Last week we had our webcast: “Oracle EBS R12: The Key to a Successful China Expansion” and today we bring you the Q&A transcript.
Are we required to implement MLS if we’re rolling out Oracle in China?
MLS itself is not mandatory; though it can be an asset when it comes to inputting. We also have alternate solutions, ITC has helped some customers implement the localization solution without installing Oracle MLS. However, we have alternate solutions to implement UTF8, or Unicode Transformation Format. IT Convergence provides MLS and non-MLS solutions to our customers, though from our experience, we’ve found the vast majority choose to go with a MLS solution.
Do most of your clients with international operations (incl. China) deploy R12 with one global instance architecture or multiple instances?
Mostly they use a single global instance. We do have clients who have multiple instances, but it’s a matter of business operations, not really because of China.
Is there a legal requirement that all labels on user screens are in Chinese, or is MLS Lite sufficient to meet legal requirements?
MLS Light will be sufficient with the data capturing in English and Chinese – though mind that this varies depending on the region – some provinces have strict policies about the screens being in Chinese.
So what is the key factor to ensure the success of an Oracle implementation in China?
There are a few essential factors to the success of your Oracle China implementation project. First and foremost is counting on a team whose members can not only understand and roll out the Oracle solution, but also understand the Chinese culture and statutory requirements. A lot of times in a project, users bring forward many “requirements” that are not really mandatory in terms of regulations, but are nice to have, and your implementation partner needs to be able to differentiate between those two.
Is your development done in India, China or somewhere else?
This really depends on the client and the project. The localization requirements development is usually done in China, and during the rollout phase the team in the US or India also pitch in based on the project duration and costs. We take this into consideration for every project and propose the right blend of resources to fit each company’s needs and budget.