Oracle picks 9i boss to lead UK marketing

Alan Hartwell is to take up the position of vice-president of marketing at Oracle UK & Ireland, replacing Nick Barley, who left to head the UK marketing team at rival software company Microsoft in August (MW August 8).

Hartwell will report to Ian Smith, senior vice-president and managing director for UK and Ireland, and Claus-Peter Unterberger, vice-president of marketing for Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA). Unterberger assumed responsibility for UK and Ireland’s marketing until Hartwell was appointed.

Hartwell has worked at Oracle for four years, primarily in a sales capacity. He joined the company’s financial services team before moving to a sales position promoting Oracle’s Internet products across all sectors. In his latest role, Hartwell was 9i solutions sales leader, responsible for selling Oracle’s 9i software products in the UK.

He takes up his post at a difficult time for Oracle. The technology sector is in the doldrums and Oracle’s UK marketing team has been trimmed from about 50 people during the dot-com boom to about 20.

Grey Worldwide handles Oracle’s creative account and MediaCom buys and plans its media.