Updated 3/29/01 OAUG Wraps Up Successful European Conference Staying true to its objective of bringing an independent, educational focused conference to European users of Oracle Applications, the OAUG successfully concluded its fourth annual European Conference March 23. "OAUG conferences have always focused on real users experiences and have placed great emphasis on enabling networking and communication between attendees so that Oracle Applications users may learn from one another," said OAUG President Jeremy Young. With over 700 attendees, 70% of which were Oracle applications users, OAUG's European conference proved to be a success. Sau Fong Flood, from the U.S.A has attended three North American OAUG Conferences and said the one in Geneva has been her favorite for networking with fellow users. She said she prefered the smaller scale conference because it made it easier for her to get around, attend sessions, and meet people. Spanning four days, the conference offered a little something for everybody. Not only were people making contacts and learning from one another, but they were able to choose from over 100 paper presentations on topics such as e-business, financials, general implementation, CRM, human resources, manufacturing/distribution and technical support; practice on the latest Oracle releases at the self-service demonstration area and during educational sessions; and visit over thirty exhibitors offering complementary products, education, and consulting services across the applications. Other conference highlights included a keynote address from Sergio Giacoletto, executive vice president, Oracle Europe, Middle East and Africa, who explained how Oracle saved over $1 billion dollars by implementing its own eBusiness suite; a motivational session with one of the first men to fly around the world in a hot air balloon, Betrand Piccard; and on the final day an informative session by BOSS Corporation Vice President Jay Oliphant outlining key issues in B2B integration. "As the largest independent forum for Oracle Applications users, the OAUG's goal was to bring a truly beneficial educational and networking opportunity to the European community of Oracle Applications users this year, and we've successfully reached that goal," said Young.