Location/Region: Yorba Linda, CA
Industry: Education
Apps implemented: Inventory, Website, eLearning, Inventory, Manufacturing Accounting
Software
Replaced: QuickBooks, Insightly, Wix
Company size: 4 + contractors
Hosting type: Odoo.Sh
In an effort to revolutionize faith formation for families, Faith and Family Life Catholic Ministries has been making an impact in parishes across the United States. By leveraging Odoo’s integrated business applications, the organization has significantly enhanced its efficiency, streamlined operations, and expanded its reach.
Founded in January 2020, Faith and Family Life Catholic Ministries is committed to transforming faith formation. Through a combination of resource development, content creation, and leadership formation, the ministry equips parents with tools to nurture their children’s faith. Today, the organization works with approximately 150 churches across the United States, as well as in Canada, the UK, and New Zealand, reaching over 17,000 families in the past year alone.
"No matter how good the ministry was with teenagers, if their families weren’t involved, it was unlikely they would continue practicing their faith. That realization led us to refocus our efforts on empowering parents."
The struggle with disconnected systems
Before adopting Odoo, the organization faced numerous operational challenges due to disconnected software solutions. Initially, they relied on a combination of QuickBooks for accounting, Insightly for CRM, and Wix for e-commerce. They had considered using Fishbowl for inventory management but ultimately never implemented it. Instead, they selected Odoo around the same time to reduce the number of different apps. However, none of these systems provided an integrated approach, making it difficult to manage their unique combination of manufacturing, inventory, and online sales.
Tracking inventory manually using spreadsheets led to inefficiencies and errors, particularly as their operations scaled. Without clear visibility into stock levels and manufacturing costs, forecasting and financial planning became increasingly difficult.
"We had no integrated solution that could handle accounting, inventory, and order management at an affordable price point. We were constantly transferring data manually between different systems, leading to errors and inefficiencies."
A seamless transition to a smarter solution
Faith and Family Life Catholic Ministries discovered Odoo through a simple Google search. Although unfamiliar with ERP systems at the time, Father Tim quickly recognized the benefits of Odoo’s modular approach, affordability, and scalability.
Since implementing Odoo, the organization has embraced a wide range of applications, including Inventory, Manufacturing, Accounting, Website, and eLearning. The transition to Odoo has significantly optimized their operations, resulting in measurable improvements in efficiency and accuracy.
One of the biggest improvements has been the organization’s order and shipping process. Previously, they used an external shipping integration that required manual data entry, leading to frequent mistakes and wasted time. By consolidating shipping within Odoo and integrating with UPS, they achieved a 90% reduction in shipping time, allowing them to print shipping labels in batches instantly instead of manually creating each one.
Managing inventory has become significantly easier. With over 60 suppliers and hundreds of thousands of small pieces, Odoo’s real-time inventory tracking and bill of materials forecasting have been game-changers. The team can now accurately predict how many kits they can produce based on available components, reducing stockouts and optimizing purchasing decisions.
The adoption of Odoo’s Website module has further streamlined operations by consolidating e-commerce, client management, and digital content distribution. Now, customers can access all their orders and previous purchases in one place, enhancing the user experience and reducing administrative overhead.
Additionally, Odoo’s customization capabilities have allowed the ministry to address specific challenges, such as preventing duplicate customer records and ensuring smooth data integration across all their applications.
"With Odoo, we’ve gained the visibility and control we needed to scale efficiently. From inventory valuation to customer tracking, the platform has helped us streamline every aspect of our operations."
What is next?
Looking ahead, the organization is preparing for substantial growth. At the end of April, they will double their warehouse space, necessitating new tools to manage logistics more effectively. One of their top priorities is implementing Odoo’s Barcode feature to improve warehouse tracking, internal transfers, and order fulfillment.
On the digital front, they aim to expand their use of Odoo’s Marketing Automation app to deliver more personalized communications and enhance audience segmentation. They are also integrating Odoo’s Forum to foster interactive discussions among their community members.
Meanwhile, the organization is broadening its content offerings by developing new resources for early childhood faith formation and expanding its leadership training programs for adult parish leaders. As their reach continues to grow, Odoo will remain a critical tool in helping them scale their impact sustainably.
Faith and Family Life Catholic Ministries is a testament to how Odoo can help mission-driven organizations streamline operations, reduce inefficiencies, and scale their impact. Whether you're managing inventory, integrating e-commerce, or optimizing internal workflows, Odoo provides an affordable, all-in-one solution tailored to your needs.
