Industry Update: Platforms should grow with the retailer.
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.
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, Bates says.
"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," he 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," Bates says.
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.
As some of the 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.
Businesses that have the freedom to innovate their own platforms, along with expert consultants to back them, gain an edge because of their ability to change things up more freely and in ways the competition hasn't though of yet, Bates says.
"People are thinking about creative new ways to add value to their business by leveraging their technology capabilities," he says. "And that's what we're helping them do."
Business can be a force for good.
Innovative, empowered businesses create greater opportunity for everyone. More jobs. Better wages. Increased social impact. That's why we've set our vision squarely on business agility—so you can manage business processes more efficiently, adapt to changing market conditions more quickly, and maximize your organization's potential to do the good in the world.
With HotWax Commerce as the platform powering your modern digital commerce architecture, you can do all this for less than the cost of other platform's licensing fees alone. And with our OFBiz consulting services, you can get custom-configured commerce solutions backed by deep experience in the open source commerce industry. Nothing makes us happier than sharing this expertise and passion with our clients. It's how we help you build a truly successful business—so you can make a real impact in the world.
