MANILA, Philippines - Like the global trend, the IT industry in the Philippines continues to be one of the fastest growing sectors in the country; its bullish growth driven mainly by increased IT spending as firms shift to cutting-edge technologies.
On the software side, the Philippines has started to take advantage of a huge global demand for software and is expected to bag more projects. Industry studies show that more family businesses and SMEs in the Philippines have since shifted to appropriate business software to help management come up with decisions that integrate their company data and operations. And one of the most popular business software today is the SAP Business One application for SMEs, according to Michael Lim, group chief operating officer of ObTech Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd.
ObTech recently signed up Ultimax Building Solutions, Inc., a provider of high-quality exterior and interior design and pre-fabricated materials for commercial, building and residential use. Ultimax belongs to the Pacific Timber Export Corp. (PATECO) group of companies.
Ultimax had been using PATECO’s IT systems, which Ultimax management felt did not provide them with a complete picture of what’s going on in the company. Charlie Lu, director of Ultimax, recounted that the letter they received from ObTech was timely as they were then in search of better software to address their growing business needs.
“What made us decide on acquiring the SAP Business One solution is the software’s ability to provide real-time information, which would help us make good decisions,” explained Lu.
Among the areas of key decision-making that Lu foresees SAP providing integration are in proper projection of cash flow, costing, and management of materials and people. After trying out the SAP software, Lu noted that he no longer had to individually ask the accounting unit and the inventory unit for data because all of these and other vital information are already available to him with just a click of a button.
This is crucial as ObTech needs to ensure that customers are able to standardize their global business processes on a common platform and benefit from more cost-efficient support and maintenance.
“Many companies today appreciate the SAP software because of its ability to provide specific needs of companies, from the smallest one to the biggest firms,” said Lim.
Lim said that the solution being offered by SAP is ideal for a number of Philippine companies, 80 percent of which are into manufacturing. ObTech, which has presence in Asia, particularly in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and Thailand, brings with it to the Philippines best practices in small and medium enterprises engaged in plantation, agriculture and aquaculture.