I am really excited to get to go to Seattle this year for KScope19.  I was on the selection committee and I think we have a record number of new speakers.  If you haven’t signed up and still have an opportunity to go, get out there and do it.  Please stop by our booth and introduce yourself or say hello.

Besides entertaining everybody at the booth, I have a few events I am participating in.  I would love to see you at all of these.

Monday, June 25 –  Lunch and Learn

Location: 6A, Level 6

Sponsored by Oracle Groundbreakers
Grab a quick bite from 12:45 to 1:00 p.m., then join one of the information-packed sessions led by a panel of Oracle ACE Directors and Oracle ACEs. Bring your questions; these are the people who have the answers!

Glenn Schwartzberg, Tim German, Jason Jones and I will there.

Getting Started with Groovy for the Non-Technical Superstars

Session Number: 8056
Track: Planning
Sub-Categorization: Planning Cloud
Session Type: Solutions
Primary Presenter: Kyle Goodfriend [Manager – Accelytics]

Technologies or Products Used: ePBCS, Groovy

Session Summary for Attendees:  Groovy calculations are not just accessible to those with lots of experience writing Java, Groovy, or other coding languages. With a little guidance, you can become extremely productive and add some world-class functionality to your applications. This session will be delivered with both the experienced and non-experienced in mind, by a person with a finance degree who learned on the fly.

This session will provide an administrator with the knowledge needed to get started writing Groovy calculations immediately. We will introduce how to get started with Groovy and use it to interact with PBCS via the API. Three to four key concepts will be covered, which will help you leave with an understanding of the possibilities. We will discuss where and how to get help and learn from examples, and how to avoid spending time going down some of the wrong paths like I did.

Attendees will leave this session with the knowledge to implement basic Groovy calculations, examples of more complicated solutions, and a foundation to grow from. They will take home working examples and references to all the concepts needed to go from zero to 60 in four seconds.

The presentation will be structured as follows:
• Introduction
• How to get started
• How to add user functionality
• How to add pre-save validation
• How to add real-time data model synchronization on data form save
• Where to go to get help

Hidden Gems in PBCS—The Benefits They Don’t Tell You About

Session Number: 8054
Track: Planning
Sub-Categorization: Administration
Session Type: Product Updates

Session Summary for Attendees:  There are a million reasons to move to the cloud, but these enhancements are not marketed. As someone who fought the drawbacks, I now cringe when I have a client still using the on-premises version of Planning.

This session will provide an administrator five to 10 hidden secrets that you won’t hear from your Oracle sales rep. Unless these secrets are pointed out or you attend training where they are discussed, they will likely never be found. We will discuss foundational improvements like how to evaluate where to focus your time on calculation performance issues, debugging calculations by stepping through the calculation, and stress testing your application. This presentation will include hands-on demonstrations of all the functionality and features discussed.

Attendees will leave this session with knowledge and examples that will allow them to go back to their workplaces and improve their applications. Users looking to move to the cloud will learn about some of the hidden gems that are often forgotten.

I know many people complain that the same speakers present every year.  I can tell you I get rejected more than I get accepted.  The last few years ODTUG added the option for members to vote on speaker abstracts.  I want to thank all of you that voted for me because the only reason I am honored with this opportunity is because of the great feedback you provided.  I was on the content selection committee and there was a concerted effort to have new speakers.  No, I couldn’t vote for myself!

I really hope the following will be beneficial.  You all pay to attend and I take that responsibility of participating very seriously.  If you plan on attending, please make your way to the Accelytics booth and introduce yourself.  I am really looking forward to meeting you.

Hidden Gems in PBCS – The Benefits They Don’t Tell You About

Tue, Jun 25, 2019 (02:15 PM – 03:15 PM)
602/603, Level 6

Session Summary for Attendees
There are a million reasons to move to the cloud, but these enhancements are not marketed. From somebody that fought the drawbacks, I now cringe when I have a client that is still using the on-premise version of Planning.
This session will provide an administrator 5 to 10 hidden secrets that you won’t hear from your Oracle sales rep. Unless these are pointed out, or you go to training and they are discussed, they will likely never be found. We will discuss foundational improvements like how to evaluate where to focus your time on calculation performance issues, debugging calculations by stepping through the calculation, and stress testing your application. This presentation will include hands on demonstrations of all the functionality and features discussed.
Attendees will leave this session with the knowledge and examples that will allow them to go back to their workplaces and use them to improve their applications. Users looking to move to the cloud will learn about some of the hidden gems that often go forgotten.

