Perhaps showing a new tinsely side of itself, Oracle is running a promotion in conjunction with the forthcoming film Iron Man 2 in which real-life CIOs are asked to describe their greatest IT exploits in hopes of winning an Oracle-paid trip for two to the premiere of the film.
Oh yes—the winner of the "Go from IT Hero to Super Hero" competition will also be named Honorary CIO for the fictional company in the film (no details available on the Oracle site about honorary salary, honorary stock options, honorary signing bonus, etc.).
**The chief information officer (CIO) is a job title commonly given to the most senior executive in an enterprise responsible for the information technology and computer systems that support enterprise goals. The CIO typically reports to the chief executive officer, chief operations officer or chief financial officer. In military organizations, they report to the commanding officer.
-CIO | Wikipedia
Here's how Oracle's website—complete with a big image of Iron Man—describes its contest:
"Are you transforming your enterprise through innovation by using Oracle solutions? Does your company consider you a business hero? Then Marvel and Oracle challenge you to enter the Stark Industries Honorary CIO Contest. Tell us your Oracle success story and you could become the Honorary CIO of Stark Industries."
The site says the deadline was end of day March 15, but if you need a little extra time you can always say you were in counseling after your college failed to get picked for the NCAA basketball tournament—it probably won't work but for a good cause like this, it's worth a try. Just in case, here are some hints from Oracle on how to wow the company that doesn't really exist:
An Honorary CIO and two runners up will be selected. Oracle customers must submit a nomination form on behalf of their company. If you already have a success story on Oracle.com, you can still enter to win; just supply the link to your current story and supplement with any new and additional items of relevance. Use the online nomination form to tell us how you vanquish challenges and transform your company through innovation!
Winners will be selected based on business efficiencies achieved through use of Oracle products. The goal is to impress our panel with your cost savings, process improvements, increased capacity, etc. Keep in mind that Stark Industries is awed by numbers that show improvements, so quantify your achievements whenever possible.
Oracle says the winner will receive two tickets to the U.S. "celebrity" premiere of Iron Man 2; air transportation to the premiere city for two people; and two nights hotel accommodation (one room). To see all the rules, click here.
Here are the guidlines from Oracle.com:
Go from IT Hero to Super Hero
Tell Us Your Oracle Success Story for a Chance to:
Become the Honorary CIO of Stark Industries
Attend a Premiere of Iron Man 2
Are you transforming your enterprise through innovation by using Oracle solutions? Does your company consider you a business hero? Then Marvel and Oracle challenge you to enter the Stark Industries Honorary CIO Contest. Tell us your Oracle success story and you could become the Honorary CIO of Stark Industries. Our winner will:
* Become an Honorary CIO of Stark Industries
* Attend a premier of Iron Man 2
* Have their success story appear on Oracle.com
Enter to win! Contestants must enter by March 15, 2010 - some restrictions apply. Get contest details below:
* An Honorary CIO and two runners up will be selected. Oracle customers must submit a nomination form on behalf of their company. If you already have a success story on Oracle.com, you can still enter to win; just supply the link to your current story and supplement with any new and additional items of relevance.
* Use the online nomination form to tell us how you vanquish challenges and transform your company through innovation!
* Winners will be selected based on business efficiencies achieved through use of Oracle products. The goal is to impress our panel with your cost savings, process improvements, increased capacity, etc. Keep in mind that Stark Industries is awed by numbers that show improvements, so quantify your achievements whenever possible.
* Please see here for the Official rules
Nomination Eligibility
* Your company must use at least one Oracle service or product whether it's database, applications, or middleware.
* Your solution should be in production mode.
* Your submission will be used to generate a one-page success story, approved by you and your company for Oracle to distribute via download from Oracle.com. In addition, Oracle would like to use portions of these materials, including your corporate logo and quotes attributed to your employees, in Oracle marketing materials. Please note: we may request a brief interview to round out your submission if needed.
* Only publishable material will be considered as submissions for the contest.
* Multiple submissions from the same company may be accepted as long as the information covers different areas of the Oracle solution offering.
* Nomination deadline is Monday, March 15, 2010.
Benefits to Contest Winners
* Winner Prize
o Two tickets to the U.S. "celebrity" premiere of Iron Man 2
o Air Transportation to the premiere city for two people
o Two nights hotel accommodation (one room)
* A success story on Oracle.com/customers, a high-traffic Web site where your story will reside with success stories from other superhero companies.
* The title of Stark Industries Honorary CIO
Global CIO Quick Take: Oracle & Iron Man 2 Seek Super CIO By Bob Evans for InformationWeek
Go From IT Hero To Superhero at Oracle.com
IronTodd Out and...Good Luck!
COMMENT!
Click the links for my other articles:
"'Will we see Extremis?' Plus, a new Iron Man 2 Picture!"
"Oh Yeah! 14 Iron Man 2 Wallpapers"
Including this one: