Thanks to Kim May for a fabulous job stepping customers and IBMers through the rewards and challenges of converting Oracle databases to DB2.  The recording of the webinar is found here.  The presentation materials: Oracle Customers Consider DB2 4.5.17

Finally, The Fillmore Group’s White Paper on Oracle to DB2 migrations: SmarterQuestions White Paper – Oracle to DB2 Migration Lessons Learned – Final

Please reach out to Kim or me if you have any questions.

Excuse the corny wordplay – please!

IBM will again host the annual Break Free Forum (BFF) at the upcoming Insight Conference in Las Vegas (previously known as the Information on Demand Conference).  In addition to many terrific conference sessions, speakers and entertainment, the Break Free Forum is a 2-hour session dedicated to customers considering, and hopefully moving to, DB2.

Frank has been invited to participate on the panel at the Break Free Forum, which is quite an honor.  And, as Frank and I have had the pleasure to work with many of the talented IBM teams that support customers moving to DB2, we will be there with several BFF’s – including Amit Patel, Bill Kincaid and this year’s Break Free Forum host Paul Zikopoulos.

If you are planning to attend the Insight Conference and are interested in joining us at the Break Free Forum, please let me know.  I believe the session is invitation-only, but I am sure coordinator Angie Payton would be happy to send you an invitiation.

Many thanks to my colleague, Kim May, and IBMer Bill Kincaid for an excellent presentation on DB2 for LUW feature/functionality and pricing advantages over competing offerings.  And thank you to the many IBMers and customers that attended.  We received great feedback from you during the poll questions and the Q&A.

To view the webinar click here.

The presentation materials are here: Top Three Reasons DB2 is Best Presention 9.25.14

Date:  Thursday, September 25, 2014

Time:  12:00pm – 1:00pm EDT

Register:  HERE

Every organization – current DB2 users and others – is under fire to deliver a flexible, reliable database solution to support business requirements.  In sixty minutes you will learn why DB2 10.5 for LUW is the best choice to support critical data management needs.  When someone asks, “Why DB2?” you will have 3 answers!

We will cover:

1. Functionality: high availability with pureScale, maximum data compression, and query acceleration with DB2 BLU
2. Success:  learn how current customers are leveraging DB2 to meet their objectives
3. Pricing:  find the right fit with simplified purchasing options

Whether you are currently using DB2 and looking to better understand its features, or considering a move to DB2, please join us.

The webinar will be presented by IBM DB2 Competitive Sales Specialist Bill Kincaid and IBM Champion Kim May.

About the presenters:

Bill Kincaid is an IBM DB2 Competitive Sales Specialist.  Bill has worked for IBM, Microsoft and Oracle, as well as data virtualization solution developer xkoto.  Bill’s specialty is helping database users – customers currently using DB2 and customers considering migrating to DB2 – to fully understand the value of DB2.  Bill earned his BA at the University of North Carolina and his MBA from the University of Georgia.  He lives in Charlotte and works with IBM customers in the Eastern US.

Kim May is the Vice President of Business Development for The Fillmore Group and an IBM Champion for Information Management.  Kim coordinates The Fillmore Group’s software sales and consulting efforts, including migration support for customers moving workloads to DB2.  Kim’s experience includes several years supporting technical education, and she currently serves on the board of the Baltimore/Washington DB2 Users Group.

I was on a call this morning with an IBM technical team to discuss our progress filling the seats in one of our upcoming free IDAA classes.  Not surprising, given the number of people on the call (and who they were!) we went a bit off topic and ended up chatting about services and what appears to be – to IBM customers and sellers at least – a shortage of skilled consultants available to help with the “tions” – replication, implementations, migrations and federation.

The Fillmore Group has skilled consultants available to support these efforts, at rates that are typically about half of those being charged by “the competition”.

If your team has a project pending, or one in process, where a skilled consultant, at a reasonable hourly rate, can get things back on track, please contact me.  We are ready to work!  A list of our IBM Information Management capabilities is attached here.

The materials for yesterday’s webinar detailing the reasons to consider migrating from Oracle to DB2 are found here: Break Free from Oracle Presentation 6.26.13

The recorded webinar is found on ChannelDB2.

