SAN JOSE:Ask a billionaire chief executive to list the industry leaders he most admires and thinks are the best innovators, and the roster is bound to be interesting and revealing.

The Irish Timesasked Oracle founder and chief executive Larry Ellison to come up with a few names recently and most had a relevance - they influenced recent decisions the Oracle head had made about the way he views and runs his $14.8 billion (€11 billion) company.

He cites GE's legendary Jack Welch, whose management approach of dividing a huge company into semi-autonomous fiefdoms led by chief executive-like general managers Ellison has recently copied.

Then he proffers the name of "inspiring" Cisco chief executive John Chambers, who has steered it into new directions and markets, by adept acquisitions.With some 25 companies at a cost of over $20 billion under his belt in just two years, Ellison has also devoured an astonishing range of firms, including some of his key competitors.

But his favourite chief executive is his best friend, Apple co-founder and chief executive Steve Jobs, whom he calls "the chief executive not just of the year but of the decade". In the technology industry, notes Ellison, "you get quite a few songs but very few hits. Steve Jobs has had quite a few hits."