We joined the conference for RamBase partners. During the meeting, the company presented the latest changes and new solutions added to the RamBase system. We could also get to know the implementation of the system in Aarbakke “behind the scenes” and see how RamBase can support manufacturing companies and industry 4.0. The company’s representatives also briefly summed up the company’s recent successes.
RamBase new solutions
The most interesting topic of the meeting was, of course, the news in the RamBase system. Some of the latest solutions are:
Simple logging into the system
Better desktop access to the application
Improvement of the “drag and drop” function
New module of contracts / agreements
Mobile applications
Real-time access to data in the mobile application
The team responsible for new solutions at RamBase also introduced the functioning of BI and Power BI solutions, API connections, the activity of portals and the possibilities of the mobile application. Thanks to this, we were able to better see how the RamBase system is developing. Importantly, changes and new functionalities in the system are influenced by its users and implementation partners. The team when planning and preparing new solutions is largely guided by the demand for functionalities reported by its users.
Aarbakke – manufacturing and industry 4.0
Aarbakke is RamBase’s largest customer so far. The company has implemented a system for 300 users. RamBase supports manufacturing, industry 4.0 and all processes in the company. By adjusting the processes to the best standards, the company improves its functioning using RamBase solutions and good practices. The implementation in Aarbakke shows that the purchase of a new system is a good time to introduce changes in the company.
We know RamBase team better
During the meeting, we also got to know the sales team operating in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Great Britain and, of course, in Poland. They are people who support RamBase implementation partners in their daily work, helping to better understand the needs of customers and meet their expectations.
Is RamBase the best system for manufacturing companies? We ask Odd Magne Vea, RamBase’s CSO, and Paweł Prymakowski, CEO of IT Vision, how RamBase supports manufacturing companies. We answer the question of why it supports production better than other solutions. And explain how it is possible that the system can be implemented in just 8 weeks. Odd Magne and Paweł also answer whether the system is ready to support companies on the Polish market.
Maria Olszańska: Good morning. Today with me is Odd Magne Vea, CSO of RamBase Company and Paweł Prymakowski, CEO of IT Vision.
A brief history of RamBase
I would like to start this interview with quick introduction. RamBase system is an ERP born in Norway. It was originally created for Hatteland company. But when its creators saw the success of the system, they decided to share it with another entrepreneurs. So RamBase entered other markets, but when RamBase entered Polish market they joined forces with IT Vision. And it’s how IT Vision became the first implementation partner in Poland.
We have started this year’s first RamBase implementation in Poland. I think it a great opportunity to talk a about the system. And to let people know the system a little bit better.
Odd Magne, we can find in many places and resources information that RamBase is a perfect fit for manufacturing companies. Is it true? And if yes, why? What makes it special?
Odd Magne Vea: Hi, yes, as you said Maria. One of the special things about RamBase is it was originally made to support our own manufacturing company. And this also means that we have experienced the needs of the industry, first time ourselves. Unlike many other systems RamBase is built with a detail focused on manufacturing and the supply chain, where the finance system then is the result of all of these activities done in the manufacturing and the warehouse.
RamBase – a system for manufacturing companies
RamBase is not made for all types of different companies. We focus all our efforts on manufacturing and distribution companies. And the result is that we have deep and extensive functionality for our target industries.
My last point here is that RamBase is continuously updated automatically. That means that our customers don’t have to worry about technical installations, and updates, and all off these things. It also means that our customers automatically receive new and updated functionality. And that their system is never out of support.
Maria Olszańska: You mentioned several times that the specific functionalities of RamBase are the systems’ big advantage. And what are the functionalities that facilitates manufacturing? Are in RamBase some functions that other systems do not have (but should)? What are the advantages in production over other solutions?
Odd Magne Vea: A very important distinction with RamBase is that it is a fully ERP system with the specific functionality in the whole work process from the shop floor to the financial. Within the same system. And this gives our customers a great control of the whole business in one system. It means that finance can drill down into the transactions on the shop floor and have control over the full work process.