Frank and I were invited to the IBM Almaden Research Center, where the magic really happens for IBM’s data solutions, for the Big Data announcements yesterday.  We had the opportunity to meet with a group of super-sharp analysts and members of the IBM technical leadership teams for the BLU Acceleration, Big Data and Hadoop appliance announcements. 

Most fun for me, though, was getting to spend some time with Crysta Anderson, the IBM Social Media Strategist for Information Management.  Crysta, along with Susan Visser, coordinated the efforts of (or perhaps more accurately, herded) literally hundreds of DB2 community members, including DB2 Gold Consultants, analysts, and Information Champions, to get us to tweet, blog and spread the word to the IT community about IBM’s incredible advancements.  The fingers were flying during yesterday’s announcements!

I am back in Baltimore today planning some upcoming events to make sure we share what we learned…and I’m sure Crysta is exhausted.  And thrilled, I hope – congratulations on a successful launch!

As volumes of data explode and organizations look for unique ways to leverage the quantities of data – often in real-time – it’s easy to become confused.  We can help – join us for lunch at Cinghiale for an overview of the data management products in the IBM portfolio and gain an understanding of today’s top solutions.

Frank Fillmore will deliver an overview of hot topics in IBM data management:  Big Data, Information Governance, and appliances, and explain how new solutions are changing database and warehousing technologies.  Gain an understanding of how IBM’s acquisitions and integrated solutions have them positioned as today’s thought leader in data management.

DB2101 at Cinghiale (the “Boar”), 822 Lancaster Street, Baltimore, MD, 21202
April 11, 2013, 11am – 1pm

To register, click here.  

Satisfy your appetite and your curiosity with a tasty Italian lunch at local favorites Tony Foreman and Cindy Wolf’s Cinghiale. Whether you already use IBM data products or are interested in learning what IBM has to offer, the presentation will provide a dose of nutritious food for thought.

I will send you a confirmation with directions to the award winning Cinghiale.  Valet parking will be provided.

Join IBM DB2 Competitive Sales Specialist Bill Kincaid and me for The Mid-Atlantic Information Management Virtual Users Group webinar on February 28th.  The Mid-Atlantic Information Management Virtual Users Group is focused on delivering information and education to DB2 users in the Mid-Atlantic region.  Given the topic and the terrific speaker lined up, and since the session will be delivered via webinar, anyone interested in IBM database solutions is welcome to join us.
 
In the session current DB2 customers will learn how IBM has enhanced DB2 administrative tool functionality, added new features, and is offering new product bundles that deliver better value at a lower cost.  Customers considering DB2 will learn how IBM is providing better assessment tools and easier migration processes to simplify the transition to DB2. 
 
Is DB2 the best?  Is moving to DB2 a no-brainer?  Join us, ask questions, and learn more about today’s DB2. 
 
Date:  Thursday, February 28, 2013
Time:  11am – 12:00pm Eastern
Registration is required.  Please register here. 
 
Bill Kincaid
Bill Kincaid is the IBM DB2 Competitive Sales Specialist for the Mid-Atlantic Region.  Bill has worked for IBM, Microsoft and Oracle, as well as data virtualization solution developer xkoto.  Bill’s specialty is helping database users – customers currently using DB2 and customers considering migrating to DB2 – to fully understand the value of DB2.  Bill earned his BA at the University of North Carolina – Charlotte and his MBA from the University of Georgia.  He lives in Charlotte and works with IBM customers in the Eastern US.
 
I hope you will join us.

The fourth quarter of 2012 will close in just over one month.  What will you close between now and then?  If you attended the Break Free Forum at the IBM Information on Demand (IOD) conference in Las Vegas last month, you heard The Fillmore Group’s founder and principal, Frank Fillmore, give real-world perspectives on successful Oracle to DB2 migrations – including a project at a worldwide Top 50 integrated financial services firm.

Listen to a brief ten minute podcast discussion between Frank Fillmore and Kim May, TFG Vice President of Business Development, that provides an overview of a the steps involved in a successful migration – from intital validation to production cutover.

Oracle Takeout – Partner with TFG

If you have prospects that can benefit from these perspectives, contact Kim at kim.may@thefillmoregroup.com or (001) 443-956-0288.