“Control your own destiny or someone else will.” — Jack Welch
For many of today’s leading businesses, being able to design a custom cloud commerce platform that supports multiple layers of operational complexities is critically important to success. Customization is key for these companies, because what they need doesn’t yet exist, says Mike Bates, CEO of HotWax Systems. “The best new ideas haven’t been shrink-wrapped yet,” he says.
If you can dream it, we can build it
HotWax Systems’ open-source software, powered by Apache OFBiz, is designed to empower businesses to think freely and set their own goals without being stifled by system limitations. As the world’s leading OFBiz experts, HotWax’s OFBiz custom consulting provides teams of world-class experts that can help companies execute the unique solutions they need.
With larger projects, there’s a lot more risk involved. It’s not easy for companies to know exactly what they want or need on day one. Without a flexible platform, they can go down the wrong path and find themselves stuck. Given its open-source nature, OFBiz goes a long way toward helping companies mitigate that risk.
“We can flex and adjust the project on the fly to drastically lower the chances that they’re going to fail in what is otherwise a very risky endeavor,” Bates says.
HotWax’s team of seasoned OFBiz experts can help customers make the platform work in ways that are best for each individual situation. HotWax’s OFBiz consultants enable companies to innovate freely without having to reinvent the wheel to get there. “The idea is that if you can dream it, we can build it,” he says.
Circumvent the build vs. buy dilemma
HotWax Consulting helps companies circumvent the build vs. buy dilemma. While they should maintain the ability to innovate freely, Bates believes companies shouldn’t have to reinvent the wheel by building commodity technology from scratch.
HotWax’s OFBiz consultants help clients leverage standard businesses processes and functionality that is available out-of-the-box (think shopping carts, purchase orders, invoices, and the like) while enabling them to focus their investment on the “secret sauce” that gives them their competitive advantage.
“The system becomes a strategic asset that you’re building for your company, rather than an operating expense you’re paying toward someone else’s system,” Bates says.
Global Apache OFBiz experts
As leading global experts in open-source technology, HotWax’s consultants are active in the OFBiz open-source community and have done work across numerous industries, including manufacturing, aerospace, automotive, online retail, and event planning. HotWax’s chief technology officer, Jacopo Cappellato, is also the chairman of the Apache OFBiz Project Management Committee.
Creative cloud commerce
Businesses that have the freedom to innovate with their own platforms, along with expert consultants to back them, gain an edge due to their ability to change things up more freely and in ways the competition hasn’t thought of yet.
“People are thinking about creative new ways to add value to their business by leveraging their technology capabilities,” Bates says. “And that’s what we’re helping them do.”
Note: This article was originally published in our 2016 ERP Essentials report.
