“Odoo is Very Easy”: An Odoo Story from the CEO of Blue Stingray
I was at a manufacturing tour in St. Louis when I bumped into a new Blue Stingray Odoo client. We started talking about Odoo, and I was telling him how impressed I was that his team installed and implemented it on their own.
He responded, “It wasn’t difficult. The best thing about Odoo is it’s so easy.”
I personally wouldn’t say any ERP was easy. I think what he meant to say is that Odoo is intuitive. The client that made the comment owns a sophisticated and complex manufacturing company. Not only do they assemble the parts that they sell, but they manufacture some of the more complex components that go into the final product.
The company consists of a group of engineers that have a solid understanding of the manufacturing process, and they were surprised by how simple Odoo was to install, implement, and use. They were uploading data in a fairly short amount of time. Since they had a solid understanding of the manufacturing process, everything within Odoo made sense.
The client reached out to Blue Stingray when they wanted to add customizations and use new Odoo features. One of Blue Stingray’s engineers spent a day at their office to review their current processes and Odoo setup, and found everything in remarkably good order.
We were impressed by how quickly the client had adapted to Odoo and implemented their own ERP. Like the CEO stated, Odoo can be easy — at least at a rudimentary level. If someone has a basic understanding of ERPs and modern manufacturing, Odoo will make sense out of the box.
Odoo Tasks You Can Do Yourself
It is always best to hire an expert if your staff is busy, with limited time. If you have a CTO or a technical person on staff, you can install Odoo yourself. The system is that intuitive.
Odoo has a standard interface for manufacturing processes. Implementation will be straightforward for manufacturing companies that follow standard processes and best practices, and have a team that understands standard software solutions.
When Do You Need Help with Odoo?
Blue Stingray has seen many companies launch and implement Odoo on their own, but most don’t have the necessary time or staff to complete such a large project without help. We have yet to see a company that doesn’t reach out for consulting at some point, no matter how easy they found Odoo to implement.
We do recommend having a senior engineer consult throughout the process to make sure your team is utilizing Odoo to its full potential. If you need Odoo customizations, reach out to Blue Stingray to assist your team.
Implementing Odoo: Are You Ready?
Before you implement an ERP, all processes must be clearly defined, and every aspect of your company should be running smoothly.
Here is a list of items that must be in place before you get started in order to get the most out of Odoo:
- Well-defined processes and process maps
- Well-documented standard processes
- Organized company personnel
- Synchronized communication between departments
- Structured data
- Diversified responsibilities (i.e., the company doesn’t depend on a single, key employee to run efficiently)
- Efficient manual processes
- Accurate data collection
- Employees trained to follow defined routines with little or no deviation
- Managers who are focused on improving on-time deliveries of products and services
- Optimized planning for operational capacity
- Management that embraces change and strives for improved processes
If you’ve managed to get all of that in place, odds are you’re running a successful business already. But if you want to take the next step and implement a custom ERP designed to improve productivity, boost revenue, and harness the power of big data, call Blue Stingray at 314.266.8097 today.