Detailed Abstract for Review
This presentation will walk attendees through multiple features that they may not be aware of if they are using PBCS and functions they don’t have access to if they are using the on-premise version. It will begin with an overview of these. It will demonstrate the functions with live demonstrations that will allow participants to make an immediate impact in performance and improve the user experience.

The presentation will be structured as follows:
• Introduction
• Basic Navigation in the cloud UI
• Demonstrate the options to debug calculations
• Demonstrate the option in calculation manager to find and improve time intensive calculations
• Discuss the option of stress testing PBCS
• Provide a checklist for administrators to take with them and implement improvements

Getting Started with Groovy for the Non-Technical Superstars

Mon, Jun 24, 2019 (11:45 AM – 12:45 PM)
602/603, Level 6

Session Summary for Attendees
Groovy calculations are not just accessible to those with lots of experience writing Java, Groovy, or other coding languages. With a little guidance, you can become extremely productive and add some world class functionality to your applications. This session will be delivered with both the experienced, and non-experienced, by a person with a finance degree that learned it on the fly.
This session will provide an administrator with the knowledge needed to get started writing Groovy calculations immediately. We will introduce how to get started with Groovy and use it to interact with PBCS via the API. Three to four key concepts will be covered for you to leave understanding the possibilities. We will discuss where and how to get help, learn from examples, and avoid spending time going down some of the wrong paths like I did.

Attendees will leave this session with the knowledge to implement basic Groovy calculations, examples of more complicated solutions, and the foundation to grow on. They will take home working examples, and references to all the concepts needed to go from 0 to 60 in 4 seconds.

Detailed Abstract for Review
This presentation will walk attendees through multiple features that they may not be aware of if they are using PBCS and functions they don’t have access to if they are using the on-premise version. It will begin with an overview of these. It will demonstrate the functions with live demonstrations that will allow participants to make an immediate impact in performance and improve the user experience.

The presentation will be structured as follows:
• Introduction
• Understand how to get started
• Demonstrate and break down how to add user functionality
• Demonstrate and break down how to add pre-save validation
• Demonstrate and break down how to add real time data model synchronization on data form save
• Where to go to get help

If you haven’t signed up, please go out and do that today I hope to see you at one of my sessions.

KScope has concluded, and what a fantastic week it was.  I love the years I get the feedback that I have an abstract selected so I can attend.  This year, I was awarded Oracle Ace, so it was really nice to be nominated and recognized for my contributions to the community. 

I tried to record the sessions and unfortunately, only 1 worked.  All of my presentations were recorded through the event and will be released in the coming months. When they are, I will share the links.  Until them, I hope the visual presentations will inspire you to take a look at Groovy, if I haven’t already pushed you in that direction.

Now that my time has been spent building these decks is over, look forward to more Groovy Adventures!

Top Down and BottomS Up Planning at Breakthru Beverage Group

Why Groovy is Game Changing



ePBCS Gridbuilder Deep Dive – Last Minute KScope Souvenirs



I am really excited about the breakout sessions this year.  I was asked to be involved in two additional sessions and one of my sessions has been moved.  I really hope to see you all in Orlando!

Ask the Experts – Planning Panel

Jun 12th, 2018 02:15 PM – 03:15 PM
Southern Hemisphere II

This is an open forum with a panel of experiences planning people that are there to answer questions and share knowledge.  It is a great way to get different opinions by people with a lot varying experiences.

Top-Down and Bottom-Up Planning at Breakthru Beverage Group

June 13th, 2018 11:45 AM – 12:45 PM
Northern Hemisphere E3

This presentation will walk attendees through technical and business solution and how to implement both a bottoms up and top down planning process.  It will also discuss the architecture and technical solution of how it was accomplished.  It will show people the benefits of Groovy calculations integrated with PBCS.  We will conclude with live examples and an documentation on both the technical architecture and business approach that attendees use as a basis to implement a similar solution.

The presentation will be structured as follows:

• Introduction
• Application overview
• Overview of the business processes
  • Process flow
  • User functionality
  • Benefits of PBCS
• Benefits and examples of allowing users to do top down or bottom up input
• Overview of the technical architecture and how it was implemented
• Live demo of working process, including
  • Top down entry
  • Bottom up entry
  • Input validation
  • Monthly phasing
• Overview of how Groovy was used to accomplish real time reporting

Why Groovy is Game Changing

June 13th, 2018, 3:30 PM – 4:30 PM
Northern Hemisphere E3

This presentation will walk attendees through the basics of Groovy calculations.  It will begin with an introduction on how to create a Groovy calculation and end with live demonstrations of all the functionality covered in a live application.

The presentation will be structured as follows:

• Introduction
• What is a Groovy calculation
• Basic Groovy syntax
• How to get help / where to learn
• Groovy integration with PBCS
  • How to calculate only the cells that changed
  • How to dynamically build and run Essbase calculations based on form changes and POV
  • How to bypass BSO calculations enabling input directly to ASO
  • How to customize form Smart Pushes to only include data that has changed
  • How to copy data from BSO to ASO, ASO to BSO, and ASO to ASO
  • How to perform proactive data validation
  • How to execute tasks based on user feedback
  • How to color code cells based on rules
  • How to validation RTPs
• Live demo of all functionality

Last Minute ODTUG Kscope18 Planning Souvenirs You Will ACTUALLY Use!

June 14th, 9:30 – 11:00 a.m.
Southern Hemisphere II

I will be presenting a deep dive on the Groovy Grid Builder Class and will include demo and shared code to do the following.

• Move Data from ASO to BSO to eliminate the need for consolidations
• Calculating outside of Essbase
• Mapping data when moving from cube to cube
• Clearing ASO effectively

The Mouse Or Bust

I am really excited to be speaking and attending Kscope this year. It is very difficult to get selected to participate, so hopefully I don’t disappoint.  The last few years I was on the outside looking in, but this year I have 2 presentations.

Why Groovy is Game Changing

Groovy is a game changer.  It improves performance, allows for proactive user validation, can interact with the user in ways we haven’t been able to since the introduction of SmartView.

This session will provide an overview of Groovy functionality, including mind blowing performance improvements, how to interact with the planners, pre form save validation, and changing the form visuals.  The session will take the attendees from start to finish on the basics of Groovy with interactive code reviews and live demos.

Attendees will leave this session with the knowledge and examples that will enable them to go back to their environments and implement Groovy calculations to take advantage of ground breaking advancements in the technology.  These scripts improved calculations, data pushes, and consolidations by 98% in a real client application.

Top Down and Bottom Up Planning at Breakthru Beverage Group

Planners are always looking for real time reporting and faster feedback.  They are looking to make the forecasting and planning process faster by using historical trends and the ability to enter data at any level, enter growth factors, and drive the results down to the lowest level of the business.  They want instant feedback on consolidated results.

This session will highlight a customer success story using PBCS.  This session will walk through the strategic benefits building a driver based budget and forecasting application with the ability to seed SKU level data and apply growth rates at any level of product or organization to effectively build a bottom up plan.  The session will also discuss the work force planning application that includes the ability to allocate people over multiple cost centers and companies.  It will also discuss the technical architecture and strategy to allow this to happen and integrate with the higher level P$L in real time.  The session will be supported with live demonstrations.

Attendees will leave this session with an understanding of the business solutions and the strategic benefits of building a plan from historic trends.  They will also leave with a complete understanding of the technical architecture, including the benefits of Groovy calculations, and how to implement a similar solution.

Other Activities

Huron has a host of activities to compliment the events Kscope will be hosting.  If you would like to meet me there to discuss an opportunity, or just have a conversation about the cloud landscape, please drop me a email and we can schedule some time.

