The CFO's perspective: an interview with Jeffrey O. Henley, Chief Financial Officer, Oracle Corporation.

• Position: Interview

Jeff Henley Is executive vice president and chief financial officer of Oracle Corporation. Oracle Corporation has more than 40,000 employees, has surpassed $8 billion in annual revenues, and offers products and services in more than 95 countries. Prior to Joining Oracle, Mr. Henley served as executive vice president and chief financial officer at Pacific Holding Company and executive vice president and chief financial officer at Saga Corporation, a multi-billion dollar food service company. He also served as director of finance at Memorex Corporation in its large storage division and as controller of International operations at Fairchild Camera and Instruments. At an exclusive Interview Mr. Henley gave a down-to-earth portrayal of how to focus a leading organization on managing for value.

Q: With the Internet central to the currently growing business environment, what are some of your top challenges around managing growth and risk?

A: We're a growth organization, but I worry about how to keep growing, increase shareholder value, and optimize profitability within quickly changing business cycles. Our products are strong, we've got a lot of opportunity, and we think we can continue to improve our margins. Along with everyone else, we are trying to find ways to further leverage Web technology. A big risk is competitive position in the current economy.

Q: In the last few years, Oracle's total applications revenue has picked up speed. In fact, you have said that "Oracle's Applications business is on fire in the face of massive momentum declines in competitor performance." How do Oracle's unique Internet Solutions (isolutions) offerings keep pace with change?

A: We positively are leading the charge in a bigger way than we ever have. We are ahead in important technology areas, like Strategic Enterprise Management and electronic commerce. Having a clear vision is important, and you have to believe you're going to get there. I think people believe more than ever that we are getting there.

Q: In your words, "The ERP market environment is changing, and it is not because tile market is deteriorating. Clearly, the players who don't have the right focus and technology are losing the battle." What is Oracle doing to help organizations get more out of their investment in enterprise resource planning (ERP)?

A: A big change is that we're extending ERP from the back office to the front office, and we're offering Business Intelligence; Strategic Enterprise...