Complex needs of manufacturing companies
When it comes to functionality, we have focused on companies with complex needs in what we called regulated businesses. This means that our customers often have demanding customers themselves or regulatory report need. And very concrete examples are extensive support of traceability, serial numbering and documentation. That fits very well with many manufacturing companies and electronical manufacturing companies for instance. There is also very good integrated quality and deviation system built in to all the processes. The result of this is that our customers can realize lots of standard functionality within the same solution. And not have to use a lot of time and money to develop and modify other functionality.
Maria Olszańska: So, it is really good that we’re focusing just on manufacturing companies because we can give them what they really need. Because you as RamBase and Hatteland understand those needs.
RamBase vendors boast about the quick implementation of the system. Paweł, is it really possible to start running this system in just 8 weeks?
Paweł Prymakowski: RamBase and its projects methodology helps us to reduce significantly the time needed for the system implementation. Of course, the cloud model is also helpful. You don’t need to focus; you don’t even need to touch any technical problems. But what is important that most manufacturing functions that in typical ERP system requires some customization or add-ons. In RamBase are available just out-of-the-box so the time and cost are reduced.
Functionalities for production available “out of the box”
Also, I can add to what Odd Magne said about unique features for manufacturing. It is the fact that if you take a look onto sales order or production order you can see all the connected documents, you can see all the workflow, your status in the workflow, where are you, from one point.
So, on one screen, you need to have a big screen, but on the one screen you can see everything whatever is need for your everyday work. And what is the most impressive, what I have seen in the companies that uses RamBase in everyday work, is that on the production floor the guys have two boards in the work center. The one is with the tools like screwdrivers, drillers, or keys. And on the other is the big screen with RamBase. So, they are just all they need for everyday work. So that is really impressive that RamBase is available and helpful on each and every center on the production floor. Not only in the office.
Maria Olszańska: That’s really good. It supports not only the paperwork and the planning but also the real manufacturing and producing goods and items. But RamBase is accelerating on Polish market. As I mentioned before it was born in Norway. So, is the system prepared for Polish law, tax, and accounting requirements?
Paweł Prymakowski: I can say that together with system vendor we invested a lot of time to prepare the localization package that is not just minimal basic feature. But it covers also good practices and some optional functions that make the accounting work more efficient.
A system for manufacturing companies adapted to Polish requirements
We made use of our long experience in implementing the global systems in Poland. So, we could see what the shortages are sometimes comparing to the local solutions and we managed to create really good localization. We used our knowledge and experience in consulting the production and development of localization packages.
This is the common work of the Polish and Norwegian teams. And really good piece of collaboration, good piece of work in my opinion. So, I’m sure the localization is really top-quality model even if its continuous work that still requires a lot of time or effort to be compliant and up to date to the changes that are implementing by our regulator and also are upcoming in the near future.
Odd Magne Vea: If I can add to that. We had customers in Poland for quite many years now. And we stared to develop this localization together with those customers. The big change here came when we also got IT Vision with us. To have this local experience implementing finance for a lot of Polish companies from before. And we could kind of take system further. Not being just the foreign system with some Polish functionality. But actually, performing like local Polish system. And together with IT Vision that has been, a lot of work has been put into it, and probably will be to put in the future as well to keep it updated. But that means that our goal is to kind of, to perform like a local Polish system on all of this issues.
Maria Olszańska: That’s great! So, we have for Polish customers Norwegian system, which is really prepared for Polish requirements. Which can be implemented in just 8 weeks and is the perfect fit for manufacturing because the manufacturing company was the first one for which RamBase was created. I hope that it will encourage manufacturing companies to get a little bit more interested in RamBase system to support their everyday work. Odd Magne, Paweł, I’m really glad that we had a chance to talk a little bit about the system. And thank you for your time and the interview.
We are delighted to establish cooperation with a new custmer – Recomedic. We implement RamBase system for our new customer. Recomedic is a manufacturing and distribution company. It deals with the production of parts and entire assemblies used in various industrial processes, including rehabilitation and medicine. Parts manufactured by Recomedic are also used in other demanding fields. The company manufactures its products with care, making components with the accuracy of the smallest measures and weights.
Recomedic – modern company with the highest standards
Recomedic is a modern company operating in many countries. It takes care of the extremely high quality of its goods, ensuring the best manufacturing standards. In addition, the company cares about its development, wanting to constantly improve its processes and products.
