Dialogue with Hesham Elmahdy, Part 2.

There is a perception that Odoo systems are only suitable for small and medium companies but not for giant companies, so what do you think about that?
When Odoo started, it was not called by this name. It was called Tiny ERP or the small or very small ERP because it is Tiny. The main idea of its establishment was to compete with SAP ERP, but with a lower cost product, but the idea of creating an open source program with an effective and widespread programming language such as Python helped the Odoo community to quickly advance Odoo systems, as after a few years it was renamed from Tiny ERP to Open ERP, as it can no longer be called by this name anymore, as it is not for small companies only.
Some giant companies started using Odoo, as I remember at the time, as it was one of the most important things, as they started with large companies such as Toyota in France, and there is also an Airbus company that makes designs for it, I think.
A lot of big-name companies started joining in, and Odoo is no longer a program for small businesses. Here, in fact, is a very important point that must be clarified. When you hear about Odoo's competitors, such as SAP, Oracle, Dynamics, Netsuite, …etc. You find them saying that they are capable of scaling, and in fact, they mean scaling up because they can handle dealing with giant companies where they can perform complex and large operations larger and larger.
Here Odooexcels at something that scales up and down. I mean, he can do giant operations. It can also perform very small operations or very small applications.
This is what competitors such as Oracle and SAP cannot do. It is not possible, for example, to find a small shop that uses SAP, as the cost will be huge.
While today you will find many small shops using Odoo. As I remember, at Riyadh Airport, those responsible for packing bags used to use Odoo, which is considered a small business, such as shops, restaurants, and others.
In addition to large projects such as factories, major contracting companies, perfume companies, and so on, giant companies. Thus, Odoo is no longer intended for small companies only, but on the contrary, it is applicable to companies of different sizes.

Is it possible to rely on Odoo systems as an alternative to other international systems such as Oracle, SAP, and Microsoft Axapta?
The truth is that it really happened, as we joined more than one project and replaced systems that were very old and very expensive, such as Oracle and others, and this happened a lot and not just once. Odoo is coming strongly as Oit has been coming with modern technology, concepts, and a different style. And with reasonable costs that fit what is happening in the market today.

Eng. Hisham, you know that there are many service providers of Odoo active in the market, and they are in fact, increasing turbulently, so what are the standards that you see in the Odoo partner so that I, as a customer, can guarantee the level of service provided to me, ِAllah willing?
It is true that choosing a partner for Odoo is more difficult than choosing any other company, and this is due to the expansion of Odoo in opening the way for any company that pays three thousand dollars and will sell one project, even if it is a small project with only ten users, so it can be A partner and his name is placed on the Odoo website.
The truth is that the client’s task is not an easy thing, and he must be in a safe area and not expose himself to the risks of losing his money, time and effort because, in fact, ERP projects are stressful projects for both parties, especially for the client’s side, because it is something new to him and requires a lot of work from him. Most companies that join a project for the first time Do not imagine the amount of work and hours that will be spent in this matter by applying ERP projects, and it is not like building a site from nothing. Where you give the specifications to the programmer, and he does the programming alone and returns, the ERP projects are participatory projects between the two parties and require a huge effort, and I advise clients not to make any adventures with their money, time and efforts with companies that do not have sufficient experience, as this is a difficult task on the shoulders of the client.
The supplier or partner must have multiple experiences in various fields, and it is not a requirement that he be in the same field as the customer; otherwise, the customer will narrow his choices. For example, if the client works in the field of ship repair, then he requested a partner for Odoo with experience in the field of ship repair. In this case, he has limited himself to very few choices. This is also a danger. It does not mean that you want suitable experiences for you to limit or narrow the choices for yourself, but the most important thing is that the partner has multiple and varied experiences, as he can understand your requirements if he has sufficient experience.
And the partner must also enjoy a good reputation and honesty because a large part of the work is not clear to the client, so there must be honesty, as they must be on a moral level and attested to them by morals and honesty, and they are willing to preserve their reputation. He is strong in his field: he has a variety of experiences, he has consultants and programmers, and so on. Honesty, of course, and observance of God in his work, and I think that sums up the place for choosing the right partner.

There are Odoo partners who offer very low supply prices, much lower than OdooTec. As a customer, I find this is better in terms of price. What do you think about this?
In fact, there is an English proverb that says “There's no free lunch.” This means that there is nothing free. The expertise required to implement the ERP project in Odoo or others requires a lot of expertise that must be available in consultants, and it is the required expertise whether In Odoo, Oracle, or SAP, there is no difference at all. The difference in prices is in the license itself (License) provided by the company, but with regard to human effort, there is no difference at all because of competition. Odoo is less expensive, but competition for cost must be within limits; otherwise, it will not be in the interest Neither the partner nor for the benefit of the client, and we have already seen many examples of clients who resorted to the cheapest price in the manner of purchasing goods, and this method is full of risks. We have seen many projects that were not completed due to lack of experience, capabilities or financial pressure on the partner because he did not take the appropriate sufficient share of the money and did not calculate it well and ventured to get the client. If it were goods, I would have told you this is best, of course, which is to take the goods that are the least expensive, because as soon as the goods are received, they become yours immediately, and this does not apply to ERP projects, as it will require a lot of work and time, and it may require several months from both parties, and if none of them had sufficient experience, both in their field, this will only lead to a loss of money and time, and if the loss of effort is the hardest and hardest, as it requires high energy, then when you are lost in a failed project, you will not be able to obtain that energy again, and this is a great risk. Price competition in a field other than goods is not in the interest of the customer, as is customary in other fields.

 

What about after-sales service? Does it have a specific methodology?
Everything in OdooTec has a methodology and has its own style and method, and everything is documented. With regard to after-sales service, we have a HelpDesk at the highest level, where customers can open service tickets by entering the site and following up on all open service tickets and communicating with the consultants in charge of them with the utmost Clarity and transparency, the customer can see all the stages after opening the service ticket, see the required conditions, talk to the consultants and discuss them, and the history of that conversation remains preserved and remains documented throughout the period of this customer’s presence with us. Support.

We have reached the end of the dialogue. We thank you for the time you allotted for us, and we wish OdooTec continued success.
Thank you very much, and we wish OdooTec and the team continued success and to always be at the best of customers’ expectations. Thank you very much.   

You can run the following video to listen to the second part of the dialogue.