Oracle hires defense official for government sales

REDWOOD SHORES, CALIF. – Oracle has hired a senior U.S. Department of Defense official in an effort to bolster its government sales, an Oracle executive said Wednesday.

Lieutenant General Joseph Kellogg, director of command, control, communications and computer systems for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will start at Oracle on Monday, Kevin Fitzgerald, senior vice president of government, education and healthcare at Oracle, said in a meeting with analysts here at Oracle’s headquarters.

Kellogg comes to Oracle after a 32-year career in the military, the last six on the staff of the Secretary of Defense.

“[Kellogg] will be joining our staff to head up our Homeland Security and network-centric warfare initiatives and will bring a tremendous amount of depth and credibility to our efforts in this area,” Fitzgerald said. Kellogg will be a senior vice president at Oracle, he said.

Oracle is bullish about the opportunities in the government space where spending is robust. Fitzgerald sees the U.S. Government’s $38 billion 2003 homeland security budget as “one of the most important government initiatives in the last fifty years.”

Oracle customers already include the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). Recently, Oracle was chosen to provide technology for a bio-terrorism initiative in the District of Columbia and expects to win similar deals with three more states, Fitzgerald said.

Analysts attending the event said they see potential in sales to government as a key strength for Oracle.

Besides targeting the U.S. Department of Homeland Security initiatives, Oracle is looking to sell its software to state and local governments promising cost benefits.