It was the desire to be a modern company and streamline processes that made the company decide to implement a new management system. We believe that RamBase systemthat is ideally suited to manufacturing companies will help our customer – Recomedic achieve these goals.
“Our existing system was intended for commercial companies, and from year to year we implement more and more advanced projects that require production planning, management of extensive BOM lists and inventory. We chose Hatteland’s innovative, cloud-based ERP RamBase system in the hope that it will facilitate us to efficiently manage our enterprise resources. The available RamBase system solutions are huge, and we are sure that our dynamic development will not be hampered by insufficient capabilities of the ERP system” – Damian Mącznik, President of Recomedic.
New customer Recomedic, IT Vision i RamBase – perfect combination
Thanks to the cooperation of Recomedic with IT Vision, and to the choice of the RamBase system, our customer will receive the implemented system this quarter. RamBase will support most of the processes that the company handles. With the Recomedic system, it will receive support for manufacturing, sales, purchases, storage, and financial management.
“Recently, the ability to efficiently adapt to the market situation determines whether the company will develop and take advantage of emerging opportunities. Recomedic is a modern organization and people who impress with their care for customers and the highest quality of products. I am very pleased that The RamBase solution we provide will become a tool supporting the further development of Recomedic.” – Paweł Prymakowski, CEO, IT Vision
At IT Vision, we believe that the success of our customers is our success! Therefore, for over 20 years we have been implementing the highest quality solutions supporting the daily work of companies. We specialize in installing and adapting ERP systems and B2B platforms. Innovation, efficiency and high quality are the values that accompany us in cooperation with our customers.
RamBase system
The RamBase system is a solution that is ideal for improving the daily work of production companies and hi-tech industry. Because it was created as a solution for a production company, it perfectly meets the needs related to this industry. Additionally, its undoubted advantage is the quick implementation time. You can start working with the system after 8 weeks!
“We are proud that Recomedic has become another RamBase Cloud ERP customer in Poland. We believe that thanks to our solution, Recomedic’s production will become even more effective, which will bring tangible financial results for the company”. – Jakub Polkowski, RamBase Partner Channel Executive Poland RamBase Cloud ERP
We are glad that another company will use the RamBase system. We believe that the combination of the functionality of the system and the knowledge of IT Vision specialists will make Recomedic an even more innovative and competitive company!
Did you know that in Norway awards the smart industrial companies? The award is granted by representatives of the industry and the Siemens company. Why are we writing about it? Because Aarbakke AS, which uses the RamBase system, was in the final of the competition. One of the systems we offer to our customers. See the company success with RamBase system.
Difficult road to success
The history of Aarbakke AS is special. First, the company has traveled a long way in changing industries. Aarbakke started out as a horseshoe maker. However, the market was changing, the demand was falling. So, the company started producing equipment for the maritime industry. The company’s main products in recent years have been offshore drilling equipment and equipment that helps pump hydrocarbons from wells to land or ships.
Restructuring and digitization guarantee success
But the necessity to change things was not the end of Aarbakke’s difficult journey. A few years ago, the company was on the verge of bankruptcy. This situation required bold steps. The company decided to restructure and digitize. The change, which lasted 3 years, was a success. Today, the company aims to become the greenest producer of the oil industry in the world within 5 years.
Today, the company is achieving amazing results. The turnover in 2017 was 420 million Norwegian crowns, and in 2020 it was almost 1.1 billion.
The RamBase system, which Aarbakke chose, definitely helped in its digitization. We believe that it was also thanks to RamBase that the company could reach for the nomination for the award. The CEO of Aarbakke, Inge-Brigt Aarbakke, explains that the RamBase architecture facilitates the use of all the needed functionalities from the very first day. He also emphasizes RamBase’s ability to easily connect with other systems, via the platform’s open APIs.
Company success with RamBase Your company’s success is possible too!
Aarbakke AS is a great example of success. Success requires change, sacrifice and support. However, with the right mindset and the support of proven tools such as RamBase, success and growth are possible.
Would you also like your company to record changes and be successful? Contact us and arrange a free system presentation.
However, the year 2020 also brought a lot of positive changes and news. Among them are undoubtedly New RamBase features and solutions. An ERP system perfectly suited to production and distribution companies.
