There are technological decisions that are evaluated by what they promise and others that are measured by what they withstand over time. SIESA made one of the latter: it has more than 13 years betting on Odoo, when it was still called OpenERP, and today it continues to grow on the same platform.
It is not a story of rescue or crisis. It is a story of continuity: of a company that early on chose a flexible system and expanded it, area by area, at the pace of its own business.
An operation that needs to speak a single language
SIESA is a company with Costa Rican capital founded in 1995, dedicated to the distribution of materials and electromechanical services focused on industrial control and automation. Behind that catalog is an operation with sales, invoicing, manufacturing, and inventory that must move in sync.
Santiago Madrigal, Administrative and Financial Manager of SIESA, puts it this way: one of the main challenges of day-to-day is "coordinating multiple processes on the same platform to be able to obtain information… that allows us to analyze the business a little better." It is a challenge of volume and coordination: the information exists, the challenge is for all areas to work on the same.
An early decision: OpenERP, version 6
SIESA started when the system was still called OpenERP, in its version 6. According to Santiago, it was an early decision, made by evaluating commerce in Costa Rica and what was seen in other companies. The CEO bet on a flexible system, capable of integrating all the processes of the company to have accurate information.
«It was a key and correct decision that marked our course.» — Santiago Madrigal, Administrative and Financial Manager of SIESA
More than 13 years later, that phrase does not sound nostalgic. It sounds like a result.
From billing to the entire operation
The system did not arrive complete: it grew with the company. It all started with accounting information and better records, linked with sales. Then came manufacturing, with complex processes to assemble products that involve cost centers. Later, the warehouse became more sophisticated, with inventory control by codes and part numbers, and imports and destination costs were added to know more accurately the real cost of each product.
In that journey, there was a point that Santiago highlights: electronic invoicing and the requirements of the Ministry of Finance. Complying with the Costa Rican tax authority was, according to him, part of the reason why Odoo was implemented.
Key insight. An ERP does not have to be fully implemented on the first day to be a good decision. When the system is flexible, the company can start with what is urgent —accounting, billing— and add manufacturing, inventory, imports, and tax compliance as the business demands. The platform grows with the operation, not before or after.
Deciding with real-time information
For SIESA, the benefit of all that evolution is summarized in how decisions are made today: with real-time information and more accurate statistics. Santiago highlights three concrete benefits: greater control, traceability of processes, and efficiency in supporting operations, day by day.
The best way to measure how much a system weighs in a company is to imagine it is not there. When asked what would happen if Odoo did not exist tomorrow, the answer is direct:
«The impact would be enormous, we would lose control, efficiency…» — Santiago Madrigal, Administrative and Financial Manager of SIESA
The word that has sustained more than 13 years: trust
A relationship of so many years cannot be explained solely by the software. When Santiago describes Vauxoo's support, he speaks of something close and technical, with agility and understanding of requests and also of Costa Rica's legislation, a requirement that has grown significantly in recent years.
And when asked for a single word to explain why the relationship has been maintained, he does not hesitate:
«If I had to say a key word, it would be trust, as well as the knowledge that Vauxoo has of SIESA and the ability they have had to grow together with us.» — Santiago Madrigal, Administrative and Financial Manager of SIESA
From day-to-day operations, he highlights that «it has been a collaborative communication» and that the ticketing and support system has been very efficient, because the team knows the business and knows how to solve its problems, in addition to providing training support.
Learnings for those evaluating their ERP
Key insight. When choosing an ERP, the question is not just what it does today, but with whom and on what basis it will grow over the next ten years. The flexibility of the system and the knowledge that the partner has of your business weigh more over time than any demo.
Today SIESA sees Odoo as a strategic ally to continue growing in procedures and in the traceability of the information it handles. And when asked if they would recommend Odoo and the support from Vauxoo to other companies, the answer is yes: to Odoo, for the platform and its evolution; to Vauxoo, for the support and the efficiency in the tickets and in the processes they have built together.
More than 13 years, one system, and one conclusion: a good technological decision is noticeable over time.
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