This is our first blog, so I thought it would be okay to be a little personal.
Back in university, I was studying data analysis with SPSS（Statistical Package for the Social Sciences）. I was so in love with it that I didn’t want the semesters to end. After graduation, I started working for an OEM company that makes precision components for international trade. At that time, most of my clients were Fortune 500 companies.
I always thought they would be packed with advanced software to improve every aspect of business, but I quickly found out “Yes” and “No.” Yes, for their internal communications and workflow; no, for external. Probably because of the nature of our industry, where product life cycles are no longer than three months, hundreds of new SKUs are developed every quarter, and loads of suppliers are needed to collaborate on a project. Hence, in most cases, we exchange data and align tasks mostly based on emails and Excel attachments.
Soon, I became frustrated with the lack of support from the email-based solution we were using, especially when dealing with large sets of cross-team data. It was especially frustrating when I had to update a spreadsheet repeatedly or struggled with sharing updates between teams, keeping data integrity intact, all while not wasting too much time staring at my Excel sheet that had been edited (or messed around) by my colleagues or others. I realized something had to change.
That’s when I had the idea to create OPO. I needed a tool that wasn’t just another Excel or Google Sheets. I wanted something that combined the power of Excel/Google Sheets with more effective cross-team collaboration features and real-time data management. Something that’s quick, intuitive, and allows you to manage your data efficiently, without compromising integrity and security.
That’s how OPO was born—a tool that could do more than just manage numbers—something that could bring teams together while being simple, secure, and effective. OPO blends the familiarity of spreadsheets with the flexibility of modern project management tools like Monday.com and Asana, but with a focus on large-scale data workflows.
Now, over 18 months after launching OPO, we’ve expanded across 10 countries and worked with over 150 businesses. We’ve built something truly unique that addresses the challenges I faced when looking for better ways to collaborate across teams. And we’re just getting started.
Now that I think about it, OPO reflects my undying love for SPSS.
If you also work in the fast-evolving world of supply chain management or manufacturing, need frequent collaboration outside your own organization, and haven’t yet found the perfect tool, try OPO. It’s been a long journey, but we’re just getting started.