Discover new RamBase features and solutions
A modernized interface of the mobile application
Access to invoices approval from the mobile app.
Thanks to this, you can manage invoices on the go, all you need is access to
the phone.
New cost method in the finance section. The FIFO
method gives more management options to international companies
Open supplier and customer portal. Any company
using RamBase can offer access to the supplier and customer portal. By giving
them access to the basic self-service options of the RamBase system. The portal
facilitates the support of suppliers and customers, and also allows them to
help themselves.
Single sign-on feature. The solution simplifies
access to all system functionalities. It requires only one username and
password, thanks to which you have access to all solutions.
Users appreciate the RamBase system!
During this year’s conference, we also got to know the new
story of the RamBase customer. Seagarden used multiple distributed management
systems. The company wanted to change this by looking for an ERP system from
other suppliers, but they were not able to meet the company’s requirements and
expectations. Only the implementation of the RamBase system allowed Seagarden
to improve the functioning of the company. And the organization obtained a
solution perfectly suited to their needs.
In Poland, companies also appreciate the system. IT Vision
implements RamBase at a new customer. More information coming soon!
Continuous development and improvement of the system
The RamBase system is developing and better and better adapted to the expectations of customers. We also make sure that the system is friendly to the Polish user. Seeing the new changes and directions set by RamBase, we are glad that we can offer a solution on the Polish market.
RamBase is a Norwegian company management system. However, it is gaining popularity in other European countries. In Poland, it is offered by IT Vision. As a Polish partner, we undertook the task of preparing the Whitelist functionality for this ERP system. Thanks to the work of our programmers, the system is adapted to Polish law.
Thanks to the Whitelist solution in ERP, you don’t have to switch between the system and the list of taxpayers. The system will automatically check all required data.
RamBase provides assistance in checking whether a business
partner is registered as an active VAT taxpayer on the day of the transaction.
It also allows you to verify which bank accounts are assigned to it and whether
its address details and name have been correctly completed on the invoice.
In addition, the Whitelist module in RamBase archives search and result data along with the necessary information.
Key
benefits
Facilitate control of your business partner data
Gain more control over your payments and tax
responsibilities
Increase control with payables and receivables
automatically matched to open invoices
Save time with integrated checking
Reduce risk of errors due to manual entry of
business partner data
Reduce the risk of financial penalties liability
Key
capabilities
Integrated payment checking in Whitelist for
transactions over PLN 15,000
The ability to check any transaction or
counterparty from the system level
The certainty of transferring payments to
appropriate bank accounts
Log of whitelist searches by users with results
Operations are made in Microsoft Azure (North Europe Region), managed by IT Vision Sp. z o.o.
“We have a clear vision. We are going to be the obvious choice for clients who are working with both production and distribution when they choose their ERP-system,” . Says Karl Inge Stensland, COO of RamBase.
RamBase is investing in an international market, continuing Hatteland’s long history of operating internationally.
“We see that RamBase clearly has international potential. Now we are distinctly focusing on Sweden, Poland and the UK as natural markets for us to enter,” says Karl Inge. Inge explains that the strategy is to build a partner channel. Channel that will both sell the system and help customers put it to good use.
What started as a small group with a total of five people, who in the early 90s laid the foundation for what would become RamBase. Today company consists of 70 employees. As they now focus on building upon RamBase’s history of operating internationally. And focus once again on taking the product out into the world, the need for new, ambitious employees arises.
“I think that employees at RamBase feel like their work contributes to a pretty unique story; we still have owners close to us who represent a journey and an entrepreneurial spirit,” says Karl Inge.
Building on the mindset established in the 90s
Hatteland sits on a story that dates back to the 70s when Jakob Hatteland, out of genuine interest, began selling electronic components. He was selling to friends and acquaintances from his father’s grocery store in Nedre Vats. As he eventually became acquainted with Ingvar Hognaland, a like-minded electronics and computer enthusiast. They began to build and develop things together.
“This is the early seed that grew to become Hatteland – and by extension, RamBase as well,” emphasizes Karl Inge.
When RamBase was started in the early 90s, it was a self-developed product; Hatteland as a business had grown so large that it needed a new computer system to cope with such rapid growth.
