ODS Group's New Period Plans

Having started operations in America last year, ODS Group aims to increase the number of companies it represents in the American market to 30. ODS Consulting Group's Chairman of the Board, Onur Seçkin, stated that they have made a bold entry into 2021 with new goals and shared the company's future and investment plans with fortuneturkey.com.

Can you talk about ODS Group's service philosophy and work? Do you have any innovative applications you offer to differentiate yourself?
As ODS Consulting Group, we have connected all the experiences we have gained from hundreds of businesses since our establishment with our new service areas and our quality policy in those areas. We provide consulting services in many fields for our clients, from project writing to project management, international business development and exports to engineering and technology consultancy, corporate development to recruitment and talent management, and from Turquality to supply chain and procurement; we continuously add different and innovative perspectives to our services every day in line with the evolving and changing world trends.

We continue our efforts with the aim of becoming the largest national brand operating in the sector with expertise in business management and economic structure in Turkey and to guide the global consulting industry with the knowledge accumulation we have gained. One of our main goals is to be more than just a solution partner with an integrated functional structure in our clients' operations and to directly contribute to profit maximization with our value-creating services and innovative projects.

How was 2020 for ODS Group? What were the risks and opportunities of this period for both your company and the areas in which you provided services? How did you manage the risks?

We left behind a year full of innovations where we achieved many firsts. In 2020, by starting operations in America, we opened ODS Amazon Europe and America accounts, and we completed our first shipment. As ODS CONSULTING LLC, we received FDA approval for the first time and conducted "service exports," while our International Business Development Consulting service was sold to the American company Alloys&Elements.

By signing a consulting contract with the Central Anatolian Exporters' Union, under TİM, on topics such as Strategic Plan, Export Maturity Index, Market Entry Guide for America, and Brand Strategy, we created a strategic guide to increase exports through furniture, paper, and forestry products (OMKO) to enter the American market. With this project, an export increase of approximately $100 million is targeted in the American market for furniture, paper, and forestry products. We prepared a maturity index chart for member organizations and are collaboratively creating roadmaps and strategies.

We purchased all international sales rights of the Optinaturell and Naturpy brands, as well as all domestic and international sales rights of all pandemic products produced by the Molecure brand. By acquiring the international sales rights of the Gürçelik company through our agreement, we started office operations in America for various firms.

So, how did you start 2021, and what are your goals? Can you provide information about your financial performance and new investment plans? What are your growth strategies for the upcoming period? Are there new collaborations or markets on the agenda?
We have many objectives for various areas in 2021. Increasing our annual consulting client count to approximately 350 with a 50% increase by the end of the year and raising the number of delivered projects to 450 with a 30% increase are among our main goals.

Another goal is to sell our International Business Development service in every country where we have a representative. Our efforts continue to increase the number of companies we represent in the American market by adding 16 more companies to reach a total of 30. We are continually striving to make the Better Business in World trade platform one of the sites with the "largest potential companies" data worldwide.

For 2021, we have plans to establish partnership agreements with 10 trade companies operating similarly to ODS abroad, and to make our firm recognizable in many countries through international marketing strategies and social media ad campaigns.

We are developing a professional, comprehensive roadmap to increase the export rates and volumes of member institutions with the Ankara Chamber of Commerce. We have set strategies in this regard and have started our work with the selection of 30 pilot companies. Our project with the Gaziantep Chamber of Commerce, which includes the 5-year strategic plan of the institution and institutional analysis and strategy preparation to ensure the development of the Gaziantep industrial region in every sector, is also ongoing.

As ODS, we are taking determined steps to realize our 2021 goals. We started the year with ambitious targets. Indeed, when we evaluate the first four months, we see that we achieved about an 80% growth rate compared to the previous year. We aim to maintain our momentum to reach at least 100% growth by the end of the year. In particular, we want to complete our human resources structuring in the first quarter and raise our growth momentum to the desired level in the following quarters.

In your opinion, what permanent changes will there be in business processes after the pandemic? How will new business models and HR processes evolve in light of new generation technologies and trends?
Covid-19 led to a reevaluation of the service delivery process in the consulting sector. We can say that due to cultural reasons, companies in Turkey demand the consulting process to be in-person services. During the process of conducting remote meetings and training, we focused on instilling these habits into the companies we work with. We quickly integrated many software processes into our operations in terms of team and project management as well as client relations.

When we interpret the positive changes we experienced in the context of the entire sector, we can state that the pandemic has led to an increase in the use of technology in the consulting sector, and this increase will continue rapidly in the upcoming period. We can also indicate that more emphasis will be placed on remote working methods in terms of both national and international expansion.

It is a fact that the sector will take on a technology-intensive form in the coming years... Therefore, we can say that consultants who act earlier and integrate their processes with various tools, primarily software, will experience a smoother transition. Consulting firms that best perceive the needs of companies and take them to results as swiftly as possible will play a decisive role in the sector. Like our current positioning, we believe that a transition to a service model where companies outsource their consultants and integrate them with internal departments will be completed. We consider that a partnership institution that allows companies to focus on their core activities and leaves other issues to experts is necessary for the development of the sector.