About Quartile
An Odoo partner that works in the open
Quartile (Kotaeru) supports Odoo implementations for clients in Japan and around the world. We make the most of open source to maximize cost-effectiveness, deliver almost entirely remotely, and contribute back to the Odoo ecosystem we depend on.
What we stand for
Three principles guide how we judge our work and treat the people around us.
Creating value
We judge value against three markets — our customers, our team, and the ecosystem our business depends on — and pursue actions that solve each one's challenges concretely and at the root. We keep asking "why," and keep improving our practices.
Being fair
We are thoroughly fair to our customers and our team. When interpretations differ, we lay out the facts and choose what is right by common social standards — giving everyone solid ground to create value together.
Being open
We keep information open and share it actively with our team, the OSS community, and our clients. Being open is what keeps us fair: it removes the unfairness that hides where things are closed, and it is how we earn trust.
Why an open-source partner matters
The essence of open source is information that circulates freely
Open source is, at its core, a system where the process is transparent and information circulates in the open. Because Odoo is open source, a provider that truly values user benefit and is fluent in Odoo will inevitably improve it in the open and share what it knows.
An open-source-minded Odoo provider tends to have these traits:
Shares information and know-how
Providers active in the community are committed to sharing knowledge — without that mindset, real participation is not possible.
Easier to keep costs down
A provider active in the community is also one that can make good use of community assets — and will not exploit information asymmetry to pad estimates.
No vendor lock-in
Relying on private, proprietary features raises switching costs and deepens lock-in — regardless of what the provider intends.
High skill level
Continual feedback from top engineers at Odoo S.A. and across the community naturally raises a provider's skills.
High maintainability
Because the implementation draws on community assets, functional improvements, maintenance, and upgrades can be supported by community members beyond the original provider.
Lower legal risk
Building license-compliance checks into continuous integration avoids the legal risk of using inappropriate open-source modules.
Open-source mindset
- Shares information & know-how
- High skill level
- Easier to keep costs down
- High maintainability
- No vendor lock-in
- Lower legal risk
Collaborating with the community in the open makes it possible to deliver high-quality services that incorporate the community's collective knowledge.
Proprietary mindset
- Does not share information & know-how
- Lower skill level
- Harder to keep costs down
- Lower maintainability
- Vendor lock-in
- Legal risk to watch
Out of concern over know-how leaking, or a lack of skills, such providers avoid working in the open and prefer closed channels.
Implementing a core business system rarely ends with installing an off-the-shelf product — and in Japan, using Odoo usually makes some customization unavoidable. Partnering with a provider committed to open-source contribution markedly improves your chances of a good outcome.
Proof, not just claims
How we contribute to Odoo and the OCA
Since 2013 we have worked in the open to maximize the value we give users and to sustain and grow Odoo's open-source ecosystem — improving the Odoo core and helping build and maintain OSS community features. This is what makes our service quality dependable.
Japanese localization of Odoo
We led Odoo's Japanese localization for ten years, until Odoo S.A. hired a Japanese translator in 2023. Our community focus has since shifted toward functional improvements, but we still carry out Odoo translation work today.
Fixes and improvements to the Odoo core
The Japanese accounting module in the Odoo core — the chart of accounts and related master records — began as Quartile's 2015 work. When we find defects or specification gaps in the core, we file fix proposals on GitHub, clarify the points at issue, and discuss them with Odoo S.A. As of July 2024, Quartile is the only Odoo partner in Japan doing this.
Activity in the Odoo Community Association (OCA)
We address user requirements with Odoo's standard features first, then with OCA modules. Where an existing module does not fit well, we propose improvements or extensions, or propose entirely new modules — and we adjust direction based on community feedback. Many OCA modules have been refined through exactly this process.
Sharing practical know-how in the open
We publish genuinely useful information about the features and know-how of Odoo and OCA modules, in forums anyone can read.
How we work
Across the whole Odoo lifecycle
Implementing Odoo takes system and business knowledge plus a grasp of Odoo's own concepts and specifications — hard to cover entirely in-house. Drawing on experience with Odoo since 2013, and on what we have learned from many past upgrade projects, we put the right implementation and operations structure in place at a fair cost.