RamBase – A solution tailored to your needs
“When they saw that there were no solutions in the market that were good enough, they decided to build the system themselves,” says Karl Inge.
With Hognaland in the lead, a small group of developers teamed up to develop what is today’s RamBase. Technological decisions led them down a new path. And among other things, the first version of RamBase was developed with a completely separate database platform based on hardware.
“This was a very unconventional choice at the time, but it provided great competitive advantages that led Hatteland as a group to grow rapidly in a demanding international market,” Karl Inge points out.
He further explains that RamBase was developed as a system to keep track of Hatteland’s entire store, from sales and purchases to warehousing and finance: everything one needed for electronics sales. And although the thinking behind the original ERP solution is still at the heart of what is RamBase today, the system has undergone major developments since then; Today, it is a broad business system that contains both traditional ERP and manufacturing, and many other modules.
Searching for the best programmers
Karl Inge goes on to say that in order to get the growth they envision ahead. They now need to increase the staff by ten to twenty people annually.
“We are looking for the best programming heads; those who know the field well and who love to program; who genuinely think that this is fun,” says Karl Inge.
He also states that they’re recruiting people in all departments: system developers who will help program the system; consultants who will introduce it to the customers and to train our partners. They will also put in place aggressive marketing and salesforce. He emphasizes that nevertheless the most important thing is to bring in people who want to help lift the product up and out into the world.
“We are definitely looking for people who want to join such a journey towards internationalization and growth. This is about creating good solutions for our customers. And we are still developing a lot of our own technology ourselves, because it gives us a lot of advantages.It allows us to develop things quickly, and of very high quality,” says Karl Inge.
When technology meets tradition
He goes on to say that one of the characteristics of the Hatteland group and the RamBase team is that they’re always on the hunt for those who want to go the slightly unusual ways. They want to create solutions that are good so that customers will simply love using the system.
“The most important thing is to have meaningful task. And I think most of us at RamBase will say that we do. We are working on something quite special. And as a company, we depend on every individual to help pull the load,” says Karl Inge.
Most importantly, as part of the RamBase team, you get to take part in an exciting journey. From developing a product and then bringing it out into the world. In addition, you become part of a company that still has an entrepreneurial spirit. Spirit that extends all the way back to Hatteland’s start.
“We go our own ways, we do things that are a bit crazy, and we develop something that we ourselves think is very cool. It also creates stimulating professional tasks for everyone involved,” says Karl Inge. “We are looking for those who really want to put their soul into this.”
At the beginning of the year, I worked on an article entitled ‘Why ERP will change but remain sexy in this decade also’. When the article was published on the RamBase website on 12 March, without a single mention of Corona crisis, Italy was already closing down. Two days later, Denmark, where I live, Norway and Poland had closed schools and their international borders and imposed a series of restrictions aimed at ensuring social distancing. Since then, the world around us has been turned upside down and continues to present us with new scenarios through which we have no experience navigating.
However, as an
entrepreneur and business owner, you have no choice. You must face the brutal
facts and take action. How do you keep your company alive during the crisis and
survive the recession and how do you prepare for what’s on the other side?
The Corona crisis and the recession
No crisis lasts forever. May that give you some hope and peace of mind.
There is a
world on the other side, and it will offer new opportunities if you read it
right. However, before reaching the other side you have to survive the passage.
And “reading it right” requires that you have time to think, prepare and test.
How long will the Corona crisis restrictions last?
I’m no
epidemiologist, but according to the experts, most countries are beyond the
point where you can contain the virus and make it go away. The strategy we are
pursuing in Northern Europe is aimed at having us follow the blue curve. Most
of us will get the virus, but not all of us will get ill at the same time and,
hopefully, we can spare most of those for whom the consequences may be fatal.
Pursuing the
blue strategy, the spread of Covid-19 will be controllable 4-6 weeks after you
have effectively shut down society. The longer you wait and the softer you do
it, the longer it takes to recover and the higher the price you pay in terms of
casualties and short falls in the economy.
Based on my research for this article I expect most of Northern Europe to follow the same paths while the UK, Sweden and the USA will see different developments.
