page (www.functionallytechnical.blog), cook, and watch his USC Trojans dominate in college sports. Questions How would you describe ODTUG in 10 words or less? An exciting Oracle user group where knowledge flows among peers. What is your motivation for joining the board? When I attended Kscope17 in San Antonio, I instantly knew that ODTUG was the user group that I wanted to be a part of. Through my involvement with the EPM Community and track selection committee, my passion for this wonderful group has increased ten-fold. My motivation for joining the board is to not only give back to ODTUG and help new members but to help my peers drive change to make Oracle and their products better. What attributes do you feel you would bring to this position? I have 15+ years of experience using Oracle products along with a sheer passion for seeing ODTUG succeed and thrive. I am also an engaging leader who sees all members as valued resources for the organization. Do you have a principal goal you would like to achieve as a board member? My primary goal is to increase engagement within ODTUG and to help new members feel the thrill and excitement of being a part of an organization where we can influence and drive change with Oracle products and share knowledge with our peers. Please describe the traits, qualities, and experiences that qualify you to serve on the ODTUG Board. When there is a passion for a cause, organizations like ODTUG can have a major positive impact on the technology community. Board members of these organizations need to hold the same passion, remain active in the community, and need to uphold the mission of the organization while providing the necessary insight and oversight. I hold each one of these traits, which I feel qualifies me to serve on the ODTUG Board. For example:
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Gary Crisci, General Electric |
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Campaign Statement I have served the ODTUG community for the past four years as a director on the board. For three of those years I have held the position of treasurer. This will be my last board election due to ODTUG term limits. I am very much looking forward to continuing to volunteer my time to this great organization. As treasurer I have maintained a high standard for fiduciary responsibility, and I have devoted a considerable amount of time to implementing Oracle Cloud PBCS for ODTUG to utilize for financial planning and reporting. Biography Gary Crisci is a senior financial systems leader and Oracle ACE Director with over 20 years of finance and IT experience, specializing in Oracle technological solutions. During his career, Gary has held various positions as a consultant and industry professional working for well-known organizations and companies such as Siemens, Morgan Stanley, and General Electric. He currently holds the title of principal architect for GE Finance IT, where he is responsible for the organization's cloud roadmap and focusing on new and innovative technologies. Gary has an MBA in information systems and lives in Connecticut with his wife and two sons. |
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Roel Hartman, APEX Consulting |
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Campaign Statement Since I rejoined the Board of Directors two years ago, a lot of things have happened. We have created a brand new Emerging Technologies track at ODTUG Kscope and we managed to run a very successful free Oracle Certification event at the last Kscope. And for a couple of years we have had the ODTUG Leadership Program, which supports members in taking the next step in their careers, both within ODTUG and within their own organizations.
Biography Roel started a long time ago in the era of Oracle RDBMS 5. Since then, Roel has gained experience in building applications for end users. The last 10 years his focus has been on APEX.
Questions How would you describe ODTUG in 10 words or less? The most important source of Oracle knowledge and networking. What is your motivation for joining the board? After having served for two years, I would like to continue serving the broader Oracle community and implementing the changes needed to make the organization ready for the future. What attributes do you feel you would bring to this position? I think ODTUG deserves a board with a broad insight of the Oracle ecosystem. As an ACE Director and Groundbreaker Ambassador I have direct contact with a lot of people within Oracle and easy access to a huge number of well-known people who use Oracle products in their daily lives. Next to that, I also attend and present at a lot of conferences around the globe - and now and then that gives me some ideas to implement in our own flagship conference: ODTUG Kscope! Do you have a principal goal you would like to achieve as a board member? I would like it if ODTUG would do (even) more for its members, making membership even more worthwhile. Please describe the traits, qualities, and experiences that qualify you to serve on the ODTUG Board. After this current two-year term, I am already a seasoned board member, no need for an introduction whatsoever; I can keep the flow going. Seniority and experience in other conferences is surely a benefit to the ODTUG organization. |
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Heli Helskyaho, Miracle Finland Oy
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Campaign Statement I believe in continuous learning and sharing knowledge, and a user community is the best place to learn and share. When the world is changing fast, we need friends to support us on this journey. With my long experience within the user community and working on different boards, I would love to be the friend leading ODTUG and its members on this path to be even more successful with Oracle technology.
