The Challenge: Managing Complex Product Configurations Across Teams
The client, a leading food supplement manufacturer, faced challenges in managing and tracking their extensive product development process. They needed to efficiently control the creation of new formulas, propose accurate pricing per quantity, and develop sample products with various flavors for customer approval. Additionally, they had to:
- Source new materials in small batches with quick lead times.
- Track samples and approvals from prospects and customers.
- Prepare documentation for nutrition facts to meet compliance standards.
- Coordinate efforts across multiple departments: Sales, Procurement, R&D, Pricing, Quality Control, and Packaging.
The entire process was managed through extensive spreadsheets shared across departments, creating significant inefficiencies. Information silos, manual updates, and disjointed communication led to inefficient status reporting. Teams had to rely heavily on daily status meetings to align, and tracking vendor documentation was labor-intensive and prone to errors.
The Solution: Odoo ERP for Seamless Process Coordination
To address these challenges, we implemented Odoo ERP as a single solution to streamline the client’s business processes. Our approach began with a comprehensive end-to-end assessment of their operations, identifying pain points and mapping the “Quotation-to-Price” process. Involving all stakeholders ensured alignment and smooth change management.
Within just a few weeks, we accomplished the following:
- Eliminated redundant spreadsheets by centralizing data within Odoo.
- Automated status reporting, reducing the need for time-consuming meetings.
- Provided real-time visibility of key metrics across departments.
- Integrated existing ERP data via APIs, maintaining operational continuity without disrupting manufacturing and warehousing.
Our industry-specific tools allowed us to drive discussions with greater clarity and identify automation opportunities to help prioritize key areas for improvement. This insight was essential in aligning operations with the best practices supported by the ERP.
We focused on accelerating implementation and adoption by customizing only the minimum necessary while transforming business processes to align with the ERP’s core functionality and best practices. This approach ensured the solution remained scalable, easy to maintain, and optimized for long-term growth.
Analytics to Improve Control of Operations
In addition to streamlining operations, we helped the client transform their reporting process. Previously, producing monthly status reports required converting data from their ERP and Excel files into Power BI reports. This manual process took an entire week at the end of every month, delaying decision-making.
With our implementation in Odoo, the client now has real-time access to the same and better information, updated daily, weekly, and monthly. This shift has been a game changer, enabling leadership to make timely decisions based on accurate, up-to-date data.
We also developed dashboards to track delays and potential impacts caused by process challenges or missing materials. Additionally, the system now tracks proposals at every stage, giving the sales team visibility into the status of proposal confirmations and enabling them to follow up and close deals faster.
With automated reporting and real-time data, the entire team can now focus on performance and business growth instead of spending time on non-value-added activities like manual report preparation.
The Outcome: A Smarter and More Agile Operation
The impact of our solution was transformative:
- Faster sample approvals accelerated time-to-market and improved customer satisfaction.
- Automation reduced manual tasks, freeing teams to focus on innovation and growth.
- Vendor collaboration improved by simplifying document tracking and compliance.
- Odoo's real-time dashboards gave the entire team instant access to progress, eliminating information silos.
- Sales teams are now more effective, thanks to better tracking of proposal status and quicker follow-ups.
Our client can now manage more clients and additional projects without increasing headcount. The improved operational efficiency has allowed them to boost customer satisfaction rates through faster, better, and more accurate communication at every step of the custom formula preparation and price estimation process.
Consulting Impact: Adopting an Agile Mindset and Kanban Dashboards
Through our consulting services, we guided the client to think differently and adopt an agile mindset. This shift enabled them to stay flexible and responsive to changing demands. They also embraced Odoo's Kanban dashboards, which now play a pivotal role in tracking activities across all projects. Every department benefits from better collaboration, as the visual representation of tasks allows for quick identification of bottlenecks and ensures smooth progress through each phase.
Key Takeaways: Lessons Learned from the Implementation
- Conduct an End-to-End Assessment: Fully mapping processes ensures that the solution meets business needs.
- Start with a Minimal Scope: Focusing on core activities allows for faster deployment and builds momentum for future phases.
- Use APIs to Bridge Systems: Integrating with existing systems avoids disruptions and ensures data consistency.
- Automate Daily Reports: Automation saves time and improves cross-team communication.
- Embrace an Agile Mindset: Adopting agile principles allows for continuous improvement and flexibility.
- Leverage Kanban Dashboards: Visual dashboards make tracking progress easier and help teams respond to issues promptly.
- Customize Minimally, Transform Processes: Focus on transforming processes to align with ERP best practices rather than over-customizing the tool.
- Plan for Scalability: Building modular solutions enables seamless expansion into additional functions.
This project highlights the transformational power of modular ERP solutions like Odoo in complex product development environments. With streamlined operations and a focus on industry best practices, our client can now serve more customers, manage additional projects, and ensure high customer satisfaction—all without increasing headcount. With real-time data visibility, automation, and agile project management, they are well-positioned to deliver high-quality products efficiently and respond to market demands with confidence.