Great Britain, Sweden and the USA
Northern Europe (except the UK and Sweden) will re-start again by the
end of April. By then there will still be restrictions, but the economy will
gradually open up. However, nothing will return to normal for a while. People
will still be restrained from gathering in large crowds, congestions throughout
rush-hours must be avoided, remote working and virtual meetings will continue
and the elderly and people with pre-conditions have to stay at home.
I am uncertain
about the UK, Sweden and the USA, where governments took much longer to react.
They may not be back to normal before the autumn.
How deep will the recession be?
I am an
economist, but predicting the impact of Covid-19 on the economy is not a simple
mathematical exercise. We are way beyond the borders of what any macro-economic
model can simulate. As the global economy was well balanced before Covid-19
took us down, my gut feeling says that we will take a draconian dive, but that
it will only be temporary.
The dive comes from hitting supply and demand hard at the same time.
Nevertheless, the depth of the recession will vary substantially across industries. While government and much of the logistics and FMCG-industries are unaffected and e-commerce is booming, other parts of retail, the travel and experience industry (entertainment, tourism and hospitality) have come to a complete halt. Across the board we might experience a thirty per cent contraction of the economy from March to August. On a full-year basis, the contraction may reach ten per cent.
However, these are not numbers any of us can use for anything.
The situation of each individual company varies greatly and maybe your customer base is deviating from the average?
Some companies
have to lay off people and stop all expenses and investments. Some will only
survive if they are bailed out by our governments. Some will not survive.
But other companies are busier due to the Corona crisis. They are well consolidated and liquid or fit the rescue packages offered by the governments. They can afford to pay their bills, keep their key employees and use the time to do some housekeeping (such as consider better business models and processes). You will have to check on your customers and the prospects in the pipeline to find out how much it will affect you. Despite the grave situation, there will still be work to do in many companies.
How long will the recession last?
Apart from
industry variations, we will be out of the recession by late autumn.
The Corona-recession is not caused by systemic unbalances in the global economy, which is why I am fairly optimistic that we will recover fast. The swift recovery comes from the gigantic rescue packages currently offered by our governments and from consumers and companies going out of their way to help each other.
How the world looks like
What your world looks like right now and until the situation normalises depends entirely on your solidity and your customers. Before Covid-19, there was a shortage of skilled ERP resources and that will also be the case afterwards. Hold on to your people and urge your customers to do the same. Be flexible with payments if you can. Keep the projects running.
I am convinced
that many have already switched to working remotely and running virtual
meetings and workshops. Refine these working and collaboration skills because
they will become hot assets when the storm is over.
The post-Covid-19 world
It will be a different world on the other side of the Corona crisis. Not everything will change, but economically and politically we will see things from a different perspective.
The Corona crisis has once more demonstrated and highlighted how interdependent the world has become. A bat meets a pangolin and a virus jumps in China. Soon the European auto industry comes to a halt that causes layoffs in other countries. The impact of government restrictions ripples through the world economy at lightning speed.
Saving the economy
All nations
will have paid an extremely high price for saving as many lives as possible and
for relieving the pressure on their healthcare systems, avoiding the impact of
collateral damage (maintaining the ability to also help people in urgent need
due to non-corona related issues). Governments will have invested gigantic
amounts of money in keeping their economy afloat. As we return to normality,
they will open their fiscal policy toolboxes and invest further in accelerating
the surge out of the recession.
These activities will happen at the same time all over the world and will pull the economy out of recession faster than we have ever seen before. By the beginning of 2021, we will all be busy again and the Corona crisis will become a vanishing memory. However, I am convinced that we will have changed our values, priorities and some behaviours, too.
Voices have spoken about the need for more autarky, but that will not happen.
The global division of labour, the opening of international markets and the improvement in global logistics have been the main contributors to economic growth and wealth for all of us. In addition, the solution to challenges (climate, poverty and wars) the world is facing must be of a global nature. If anything, the Corona crisis will stimulate further global collaboration, growth and competition.
Not the
opposite.
The gig economy
The Corona crisis has forced most of us to work remotely and to run virtual meetings and workshops. I can only recommend refining these working and collaboration habits because they will become valuable assets when the storm is over.
In a post-Covid-19 world, the demand for skilled and experienced manpower will increase. Not only do we have to catch up with the backlog from the recession, we will also have to face the pressure for faster digital transformation.
