Academic and Industry Alliances: Experiences with SAP, Oracle, Sterling and PeopleSoft Moderator: Donna Weaver McCloskey, Widener University School of Business Administration, One University Place, Chester, PA 19013 Panelists: Yvonne Antonucci, Widener University School of Business Administration, One University Place, Chester, PA 19013 Albert Harris, Appalachian State University Department of IT and Operations Management, Boone, NC 28608 Mark (Buzz) Hensel, The University of Texas at Arlington College of Business Administration, P.O. Box 19377, Arlington, TX 76019 Jack Russell, Northwestern State University Computer Information Systems, 312 Russell Hall, Natchitoches, LA 71497 John Webster, Dakota State University College of Business and IS, 820 N. Washington, East Hall 104, Madison, SD 57042 KEYWORDS: industry alliances, SAP, Oracle, Sterling, PeopleSoft Academic and industry partnerships have become critical components in the current Information Technology (IT) education environment. Students are rightly demanding exposure to current technologies while universities are facing the challenge of funding these technologies in a competitive market. Staying current with technology, in terms of hardware, software and faculty training, is very difficult for many schools. At the same time universities are facing these economic difficulties, industries are finding there is a lack of qualified employees with strong technology skills. By partnering universities, industry and students are able to reap many benefits. Industry and academic partnerships can range from relatively informal arrangements to formal programs in which there are numerous participants. This panel will report on four of the larger formalized academic and industry alliance programs, Oracle in Academia, the SAP University Alliance Program, the Sterling Alliance and PeopleSoft on Campus. An overview of each program will be provided, including information on direct costs and hardware requirements. The panelists are from schools participating in these alliance programs. Panelists will provide a brief overview of their level of participation and discuss the challenges they have faced and the benefits they have received. By the end of the session, attendees should have a basic framework to help them consider whether these alliances are appropriate for their IS programs.