Expert Overview
Mike Cox is a technical architect in Oracle Consulting Services (OCS) leading a team responsible for integration configuration, data conversion, report development, and more! His experience working with Permitting and Licensing software spans the past 15+ years, and prior to joining Oracle he worked at TruePoint Solutions, the City of Roseville in California, Hansen (now Infor), as well as owning his own real estate company. When he’s not at work, Mike spends most of his time trying to keep pace with his daughters.
Q: What made you decide to join the Oracle team?
A: I have worked with and been impressed by Oracle technologies throughout my career. I’ve also been privileged to work with many of our team members in the past – they are the best in the business! Additionally, the Permitting and Licensing space was ready for disruption, so when I learned of an opportunity to work with a truly exceptional team at a world-class tech company while implementing a new cloud-native product built on best-of-breed technologies, everything lined up. It was an easy decision.
Q: What are some of the technical challenges you face during an implementation, and how do you overcome those?
A: A prominent technical implementation challenge is achieving efficient system integration. Whereas many products in our space have insufficient or difficult-to-use library-based APIs, our solution has several productized integrations along with a documented, fully REST-enabled API. Our solution also easily integrates with our best-of-breed integration platform, Oracle Integration Cloud. These out-of-the-box and custom integration options greatly simplify and reduce the cost of integrating with our system.
Q: How does OCS’s agile approach to implementations affect the implementation of technical capabilities you are responsible for?
A: Using an agile methodology allows us to begin the technical workstreams much sooner than would be possible with a waterfall approach, so our overall project timeline is shortened. During the first few sprints, OCS functional teams typically prepare one or more record-type configurations, so we can begin integration, conversion, and reporting near the beginning of a project. In contrast, when using a waterfall methodology, many of the tech workstreams can only begin closer to the end of a project, after the functional team’s configuration work is complete.
Q: What do you enjoy most about working directly with customers?
A: It’s gratifying to become an agency’s trusted partner through the process of helping it achieve its goals and better serve its community. Additionally, our work ultimately benefits the people who live, work, and play in our customers’ jurisdictions, so it’s satisfying to know that our efforts improve the experience of everyday citizens.
Q: And to end our conversation on a fun note: what are your favorite activities outside of work?
A: Recently, my twin daughters and their activities have kept me very busy, but when I used to have more free time, I enjoyed distance running and have done a couple of marathons. These days, I spend my free time reading, golfing, and trail running. My family also does a lot of hiking, biking, and various activities around Sacramento, and we often visit extended family in the San Francisco bay area.
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Modern cloud technology solutions can help public-sector organizations overcome many of the challenges they face. By migrating to the cloud with Oracle Permitting and Licensing, organizations can embrace innovation and push the limits of what their employees and constituents have come to expect from their government. Oracle is excited to be able to partner with government organizations on their journey to the cloud, and you can discover more Permitting and Licensing product here.