Eminent Group will be delivering two priceless presentations at this year’s OTM SIG User Conference. We encourage all to attend.  Presentations will be available for download after the conference.

“OTM Late night – An under the cover look at Itinerary Legs”

Itineraries are the hardest piece of Planning and Rates to actually explain to the users, but a knowledgeable person will grasp this concept quickly.  This presentation will deliver that easy to grasp concept to every audience.

Help Me Help You: Getting the most of your Agents”

Efficiency tips and performance advice as it relates to agents

OTM SIG is an OAUG Special Interest Group

http://www.otmconference.com/

The 2012 OTM Conference will be held August 12-15 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The conference is designed to bring together users and potential users of the OTM software to share knowledge, ideas and experiences.

With anticipated attendance of more than 400 people, this conference is the perfect place to find answers to your questions, meet with Oracle representatives and collaborate on ideas for future upgrades.

2012 OTM Conference

August 12-15, 2012

Loews Philadelphia

1200 Market Street

Philadelphia, PA. 19107 USA

About OTM SIG

The OTM SIG is a special interest group of OAUG focused on Oracle’s Transportation Management software. This user group was formed to share knowledge and experience with one another on both technical and business issues and address critical logistics and information requirements across global supply chains.

The OTM SIG has developed a unique forum to incorporate the strength of the TMS tool and the knowledge base of our diverse business groups. Together we will share configuration ideas and promote an opportunity for independent success and growth.

Oracle Partners Worldwide Deliver Expanded Portfolio of Oracle Accelerate Solutions for Midsize Companies

Oracle Partners Create Tailored Solutions to Better Meet the Needs of Growing Companies

http://www.oracle.com/us/corporate/press/1505432

Jan 4, 2012:   Results of the 2012 elections for OTM SIG Board Members are in. 

The OTM SIG is an affiliate of the Oracle Applications Users Group (OAUG).  The OAUG is a global association that provides Oracle users the opportunity to enhance their productivity, maximize their investment and influence the quality, usability and support of Oracle Applications.  Formed in 1990, the OAUG is one of the software industry’s most successful user groups, and speaks with one voice for Oracle Applications customers.  You can visit OAUG site by clicking here.  If you want to visit the OTM SIG site, click here.

Client Board Members:

• Larry Dean, NCI Group, Inc.
• Mark Kissell, Kraft Foods
• Brandon Braswell, Family Dollar Stores

 Partner/Consultancy Members:

• Christine Cognetti, Oracle Consulting
• Pam Vivio, Capgemini

 APAC/European User Members:

• Evgeniy Pospelov, Kraft Foods, Russia
• Anthony Gullace, Bluescope Steel

APAC/European Partner/Consultancy Members:

• Lourens Andriesse, Hewlett Packard
• Barry Hayes, Mavenwire (Europe) Ltd

Congratulations to the new board members.

Oracle this week is highlighting CISCO’s experience implementing Oracle’s OTM in a video. We are delighted to provide you a link to that video. 

CISCO, the worlds largest Netwoking Company, is in the midst of a broad transformational effort and this video highlights their experience with OTM to improve their Freight and Logistics environment. They are experiencing large costs savings by using OTM capabilities to consolidate shipments and understand the sources of transportation costs. It is a compelling story, and we hope by including a link here, you will enjoy watching it.

Eminent can help you achieve similar results, as we are OTM experts experienced in rapid deployments. Contact us for more information.

The October 2011 flood in Thailand was the worst in decades, displacing over 3,000,000 people.  Factories there that produce 45% of the world’s PC Hard Drives, were dramatically impacted.   Flood caused disruptions have been moving through the supply chain causing problems around the globe.  Estimates of world wide PC volumes are unclear but most insiders believe shipments could be dramatically reduced based on supply shortages of hard drives.  Industry watchers suggest stocked inventories are quickly being depleted without opportunity to resupply and that the real pain might be felt in Q1 2012, where they estimate WW PC shipments may miss earlier forecasts by nearly 4 million units. 

PC maker Acer may see Q4 revenue slip by about 25%.   China based Lenovo, the world’s number 2 PC manufacturer, has hinted that HDD supply is exhausted and they are watching carefully the impact on sales, offering customers “off spec drives”.  Intel, the giant microprocessor maker, has cut Q4 2011 revenue outlook, blaming PC hard drive shortages that are depressing PC sales. 

Full HDD production in Thailand may take many more months to be completely restored.   Continued supply problems may not only effect PC product availability, but could also impact prices, especially for laptop PCs that are more sensitive to HDD supply from Thailand.

Expense growth and new volume service issues were beginning to put pressure on this large food & beverage industry company.  Lack of operational visibility limited this companies ability to identify and address the causes.  Working with Eminent Group, this company upgraded their OTM system and began to fully leverage the technology to pursue real solutions. 

The successful project has allowed this company to better manage fuel costs and spot bid tendering, producing millions of dollars in savings.  Implementing upgraded and best practiced based processes also delivered significant benefits, including smoother international logistics, improved forecasting, quicker order modification and carrier price auditing.   This happy company now provides reports that are accurate and are producing better decisions.  Real time data available through quires and dashboards, has give them confidence to expand without fear. 

Eminent and this company continue to identify ways to exploit OTM functionality to improve their business.

Eminent’s very own David Johns, has announced he is running for Director of the OTM SIG. 

David is a well recognized leader in Supply Chain Management with a particular focus in transportation / logistics management. Since his graduation from Duquesne University, David has held key positions at Fisher Scientific, Global Logistics, Oracle and Eminent Group, where he now holds the position of Director of Solutions. He has vast experience working with freight forwarders, logistics services providers, shippers, and distributors. His unique expertise in both functional and technical configuration, as well as his extensive exposure to all areas of OTM has provided him with the background to author many industry best practices workflows. He has co-authored rapidOTM, OTM’s first certified Accelerator. He would like to leverage his strong expertise and project experience to help make the SIG valuable for every type of member and help ensure the continued success of OTM. He has a strong desire to help the community create and establish robust support networks. David has presented on multiple occasions in the past, at both the SIG and OAUG.

OTM SIG Members can visit the URL below to vote.

http://msg4svc.net/cggit/416699/58/111400/14830/0/T/0/0/pdsa.html

October 24, 2011 – Gartner, Inc. has placed Oracle Transportation Management in the Leaders Quadrant of its 2011 report, “Magic Quadrant for Transportation Management Systems (TMS).”

http://www.oracle.com/us/corporate/press/518999

The combination of the Leader in the TMS Quadrant with a rapid installation offering from Eminent (RapidOTM™) provide an incredible solutions, especially for the mid market.

Our very own David Johns has started a new group on LinkedIn to focus on discussions about TMS Best Practices for Midsize Companies. Many Midsized, SMB or Mid Market companies have the need for a Transportation Management System, but feel their size prevents them from exploiting the benefits of a full blown TMS system. We want all these companies to know there are good robust TMS solutions available for companies of all sizes.

If you use LinkedIn, visit this new group and consider joining. Prepare to participate in some very targeted discussions.

The link below will take you to a fantastic article by Steve Banker about OTM and Niagara Bottling’s use of it.  Steve has met Ryan Kieczykowski and Ravi Kutty of Niagara Bottling and chronicles some of their experiences. 

http://logisticsviewpoints.com/2011/10/17/niagra-bottling-leverages-oracle-transportation-management-to-reduce-freight-costs/