What is the Difference between Oracle DBA and Oracle APPS DBA?

Normally people start their journey from a software engineer in Information Technology. We all are aware of few fields of IT like testing engineer, data analyst, software engineer, web designer, coder etc. But in information-technology, we have an ocean of different kind of professions.  In IT sectors administration plays an important role in business. without an administrator, IT projects can not reach to its peak point. “DBA stands for the Database Administrator”. DBA is a backbone of the entire project of any business. When we talk about DBA profile all kind of the center of attraction goes about lots of responsibilities. DBA works 24/7 for the organization to manage the world’s hustle-bustle.

Oracle APPS DBA

Today we can not perform the business operation without ERP. ERP stands for “Enterprise resource planning”. Small scale or large scale business is incomplete without using ERP. There are over 130 Oracle Applications Modules offered with Oracle Applications and the Oracle Applications DBA must have an understanding of the functional and internal machinations of the Oracle Applications software.  For example, Oracle EBusiness Suite (Oracle Financials) applications DBA staff must understand the basic cost and financial accounting, especially in cases where they create reporting databases and assist in expanding the functionality for specialized accounting.  Many of these Oracle Financials DBA’s are certified public accountants (CPA).

An Oracle Applications DBA is peculiar from a regular Oracle database administrator and requires specialized skills in business administration and Oracle application server architectures.  The Oracle Applications DBA job role is less compartmentalized than a traditional Oracle DBA and the Oracle Applications DBA must also have skills in these areas:

• Database Design – Many shops require customized functional extensions and reporting data marts and the Oracle Applications DBA must have outstanding Database design skills.
• Oracle Application Server – The Oracle Applications DBA must understand the internals of the Oracle concurrent manager and understand how to monitor and tune Oracle Applications.
• Functional Expertise – Many shops require a business degree and a general understanding of the Oracle Applications module.  For example, accountants are widely used to support Oracle e-business Suite (Oracle Financials), and accountants with an IT background are easily trained in Oracle Applications DBA support.

Oracle Applications DBA background

Because most Oracle Applications databases support mission critical systems, a successful Oracle Applications DBA must have these skills:

• Marvelous conveyance Skills – Oracle Applications DBA’s must interface with the end-user community and they must have college-level communications skills, being able to communicate clearly, both orally and in written communications.
• Business Degree – Most successful Oracle Applications DBA staff have advanced degrees in business administration, almost all of AACSB accredited collegiate business schools.  Graduates of sub-optimal business schools will have very difficult time obtaining a job in Oracle Applications administration, and a firm understanding of business processes is essential to perform many of the duties of the Oracle Applications DBA job role.
• DBA skills – Most Oracle Applications DBA staff have at least five years of full-time progressive DBA experience, and they sometimes have Oracle certifications such as OCP and OCM. The Oracle Applications DBA must also have a good understanding of related technologies, especially Java (JDeveloper, J2EE, Apache) and Oracle Application Server.