Kaleidoscope Wrap-Up

The reset of the Kaleidoscope conference was even better than the first day. By the time I got home yesterday I was thoroughly exhausted but I gained so much from the experience.

Tuesday morning I went to a session led by InterRel where you could ask Essbase experts anything you wanted. I then I attended a class on Smartview which was led by Robert Hunter. The Smartview class was extremely informative. I had no idea the capabilities that Smartview had in regards to tasks lists, web forms, and its ability to work in other Microsoft products besides Excel.

In the afternoon I attended a class on Oracle BI and Mobility taught by Keving McGinley of Accenture. I enjoyed learning about the different mobile applications available for BI and I would like to be part of a project where I could build mobile reports. After that class I attended "Designing Eye-Catching and Effective Dashboards" which was an extremely helpful class. The It was taught by Jordan Meyer of Rittman Mead Consulting. Jordan did a great job of getting the facts across and providing examples of why some dashboards are much more effective than others. This class ended up being one of the award winning classes of the conference!

Tuesday evening our Crown group met up with some friends to go to dinner and the Alamo. It was a fun night! Below is me at the Alamo:

Wednesday morning I went to a class based on Harvard's implementation of financial reporting and then attended an Essbase Experts Panel for Essbase Beginners. Both of these classes were extremely informative and I particularly enjoyed the one about Harvard. The teacher (Alexander Ladd of Mindstream Analytics) emphasized the importance of good planning before taking action.

Wednesday afternoon I attended a class on Essbase Studio which was a great class taught by Glenn Schwartzberg and I was surprised to learn Essbase Studio's capabilities. It is a tool I would really like to learn more about. I also attended "So Many Tools, What Do I use?" and a "A Forward Look at Essbase" on Wednesday afternoon. Both of these were great and I especially enjoyed learning about the differences between Oracle's broad range of tools.

Wednesday evening we went to a rodeo and it was a blast! I even got hit in the head by a rock from an angry bull. The rodeo was at Knibee Ranch. I had trouble getting a picture but here are some photos from Knibee Ranch:

My experience at Kaleidoscope was so awesome! I gained so much from going and am so thankful for this opportunity. Beyond the classroom knowledge I learned so much about clients, networking, and marketing. A special thanks to Lynn, Bud, Darren, and Chip for all the advice and question answering you guys did throughout the week!

Kaleidoscope Conference

Hi Everyone,

I am currently in San Antonio, Texas for the ODTUG Kaleidoscope Conference and I have had quite a week... And it's only Monday!

I flew out yesterday afternoon and was extremely surprised to find that I was bumped to first class on not one, but both of my flights out to San Antonio! I have never even flown first class before, let alone twice in one day. As if that wasn't enough, when I checked into the JW Marriott in San Anotonio (see the beautiful picture below), I found out the hotel was out of single bed rooms so I was bumped to an executive suite. Not just a suite, these rooms (notice room is plural) are HUGE. I guess yesterday was my lucky day... I should have bought a lottery ticket! 

Beyond the fun and lucky stuff that has been happening, the conference has been such a great experience. This morning I went to a hands on session about OBI (Oracle Business Intelligence) which was taught by Charles Elliot of Rittman Mead Consulting. He did a really great job and I would love to continue learning more about OBI. Maybe it's just the headstrong personality in me but I would love to be handed an OBI project and just be told to run with it. I really thought the OBI tool was extremely interactive and user friendly.

Later during lunch I was able to watch some of my colleagues networking at our booth. I was able to learn so much from Chip Rosales, Lynn Brading, Bud Burwinkle, and Darren Hites just by watching them hard at work. One thing that particularly stuck with me was when you are in that type of environment, and you don't really know what to say, the best thing to do is just ask the client questions. Once you've engaged the potential client in conversation, it's easy to go from there. Thanks Chip for the advice!

After lunch I attended "An Intro to ODI in the Hyperion Environment" which was taught by Matthias Helios of Mindstream Analytics. I had the pleasure of sitting by Matthias during my morning class and he did an excellent job presenting and explaining ODI, despite the fact that the content was a little bit (okay a lot bit) over my head.

Throughout the conference I have been networking as much as possible and have been able to meet some really great people. 

Finally I would like to say that I am so fortunate that I am working for a company that would even consider sending a new college grad to this conference. I am so thankful for this opportunity Crown has given me. I'll keep everyone posted as my week goes on.

Goodnight from the Lonestar state!

Officially an Adult

Hello Everyone!

