In Dr. Spencer Johnson’s 1998 bestseller, Who Moved My Cheese?, four characters navigate a maze in search of cheese. The book’s main themes are that change is inevitable and that we must anticipate, adapt, and embrace it to be successful in work and life.
Fast forward to the 10.25 Oracle EPM update, and we find ourselves in a similar maze. This time, the “cheese” is the data management Action menu items. And yes, they are about to be moved.
The Data Integration home page has undergone a subtle but powerful transformation. The familiar Actions menu has been reorganized into two new dropdowns: Setup and Configure.
The Setup menu is where you define the structure of your data environment. Think of it as mapping your maze before you start running:
- Applications: Define your integration targets and sources.
- Locations: Create and maintain locations for mapping.
- Period Mapping: Align time-based data across systems.
- Category Mapping: Manage application scenarios.
- Query: Setup and modify data source queries.
Once your maze is mapped, it’s time to optimize your tools and security. This is where the Configure menu comes in:
- System Settings: Control the behavior of your integration engine.
- Security Settings: Safeguard access and permissions.
- Agent: Manage the EPM Integration Agent settings.
- Download Agent: Get the EPM Integration Agent software.
Just like the characters in Who Moved My Cheese? learned to adapt to their new reality, this menu redesign helps users adapt to their data environment more efficiently. By grouping actions based on context, users can find what they need faster and act with greater confidence eventually. Those of us who have switched to using the Data Integration UI will take a little bit to get used to it, but I think this is a small quality of life change that we will come to appreciate.
This update applies across business processes including Account Reconciliation, Planning, Tax Reporting, and more.
In the end, the cheese will always move. The question is: will you move with it?