About the Author

Matthew Symonds is the Technology and Communications Editor of The Economist. His past titles include Editorial Director and Executive Editor of The Independent, a newspaper which he co-founded, and Director of Strategy at BBC Worldwide. Symonds lives in London with his wife and three children.

Reviews

BusinessWeek Symonds excels at letting readers into the 59-year-old Ellison's often turbulent personal life....[and] provides a wonderful image of an Ellison who is far from being all-business.

Financial Times An unusually candid study of how a tiny start-up...grew -- sometimes painfully -- into a Silicon Valley institution.

Harvard Business Review A sympathetic and revealing portrait of an idiosyncratic executive and company....Entertaining.

The New York Times The access [Symonds] got is apparent....This access gives the reader a rare window on Ellison's mind.

BusinessWeek Symonds excels at letting readers into the 59-year-old Ellison's often turbulent personal life....[and] provides a wonderful image of an Ellison who is far from being all-business.
Financial Times An unusually candid study of how a tiny start-up...grew -- sometimes painfully -- into a Silicon Valley institution.
Harvard Business Review A sympathetic and revealing portrait of an idiosyncratic executive and company....Entertaining.
The New York Times The access [Symonds] got is apparent....This access gives the reader a rare window on Ellison's mind.

Symonds was technology editor at the Economist when Ellison invited him to collaborate on a book about e-business, but the journalist decided he would rather write a profile of the software tycoon, one of Silicon Valley's most notorious figures. Oracle's database programs have become integral to the Internet and other networked computer systems, and Oracle's head is convinced that he can surpass Microsoft as the industry leader. But he's also developed a reputation for his aggressive corporate tactics and personal flamboyance. Ellison agreed to cooperate with the project, but as part of the deal, he reserved the right to respond, which he does in a series of running footnotes. Sometimes he only uses the opportunity to mouth business platitudes, but he also refutes stories, cracks jokes and even argues with other sources. Although the book deals extensively with Oracle's efforts to promote a new software package, it comes to life most when it follows Ellison outside the office-prepping his sailboat for a run at the America's Cup or overseeing the final touches on a Japanese garden complex. Symonds's near-total access to his subject leads to intimate observations that verge on personal advice, as when the writer suggests how best to handle a top Oracle executive or comments on the relationship between Ellison and his two children. But he remains objective enough to point out several mistakes in the past management of Oracle (many of which Ellison acknowledges or clarifies). Even without its unusual counterpoint, the book would stand as a compelling portrayal of one of the computer industry's most influential leaders. (Oct.) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.