I will share more information about my sessions, and some other speakers I would recommend, as the event gets closer.

If you haven’t attended this event, it really is a great experience. You will come away from the event with new knowledge and relationships.  If you are interested in attending there is great information at kscope18.odtug.com.  There is still a $300 discount for early signup, but it doesn’t last more than another few weeks.

Kscope wouldn’t be the same without checking out Jake – one of the best.  The amount of time and effort he puts into his presentations is crazy and it shows.  If you want to learn something new, below is schedule.  If you get a picture of him in his formal wear (you will know what I mean if you see it), please post a picture in a comment and tweet me…PLEASE!

Presentations

Introduction to the Hyperion Planning REST API
Monday, Jun 27, 2016, Session 6, 4:30 pm – 5:30 pm

Introduction to Essbase Hybrid Aggregation Mode
Tuesday, Jun 28, 2016, Session 12, 4:45 pm – 5:45 pm

Hands-on-Lab

Introduction to Essbase Hybrid Aggregation Mode
Wednesday, June 29, 4:30 – 5:30 PM

I can’t go this year because, oddly, Jake can’t work on our project.  So, you all enjoy – hope to see you all next year.

Follow Jake

• Twitter
• http://turrellconsulting.com/

I attended many Hyperion Solutions conferences back in the day.  I really enjoyed the experience, but after the first couple of years, I didn’t feel like I was getting my money’s worth.  I started to wonder if I knew all there was to know about Essbase, as every presentation I attended seemed very basic.  Was I that good?  Did the benefit of attending these conferences shift from knowledge gain to networking? I decided to stop attending. 

Last year, Jake Turrell invited me to become be part of the Kscope12 Hyperion Planning track selection committee.  Being away from the conference scene for so long, I jumped at the chance to find out how presentations were selected.  I thought it would be a great opportunity to be part of a team that was trying to make the conference content better.  I was extremely impressed with the topics, but was still hesitant on how valuable attending the conference would be for me, outside of networking.

Two words express what I experienced in San Antonio.

HUMBLING and EXCITED

I was never involved in the abstract selection process for the Hyperion Solutions conference, so I’m unable to compare the marketing behind the process of collecting and selecting abstracts, but I can say with conviction that every presentation I attended far exceeded my expectations.

This year, I was asked to take on the role of committee chair for the Planning track.  My goals were simple – to set measureable and meaningful evaluation standards that a democratic group of experts could use to make the best decisions on the presentations for Kscope13 and continue its presentation excellence.

To provide you a little background, presentations were ranked and selected according to the content, regardless of presenter’s industry exposure.  Once the presentation was paired to the presenter, we verified that

1. No presenter dominated a track
2. No consulting company dominated a track
3. The consulting/customer ratio was reasonable
4. A presentation that was known to be presented at a national or regional conference was excluded, unless there was an overwhelming reason for it to be presented again
5. Presenters’ abilities were verified by interviews, or feedback by an industry contact that knew the presenter

There was great dialogue among the selection committee to select the abstracts that showed the most promise. Once the abstracts were ranked, a discussion surrounded each one on its merits and possibilities.  This discussion included the presenters’ backgrounds, the content and whether it was presented before.  The selection committee members were not immune to this degree of scrutiny either, as some of my own (the almighty track chairperson) topics were disregarded!

The bottom line is that the committee made every effort to showcase the best of the best, regardless of the presenter’s historical credentials and industry panache.

After the smoke cleared, the selected presentations were tweaked so no presenter or organization dominated the track. The presenters that were not known by a committee member were called and interviewed to ensure the most potential for a great presentation.

If you want to further your knowledge, improve your productivity, network with some of the best minds in our industry, and further your career, join us in New Orleans.  We think the result will be a conference well worth your time and investment.

You are sure to enjoy the experience.

Kscope13 article submission is open.  I will be spearheading the Planning track at Kscope13.  Last year was my first trip to the conference, and I was amazed at the talent and breadth of speakers.  Jake Turrell did an unbelievable job owning the Planning track last year.  He was involved in the release of Developing Essbase Applications (available in hardback and Kindle versions).

