Fred Sobotka is an IBM Gold Consultant and IBM Champion for Information Management who specializes in DB2 for Linux, UNIX, and Windows platforms. After spending 15 years working as a software developer and database administrator, Fred formed FRS Consulting in 2005 to help organizations of all sizes get the most out of their databases. Clients of FRS Consulting range from small startups to Fortune 500 companies to law enforcement and public safety agencies across the United States. Fred is an award-winning conference speaker who still presents regularly at IBM and IDUG events around the world. He has recently delivered conference presentations and training courses on a variety of topics, including SQL/XML and pureXML, advanced SQL programming, and DBA automation through scripting and in-depth monitoring. He is convinced that the database is the beating heart of the company, and gives IT departments the tools and knowledge they need to allow the rest of the company to take it all for granted.