Database administrators are much more than just “table jockeys.” Because of our well-rounded expertise, we are often asked to help evaluate third-party business applications, application development tools and database administration and monitoring products. Over the years, I have developed a Product Evaluation Methodology that you may find helpful.
Introduction
A methodology can be loosely defined as a [...]

According to an employee engagement study I read a while ago, there are five broad actions that managers should keep in mind and practice as often as possible in order to maximize employee engagement:

Caring:  Show them you truly and sincerely care
Challenging:  Make sure they feel intellectually/professionally challenged
Noticing: Keep an eye on what they are doing [...]

This week Pittsburgh is hosting the G-20 Conference. The city has been getting ready for this event for months.  It is a big deal for us! This gives us a great opportunity to showcase our city!

In my opinion, the city has done a great job preparing for and communicating with the business community and its [...]

This blog will focus on the most important responsibility we are charged with as DBAs – ensuring that our organization’s databases can be quickly and easily recovered.  My intent with most of these blogs is to provide information that you won’t find from other sources.   You can find the mechanics of database administration in a multitude [...]

In order to survive and thrive in today’s world, both individuals and organizations should continuously improve the way they do things.  Continuous improvement requires continuous learning. However, effective learning takes time.  You need time to determine what to learn, time to do the learning, and finally, time to practice what you’ve learned.
Make a Strong Connection
You [...]

I was looking through materials I save to write my next post and I came across the following quote:
“Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it.”
I do not know where I got it from, but it made a quick and strong impression on me.  I believe that this quote [...]

Because of my background in Oracle Education, I am often asked about Oracle training, which classes would be most beneficial and how to prepare for the certification tests. The purpose of this article is to help students better understand Oracle education and the Oracle certification process.
This blog will provide you with some hints and tips that [...]

For some reason I do not understand, clutter seems to be bad for people and organizations.  Thus, taking time to declutter is a high value activity that we should undertake on a regular basis.  When I worked at Westinghouse a few years ago, I had a boss who would take advantage of customer and executive [...]

In this post I am mixing subjects from two prior posts: Problems and Opportunities.  When you think about it, the best business opportunities are related to one or more problems.  And opportunities lie in the solution to those problems.  If that is the case, that means that to find great opportunities you need to be [...]

Ever look at a screen’s output and get that puckered feeling in the pit of your stomach? If you have been working in this profession for any amount of time, you know the feeling I’m talking about. The feeling that makes you think you would rather be living in Montana making woodcarvings at a roadside [...]