Proven in Japan and abroad
ERP that is woven into daily operations has to respect each country's laws and business customs. Having started in Hong Kong and built a track record across Japan and overseas, we can propose the best way to use Odoo wherever you are — and we are glad to run English-language projects and ongoing support.
Fully remote, and agile
Since we began offering Odoo services in 2013, we have stayed agile and, as a rule, remote — using online communication tools. There is no cost for securing meeting space or for member travel, so we concentrate on the work that genuinely creates value. (We visit when seeing the site helps, for example with manufacturing clients.)
Company profile
- Company name
- Kotaeru Corporation (Quartile Corporation)
- Established
- August 2018
- Representative
- Yoshitaka Tashiro
- Address
- 402 Loop Ohna, 2-11-24 Ohna, Chuo-ku, Fukuoka, Japan (3 min from Exit 3, Akasaka Station, Fukuoka City Subway Kuko Line)
- Origin
- Founded in Hong Kong in 2012; Kotaeru established in Fukuoka in 2018 as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Quartile Limited.
- Contact
- 092-707-3087 / info@quartile.co
Our journey
We have built a steady Odoo track record since 2013 — implementations, version upgrades, and rescues of projects that stalled elsewhere — across Japan, Hong Kong, China, the US, Europe, and Southeast Asia.
Founded in Hong Kong
Founded in Hong Kong to offer more flexible, cost-effective business-system services (then named Rooms For (Hong Kong) Limited). Spotting the potential of OpenERP — the most prominent open-source ERP at the time, now Odoo — we began services as what was then Japan's second OpenERP partner.
Alliance with INFO ATHLETES
Entered a capital and business alliance with INFO ATHLETES, Inc., and began offering Odoo services in the Japanese market in earnest.
Kotaeru established in Fukuoka
Established Kotaeru Corporation (English name: Quartile Corporation) in Fukuoka as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Quartile Limited.
Wider industries, deeper community
Delivered projects across space-related solutions, chemical manufacturing, and the reuse industry; co-hosted Odoo workshops for manufacturers; and attended OCA Days 2024 and Odoo Experience 2024 in Belgium for the second time as Quartile.
The team
Yoshi Tashiro
ERP Consultant
A former SAP consultant who has built a range of services on Odoo since 2013. Catchphrase: "Do you really need that feature?" Odoo/OCA contributor, OCA delegate, OCA Japan localization committee member, and Odoo Japanese-localization team reviewer. Pescatarian.
Ryoko Tsuda
ERP Consultant
Worked as an implementation consultant at an ERP vendor and as an SAP consultant, then joined Kotaeru after a period focused on raising her children. Strong in accounting. Odoo Japanese-localization team reviewer. An indoor type whose hobbies are tea ceremony, kimono, handicrafts, and yoga.
Tatsuki Kanda
Odoo Engineer
Studied data science at university and joined Kotaeru after a period caring for his grandfather. A sports fan who spends most days off watching some sport or other; lately studying poker. Odoo/OCA contributor.
Aung Ko Ko Lin
Odoo Engineer
Joined Kotaeru after two and a half years at an Odoo partner in Thailand. Tenacious at tackling Odoo's technical challenges. Enjoys esports games and watching sports. Odoo/OCA contributor.
Toshikimi Shigenobu
Odoo Engineer
Joined Kotaeru after a career as a network engineer. CISSP and Registered Information Security Specialist. Likes relaxing in nature, and would love to spend his lunch breaks in the park.
Kenshi Shojaku
Technical Advisor
Worked on core business-system implementations as an ERP consultant, then went independent and founded several companies. Has even appeared in the Muscle Musical stage show.
Share what we stand for? Let's drive Japan's DX together.
Awareness of Odoo in Japan has grown, and the market is now actively looking for it. Quartile has the track record and the know-how of a leading provider of Odoo services in the Japanese market.
See open rolesWant to talk it through?
Whether you are weighing Odoo for the first time or rethinking an existing setup, get in touch — we will look at where you are and suggest a sensible way forward.