I am going to lean on him for help to try to make this year’s event even better.  The most important part of the conference starts now, and we need your help.  Submit an abstract.  Only a brief description is required at this point.  It takes less than 30 minutes.  We don’t need a full presentation now; that comes later.  If you are nervous about speaking, we will have a number of helpful presentations on what to expect and how to make your presentation the most effective possible.  If you do it once, I promise you will be hooked.

What you will need to submit

1. Personal bio
2. Presentation title
3. Presentation description
4. Presentation summary no more than 100 words
5. Benefits of attending your presentation

To submit, go to the Kscope13 Abstract Submission Site.  Creating an account takes only a minute.  Once you are logged in, input your bio and click the “Add Abstract” button.  Use the information above to fill out the form.  Select the related technology, the type of presentation, and you are done!  The Kcope13 Content page has suggestions that will help you get your submission to stand out.

Submissions are open now to October 15th. 

KScope12 is the premier conference for Hyperion techies and up-and-comers. Whether you are looking to brush up on your skills, learn new skills, or see how others overcome challenges, you will want to participate in this event. If your organization values your development and has a budget for these growth opportunities, mark your calendar for June 24th through the 28th. Registration is open, and as more information is available, it will be published at In2Hyperion.

Presenting a topic is a great way to reduce the cost of the trip. It’s a great way to get your name out in the community as well. If you have something that you think would be valuable for other experts to hear about, submit an abstract.

We hope to see you there. Visit www.kscope12.com for all travel details and abstract submissions.

I attended many Hyperion Solutions conferences back in the day.  I really enjoyed the experience, but after the first couple of years, I didn’t feel like I was getting my money’s worth.  I started to wonder if I knew all there was to know about Essbase, as every presentation I attended seemed very basic.  Was I that good?  Did the benefit of attending these conferences shift from knowledge gain to networking? I decided to stop attending. 

Last year, Jake Turrell invited me to become be part of the Kscope12 Hyperion Planning track selection committee.  Being away from the conference scene for so long, I jumped at the chance to find out how presentations were selected.  I thought it would be a great opportunity to be part of a team that was trying to make the conference content better.  I was extremely impressed with the topics, but was still hesitant on how valuable attending the conference would be for me, outside of networking.

Two words express what I experienced in San Antonio.

HUMBLING and EXCITED

I was never involved in the abstract selection process for the Hyperion Solutions conference, so I’m unable to compare the marketing behind the process of collecting and selecting abstracts, but I can say with conviction that every presentation I attended far exceeded my expectations.

This year, I was asked to take on the role of committee chair for the Planning track.  My goals were simple – to set measureable and meaningful evaluation standards that a democratic group of experts could use to make the best decisions on the presentations for Kscope13 and continue its presentation excellence.

To provide you a little background, presentations were ranked and selected according to the content, regardless of presenter’s industry exposure.  Once the presentation was paired to the presenter, we verified that

1. No presenter dominated a track
2. No consulting company dominated a track
3. The consulting/customer ratio was reasonable
4. A presentation that was known to be presented at a national or regional conference was excluded, unless there was an overwhelming reason for it to be presented again
5. Presenters’ abilities were verified by interviews, or feedback by an industry contact that knew the presenter

There was great dialogue among the selection committee to select the abstracts that showed the most promise. Once the abstracts were ranked, a discussion surrounded each one on its merits and possibilities.  This discussion included the presenters’ backgrounds, the content and whether it was presented before.  The selection committee members were not immune to this degree of scrutiny either, as some of my own (the almighty track chairperson) topics were disregarded!

The bottom line is that the committee made every effort to showcase the best of the best, regardless of the presenter’s historical credentials and industry panache.

After the smoke cleared, the selected presentations were tweaked so no presenter or organization dominated the track. The presenters that were not known by a committee member were called and interviewed to ensure the most potential for a great presentation.

If you want to further your knowledge, improve your productivity, network with some of the best minds in our industry, and further your career, join us in New Orleans.  We think the result will be a conference well worth your time and investment.

You are sure to enjoy the experience.