I haven't been on here in forever but I figured now is just as good of time as any to get back into blogging with the start of a new career and a ton of other things going on in my life. So here is a quick rundown of everything that has happened in the last couple of months:

• Returned from Europe (obviously)
• Went to Panama City for spring break
• GOT ENGAGED to the most awesome person ever on May 6!
• Graduated from UC on June 9! Accounting major, international business minor
• Started a new job with Crown Partners on June 18th!

I am loving life so much right now. There is a ton going on but it is all awesome. My new job as a consultant is going great. Next week I get to go to the Kaleidoscope Conference in San Antonio, Texas to learn more about Oracle and I cannot wait.

Thanks for reading! Further adventures, stories, and updates to follow.

Courtney

Other Side of the Atlantic

Today I traveled to Dingle with Kathleen and Patrick Dineen. Kathleen is Liam's sister so she is my second cousin. Kathleen and Patrick were tons of fun. The drive itself was breathtaking with the mountains and Irish countryside. Our first stop was "The Inch" which is a beach along the coast of Ireland. I saw the other side of the Atlantic and Patrick kept asking if I could swim home. I suppose I would save money on plane fare!
Dingle was a cute little town that is pretty deserted this time of year but we wound up at Murphy's Pub to eat. It was delicious! I tried toffee pudding which is an Irish dessert and really enjoyed it. Patrick was very interested in my future career and really made me feel good about myself because he said that I've already done quite alot for someone my age. When I told him all my plans for the future he said he would have to stay alive quite a long time because he wanted to meet in fifty years. :) He also told me not to worry if things don't always work out perfectly and said the following: "During the Great Depression when the market crashed the Americans jumped off the Empire State Building, the English jumped off the London Bridge, and Paddy (the Irishmen) went on vacation and hoped everything would be fixed by the time he got back! So don't worry too much when you mess up." I'm really going to miss meeting new people everyday when I get back home. I think that has been my most favorite part of my trip but I will always have those experiences with me.
On the drive back we stopped in Tralee. It was dark by the time we got there and many of the shops were closed so we just wondered around for a bit and went into a church. It was such a cute little town.
Once we got home there was the most wonderful apple tart and another cousin, Bernie, waiting for us. I couldn't help myself and had two pieces of the apple tart. Then we took a few pictures and everyone headed home for the evening.
I'm so sad I have to leave Killarney tomorrow. I definitely will return someday. This place is absolutely wonderful!

The Gap, Muckross, and Ross's Castle

My second day in Killarney also proved to be wonderful. I slept in really late and then had a full afternoon of exploring with Marie, Eimear, and Sarah. We drove all around Killarney and saw most of the main highlights including "The Gap", Muckross, and Ross's Castle. All were beautiful and all three ladies are the best company I could ask for!
We also saw my great-great-grandfather's gravesite and talked about how Sarah, Eimear, and I are third cousins. I love seeing where my ancestors are from and making those connections.
This evening Marie made us a traditional Irish dinner of bacon (ham), cabbage, and potatoes. I loved it! I am so fortunate to be staying with such wonderful people who want me to experience so much of the Irish culture. They are so sweet and I am so proud to call them my family :)

A day in Killarney

My first full day in Killarney was absolutely wonderful. The Courtney's are so nice to me. They have been feeding me so well and are such wonderful hosts. This morning we went to church and this afternoon we went to a football (Gaelic, not American) game. It was really fun and I saw a player fight and a dog fight! After football I explored Killarney with Sarah and Eimear which was grand. We went shopping and I finished up my souveneir shopping.

In town there is a lovely cathedral, St. Mary's Cathedral. This cathedral is built on top of a mound of bodies left from the famine. Inside the cathedral you can purchase candles to light to pray for people. I lit many, many candles. If you are reading this blog as a close friend or family member, I probably lit a candle for you. :)

I hope all is well for everyone back home and I will see you all soon!

Hello Ireland!

It was a bittersweet morning departing from my classmates that I had spent every minute with for the last four weeks but I am pretty excited to be on my own in Ireland. This morning I took a plane to a bus and am now on a train where I will go to another train to a car, then finally, a house. It sounds like a long commute but it's fun to figure it out and be handling it all on my own.
The Irish countryside is so green. There are alot more houses than I expected there to be but I also am still somewhat close to Dublin so that could be why. This week I am looking forward to getting some nice runs in around Killarney and enjoying all the cute accents the irish have.
Our last couple days in Barcelona were fairly good. I caught a cold though which put a damper on things. Friday in class we did a group activity and the teacher analyzed the different personalites in the group which was fairly intersting. Last night a group of us went to Bar Lobo for our last dinner. The food was delicous and the company was the best.
I hope everyone is safe and happy back home!