Heli Helskyaho is the CEO for Miracle Finland Oy and an ambassador/spokesperson for EOUC (EMEA Oracle Users Group Community). Heli holds a master’s degree (computer science) from the University of Helsinki. At the moment she is working on her doctoral studies, researching, and teaching at the University of Helsinki.
Questions How would you describe ODTUG in 10 words or less? The community to share and learn What is your motivation for joining the board? I am a big believer of communities: sharing knowledge and helping friends. I believe that with my knowledge and experience ODTUG could be an even better community. What attributes do you feel you would bring to this position? I have a very long experience (20+ years) in user groups and communities. I have been in many positions and seen the communities from different perspectives. I have been running a user group, I have been a spokesperson/ambassador, a board member, a regular member and I have been a speaker. I have seen things working and I have seen things failing. I am also very passionate about sharing knowledge and I love Oracle technology. I believe both my experience and my passion will be very valuable for ODTUG to grow and get even better than it is today. Do you have a principal goal you would like to achieve as a board member? I want to see ODTUG grow and flourish. I want to bring data back to the central position it should have always been, and I want to see the emerging technologies be a permanent part of Kscope conferences. Please describe the traits, qualities, and experiences that qualify you to serve on the ODTUG Board. I like to listen what people have to say and I try to improve. I believe in continuous learning in all the areas of life, including serving on a board. I have a long experience on different boards, user groups, and communities, and I have been using Oracle technologies for 25+ years. The reason for me to run for the board is that I love to help people, and I believe the board of ODTUG would be the best place for me to do it right now. |
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Jason Jones, Applied OLAP |
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Campaign Statement I have been involved with Oracle, ODTUG, and Kscope for the majority of my professional career. ODTUG is an organization that I have always looked up to and that has in turn had a profound impact on my career. Over the years I have contributed to ODTUG by presenting many times, leading abstract review teams, participating as an abstract reviewer in multiple tracks, conducting webinars, and more. Biography Jason Jones is a solutions architect with over 14 years of experience developing and consulting in the Oracle space. Jason began his career bagging groceries for a small division of The Kroger Company (a US supermarket chain) and worked his way up to architecting and developing numerous business-critical financial systems using Oracle Essbase and other tools. Concurrent to working full-time as a financial systems developer, Jason attended the University of Washington in the evenings and received a degree in computer science. Jason now works for Applied OLAP, a software company that builds products that enhance the value of Oracle technologies for numerous customers. Questions If you could describe ODTUG in 10 words or less, what would they be? ODTUG is my work family. What is your motivation for joining the board? I would like to give more in my life, both personally and professionally. Joining the board would give me a chance to invest my energy and experience into an organization that I respect and has been a big part of my professional life. What attributes do you feel you would provide to this position? I offer longstanding depth and breadth in terms of my Oracle and ODTUG community experience. I believe this puts me in a very good position to help the ODTUG Board carry out its mission for its members while also offering a fresh perspective and energy for the future of all four of our communities. Do you have a principal goal you would like to achieve as a board member? I believe there are a lot of things that ODTUG is well-positioned to do more of in terms of creating, organizing, and facilitating unique content that would lead to increased conference attendance, new members registration, webinar participation, meetup coordination, website visitors, and more. Increasing community engagement and conference participation are the areas I’d like to focus on. Please describe the traits, qualities, and experiences that qualify you to serve on the ODTUG board I think one of the biggest things I bring to the table is my experience in the Oracle/ODTUG world: working at very large company as a developer, working at a small company as a developer, working as a consultant for multiple firms, working for myself as an independent software vendor, and now, working for a software company that specializes in products in the Oracle space. Additionally, I have been involved with ODTUG for over a decade in various ways. My innate traits and qualities have helped me over the years and I believe they would benefit ODTUG as well: persistence, curiosity, and a desire to do the job right by building high-quality solutions. |
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Celvin Kattookaran, MindStream Analytics |
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Campaign Statement I’ve been actively engaged with ODTUG—and loving every moment of it— since 2012. I've worked on content committees, panels, and spoken multiple times at Kscope. Whatever I can do, whenever I can do it, however I can do it, I promote ODTUG because of what ODTUG is: a volunteer organization dedicated to you, your knowledge, and your career. Without question, becoming an ODTUG member, attending Kscope, and working with my fellow ODTUGers has made an outsized impact on what I do for a job. I know it has for you too.