If the business software industry saw a shortage of people with technical skills, vertical industry experience and business acumen before, then post-Covid-19 will make it even more obvious. We want to utilise such resources effectively and cut out all non-productive activities. Physical face-to-face meetings and workshops will not go away, but we will rely much more on virtual interactions. They are often more effective and cost much less.
Remote work
Giving more people the chance to work remotely will stimulate the gig and freelance economy. This trend has been going on for a while and will now accelerate among professionals in high demand. Especially in Europe, where our social contract provides free education, healthcare and a social security safety-net, more and more professionals prefer a project-driven lifestyle, where they have flexibility in where and when they work and where they get their social stimuli outside of the job context.
The market for business software is very well suited for the gig economy.
It is project-driven and pays well for the right skill mix. Both sides of the market will have to learn how to work with the gig-people and those that master the discipline can have long-lasting relationships with some of the best people in the industry. While people quit their jobs for numerous reasons, few drop their clients as long as they pay well and on time.
Resilience
becomes king
Having learned how fast a crisis can hit us, we will all pay attention to our solidity and cash positions. We want a buffer, just in case, and we want a business model where we can make money while we sleep. How will this affect the behaviour of the suppliers and customers in the ERP market?
The supply-side
The ERP industry (the suppliers) will have learned that recurring revenue is much more attractive than selling hours on time & material. Selling hours can be profitable, but such revenue is exposed in times of trouble. It may go away from one day to the next, and an hour you do not sell today cannot be sold tomorrow. Selling hours is a very vulnerable business.
Post corona crisis world
In a post-corona world, VARs and SIs will want to become ISVs. Because ISVs make money while they sleep. Making such a transition requires re-engineering the business models. All nine building blocks will have to be revisited and refined. The change from VAR and SI to ISV changes the DNA of your value proposition fundamentally. You go from being customer-centric to becoming product-centric and your go-to-market approach must allow for winning and managing many more customers.
From VAR and SI to ISV
The move from VAR and SI to ISV means developing add-ons to the platforms (such as RamBase) with which you are already familiar. It requires investments in R&D and adding product management and product marketing to your key resources and activities. However, moving to a value proposition where your split between software and services becomes fifty-fifty will match perfectly with what I expect post-Corona customers will look for. And if the base of recurring revenue from software subscriptions can cover the OPEX (software companies have little CAPEX), then your chances of riding through another storm improves dramatically.
The demand side
In the
post-Covid-19 world your customers will return to investing in the future.
Expansion of production and distribution capacity across borders will pick up
again, and digital transformation will become more urgent than ever. Business
executives will now recognise the possibility of a contagious and deadly virus
as part of the potential business model environment in which they have to
operate. They will consider how they can build more resilient business models
and how they can improve the business cases for investments in terms of faster
and higher RoI as well as reduced risk.
There are only
two ways you can reduce the cost of an ERP project:
Choose
a software solution that is as close to your requirements as possible;
Adjust
your business processes to the software.
It is fortunate
that what the customers want matches elegantly with what suppliers want, too.
Customers want more software and to pay for fewer hours.
Reducing the
risk requires reducing customisation, shortening the implementation time and
moving cost items from the CAPEX to the OPEX-budget. That speaks in favour of
best-of-breed cloud-based solutions. The transition to such platforms was
already well underway before Covid-19. After Covid-19 it will transition even
faster.
The hunt for
a virtual business model
As the Corona crisis started chewing off big chunks of the global economy, Amazon announced the need to hire an additional 100,000 people to keep up with demand. Although many of the new-hires will be working in warehouses fulfilling customer orders, it does illustrate the advantage of a business model where the customer relationship is completely virtual.
Other side of the Corona-recession
On the other side of the Corona-recession, the executive boards in all sizes of companies will have the virtual business opportunity at the top of the agenda. The frequently asked question will be how to virtualise elements of the supply chain as well as the customer relationship. The exercise will be combined with the crusade against CAPEX. Consider for a second how AirBnB was hit by the Corona-recession and then compare with Hilton Hotels & Resorts. Vertically integrated and CAPEX-heavy businesses are very vulnerable during recessions.
