Ralph Kimball Associates and Sagent Technology Announce Open Enrollment for Kimball University '99
ACTION ITEMS

Sagent Technology, Inc., provider of a leading turnkey solution for bringing data marts to the Web, and Ralph Kimball Associates, have announced open enrollment for Kimball University '99.

This year-long series of 14 data warehousing classes provides IT personnel with the in-depth coverage they need for designing and building data marts and data warehouses. Sagent and Ralph Kimball established Kimball University in late 1997 to meet the growing need for quality data warehousing educational programs.

Ralph Kimball has consistently proven to be a master at explaining data warehousing theories and then expertly applying them to practical business examples. A past class attendee noted, "Excellent instructor, clear, concise and good real life examples."

Another adds, "Extremely comprehensive and cutting edge. Excellent, rich detail." Kimball has consistently attracted standing-room-only crowds, and the '99 classes are expected to fill quickly.

"If you are planning a data warehouse, Ralph Kimball's classes are a necessity. Ralph's expertise coupled with his vision for dimensional modeling have helped may organizations design, implement and reap the benefits of a data warehouse," stated Ken Gardner, president and CEO, Sagent Technology. "Sagent is extremely happy to have the opportunity to sponsor these workshops again this year."

Data Warehousing Educational Classes

Throughout 1999, Sagent Technology will sponsor two classes taught by Ralph Kimball. The first class, Data Warehousing in Depth, is a four-day introduction for the designers and managers of data marts and data warehouses. After taking this class, attendees will be ready to build their first system. This class is offered at $2,195.

The second class, Advanced Data Warehousing, is a four-day session for experienced data warehouse practitioners, who have implemented their first system. This workshop assumes familiarity with the concepts of dimensional modeling at the level of Kimball's best-selling book, The Data Warehouse Toolkit, or through prior attendance at Kimball's introductory class. This class is also offered at $2,195. Discounts are available for groups of 5 from one company at any one class, and also for DAMA members.

Data Warehousing in Depth

Data Warehousing in Depth is a four-day introduction for designers and hands-on managers. During the four days of instruction, participants will learn the essential strategies and technologies necessary to design, build, populate and manage a data mart or data warehouse, as well as how to provide end-user access.

The first three days of the class are taught by Ralph Kimball and the fourth day is taught by Margy Ross, Laura Reeves or Warren Thornthwaite, co-authors of The Data Warehouse Lifecycle Toolkit. Ms. Ross, Ms. Reeves and Thornthwaite are highly experienced data warehouse implementers.

Topics taught during the workshop include: dimensional data base design skills for usability and performance; project management skills for a complete enterprise data warehouse design; user interviewing skills for establishing business requirements and performing the source data audit; and, technical design skills for aggregations and for linking together distributed data marts.

Advanced Data Warehousing

Advanced Data Warehousing is a four-day class for the experienced data warehousing practitioner. During the first three days of instruction, Dr. Kimball will describe the most challenging data warehouse design problems he has faced, and participants will also have the opportunity to share their experiences.

The fourth day is taught by either Chris Adamson or Mike Venerable, co-authors of Data Warehouse Design Solutions. They use case studies to address the complexities of designing and implementing an enterprise-wide data warehouse architecture.

Topics taught during this workshop include: state-of-the-art understanding of advanced dimensional modeling concepts and the most challenging modeling problems; judgement of how, when, and where to deal with data mining issues in the data warehouse; and understanding of the new data warehouse architectures, especially needed for responding to the Internet and to increased security exposure.

                        Seminar and Class Schedule
                        
  Data Warehousing in Depth          Advanced Data Warehousing

  Feb. 23-26, 1999, Denver           Jan. 25-28, 1999, Orlando, Fla.
  April 13-16, 1999, Seattle         June 22-25, 1999, Newark, N.J.
  May 11-14, 1999, Philadelphia      July 20-23, 1999, Seattle
  June 15-18, Houston                Sept. 28-Oct. 1, 1999,
                                     Minneapolis
  July 13-16, Boston                 Dec. 7-10, 1999, San Jose, Calif.
  Aug. 9-12, 1999, Cincinnati
  Aug. 17-20, 1999, San Jose, Calif.
  Oct. 12-15, 1999, Washington, D.C.
  Nov. 30-Dec. 3, 1999, Newport Beach, Calif.

To receive additional information or to register for Kimball University '99, please see Sagent's Web site at http://www.sagenttech.com or call 800/380-3433.

About Ralph Kimball

During the last 16 years, Ralph Kimball has continually been involved in the design of large data warehouse systems, including scores of data marts. He currently consults with data warehouse design teams, teaches data warehouse design, consults with Sagent Technology, and writes the regular Intelligent Enterprise column, "The Data Warehouse Architect."

Kimball's best-selling book, The Data Warehouse Toolkit (John Wiley & Sons Publishing, New York), is a practical guide for building dimensional data warehouses. His second book, The Data Warehouse Lifecycle Toolkit (John Wiley & Sons Publishing, New York), focuses on the entire data warehouse lifecycle in addition to advanced modeling and architecture issues.

Following graduation from Stanford University with a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering, Kimball was a research scientist at Xerox PARC where he co-designed the Star Workstation, the first commercial product with windows, icons and a mouse.

He was vice president of applications at Metaphor Computer Systems and later founded Red Brick Systems. Together with his colleagues at Metaphor, Kimball designed his first fact and dimension table data warehouse, which was installed at Clorox in 1984.

About Sagent Technology, Inc.

Sagent Technology was founded in June 1995 to make business data more usable by bringing it closer to decision-makers. The Sagent solution lets organizations bring data marts to the Web quickly and cost-effectively with a turnkey offering that includes best-of-breed products and comprehensive professional services.

Sagent is a privately-owned company that was co-founded by Ken Gardner and John Zicker. Its customers include JP Morgan, MCI, Bell South, Jiffy Lube, barnesandnoble.com, Siemens, Nordstrom, SureCare Health Plans, Cellstar, and Eddie Bauer.

The company has strategic relationships with Oracle Corporation, Microsoft Corporation, ADP, Advent, Unisys, USinternetworking and Ralph Kimball Associates. Sagent is funded by Crosspoint Venture Partners, El Dorado Ventures, Greylock Limited Partnerships and U.S. Venture Partners. Sagent's Web site is located at http://www.sagenttech.com