Biography Celvin Kattookaran is an Oracle ACE Director Alumni with over fifteen years of experience in Business Intelligence and Enterprise Performance Management. He has an active blog on EPM/CPM which garners thousands of views year after year. |
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Jorge Rimblas, Insum |
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Campaign Statement I ask you, Oracle professional, for your vote so I can serve you on the ODTUG Board of Directors. I want to ensure continuity in leadership and maintain the excellence that ODTUG has achieved and we the members expect. You can count on me to make tough decisions to make this happen.
Biography Jorge works as a senior APEX consultant at Insum and is an avid problem solver who thrives in finding elegant and efficient solutions. He is an Oracle ACE and has been an Oracle Database professional since 1995. His areas of expertise include Oracle Application Express (APEX), Oracle e-Business Suite, Oracle databases, and Oracle's development technologies, among others. He started using APEX when it was known as HTMLDB, starting with version 1.6.
Questions How would you describe ODTUG in 10 words or less? Endless opportunities for improvement surrounded by like-minded individuals What is your motivation for joining the board? To provide leadership continuity and keep up with the strong leadership that makes ODTUG a fantastic community. What attributes do you feel you would bring to this position? Courage, integrity, and creativity. Do you have a principal goal you would like to achieve as a board member? Oracle is working hard at keeping up with the culture and new technologies; ODTUG needs to evaluate and do the same. Case in point, I want to focus efforts on the Database Track at Kscope. Please describe the traits, qualities, and experiences that qualify you to serve on the ODTUG Board. My experience has taught me the courage to say no. Also, honesty and integrity were instilled in me at a very young age. I’ve worked on many projects and teams of various sizes and budgets, sometimes as a manager or tech lead. I served as a board member and president of the Minnesota chapter of the BMW Car Club. Last, but not least, within ODTUG: I’ve been a speaker at every Kscope since 2012, spent three years on the APEX Track content selection committee, two years as APEX Track Lead, and two years as Content Chair for the Traditional Content.
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Sean Suskind, Sierra-Cedar |
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Campaign Statement As a regular attendee and supporter of ODTUG and Kscope I have built a reputation as a "get it done" kind of person. I have stepped up to take on both smaller and larger tasks, and do whatever is necessary to promote and support the organization and to help make ODTUG the type of organization to join and Kscope the "go-to" event each year. I have participated on content committees in the BI/Analytics space, been in and led the Ambassador program for Kscope, and led and delivered the BI Event night at Kscope multiple times. I am currently an active member of the ODTUG Analytics Community Committee, and am leading the Data Visualization Contest subcommittee. My goal as an ODTUG Board Member is to expand the BI footprint and bring in new ideas, talent, content, and learning capabilities to the user community. I want to make ODTUG bigger and better, and help to make a difference, impacting careers of our members and the analytics community as a whole. I will be a "roll up my sleeves, and just get it done" board member ready to serve. Biography During my 18-year professional career I have developed expertise in Business and IT as an Information Management (IM) strategist, specializing in Business Intelligence (BI) and IM initiatives. I am a results-driven project manager, PMP, with a demonstrated ability to sell, lead, and deliver IM/IT solutions, technical project initiatives, model core business processes, and effectively apply technology to achieve enterprise goals and objectives. As a multi-role problem solver accustomed to large, complex initiatives I provide a powerful combination of business experience and technical expertise. I'm an expert in identifying, understanding, and architecting BI solutions, leading and managing BI projects and related technical correlations, as well as defining requirements for project implementations. Questions How would you describe ODTUG in 10 words or less? Innovative and seeking a path to push the envelope further What is your motivation for joining the board? I have been a volunteer in many areas for years and am ready to step up and take on a more active role in bringing all of the ODTUG tracks together as a more collaborative organization. What attributes do you feel you would bring to this position? I have been with the organization for many years and am always ready to take on what was needed when called. Ambassador leadership, content committee, analytics community, data visualization contest committee lead, and BI Night leader. I have served many roles and understand the organization. Experience and a "roll up my sleeves" doer. Do you have a principal goal you would like to achieve as a board member? I would like to see a closer relationship and stronger cross-functional programs bringing EPM, Analytics, DB, and APEX together through projects and presentations that represent what is going on in the business world that we represent. Please describe the traits, qualities, and experiences that qualify you to serve on the ODTUG Board. A good listener and learner and active in the organization. If it needs doing, I am on it. |