More software
The good news for us in the business software industry is that both the hunt for virtualisation and the crusade against CAPEX requires more software. The more you split the activities across independent operators the more software you need to bring down the transaction cost and maintain control. Although the final consumption may be physical (a vacation or a new car) the customer experience in the purchasing, as well as the consumption phase, is highly affected by digital elements.
Summary
Although the
times may seem tough just now (and I know they are for most of us), the
post-Covid-19 world will soon be here, and it will offer more opportunities
than ever before. If you have some idle-time you may want to invest some of it
talking to your customers about what they would like to do differently on the
other side. The sooner you start such conversations, the better prepared you
will be when we start meeting again.
Thanks to IT Vision since this year polish companies will have an opportunity to use unique platform RAMBASE designed by Hatteland company.
The RAMBASE platform is an unique ERP tool. It is a platform that gives you a lot of new of powers and opportunities in enterprise resource management. RAMBASE’s innovativeness results, among other things, from the fact that it downloads data and information from other programs, websites, customer portals or machine parks. Thanks to this, the processed data is really comprehensive!
Choosing RamBase means easy and quick implementation of the platform. The implementation is cheap because it does not require new or additional investments in equipment or technologies. With RamBase, you save not only by not investing in hardware, but also by simplifying the processes that the platform enables.
Thanks to RAMBASE, managing a business becomes simple and available – you can use the solutions anywhere in the world – all you need is internet access. Until now, the platform was only available in a few countries. For its implementation in Poland, Hatteland needed a professional and experienced partner on the market.
IT Vision has become the first official partner
We are pleased to announce that IT Vision has become the first official partner of RAMBASE platform in Poland. Establishing cooperation with the Norwegian company was possible thanks to the many years of IT Vision experience gained by the company during the implementation of projects from many industries and in many countries.
RAMBASE solutions are
recognized worldwide and used by leading international companies. Thanks to the
professionalism and vast knowledge of IT Vision experts, the latest and most effective
methods of enterprise resource planning and reliable business systems will be
available on the Polish market this year. The solutions used by Hatteland will
allow us to offer our clients a comprehensive system that is extremely
efficient, reliable and secure.
Every year the RAMBASE platform is available in an increasing number of countries. We are extremely proud that we can implement this platform in Poland, and we are waiting impatiently for further challenges and projects!
RAMBASE is unique platform from Hatteland that is implemented in a company easily and quickly. There is no need to invest in expensive equipment or technologies, which means that using this platform doesn’t generate any additional costs. Thanks to RAMBASE, managing enterprises becomes simple and accessible. RAMBASE stands out from other vendors due to the possibility of long-term use of the cloud without expensive updates, hidden costs or downtime during using.
Partner meeting
In Norway took place
Partnership meeting concerns RAMBASE platform. This year’s meeting was attended
by IT Vision representatives.
35 representatives of
partners from around the world took part in this year’s meeting. It’s almost 6
times more than in the previous year! Thanks to the dynamical development of
RAMBASE Hattelad has the opportunity to implement its previous goals and
development plan about the platform. The unrivalled and uniqueness of the
RAMBASE solution allows it to conquer markets from around the world.
Partners are the key to success
During the meeting
many topics were discussed. One of them was getting more attention than others
– the perception of a business partner. The CEO of Hatteland – Stig Hatteland –
emphasized that “for developers of RAMBASE, the contractor is not only a seller
of the service and product, but above all a someone that they can have joint
cooperation with”.
“Hatteland relies on great and qualified partners” says Brand manager RAMBASE, Anne Louise Wage Mikkelsen
“Hatteland relies on great and qualified
partners” says Brand manager RAMBASE, Anne Louise Wage Mikkelsen. It is a huge
honor for us because IT Vision is one of those partners.
Paweł Prymakowski, CEO
and manager of IT Vision represented the company during the partnership
meeting. As the main advantages of the RAMBASE platform, Mr. Paweł emphasizes
the quickness of system implementation as well as the lack of a need for a
large database or a large IT team. He also adds that to use this solution,
there is no need to invest in expensive equipment that is losing its value in a
short time.
The meeting was a great opportunity to strengthen cooperation with Hatteland as well as to exchange experiences and knowledge. We hope that in the coming years the group will expand with new countries and partners for RAMBASE.
