Last week, we had the pleasure of attending the OCA Days held in Liège, Belgium, just before Odoo Experience. This event is the most important for the Odoo Community Association (OCA), where developers, integrators, functional consultants, and companies of all kinds gather with a single goal: to talk about Odoo.
Important Changes
This year, it was decided to take a new approach to the event, minimizing the code sprint to make way for three distinct tracks of talks grouped into various themes. The main ones were:
- Accounting and Business
- Module Documentation
- Onboarding and Retention of Contributors
- OpenUpgrade
- Evolution and Future of the OCA
- DevOps Management
Additionally, several workshops were organized that allowed for direct interaction with attendees, proposing solutions in an agile manner. After all, the OCA is an association that promotes collaboration, and this event was no different.
Dixmit at OCA Days
From Dixmit, we contributed in several ways. On one hand, we delivered an introductory talk on OpenUpgrade, where we aimed to showcase the reasons for its existence, its necessity, and, above all, the risks faced by the project.
Furthermore, we actively collaborated in preparing the event and assisted in managing one of the exhibition rooms.
Future of the OCA
From our perspective, the most notable aspect of the event was the discussion about the future of the OCA. It is clear that the organization’s short-term goal is to achieve sustained growth. As of now, it is underfunded and survives on the efforts of all contributors, even though it provides significant value to many users of Odoo.
With this in mind, the OCA Board has proposed two major lines of action. The first focuses on providing more value to OCA-associated integrators, and the second on the onboarding and recognition of contributors. Obviously, these are points still under construction, but there is an effort to establish a good approach so that the association can grow in the coming years.
Fortunately, the community has responded to these needs, sparking many interesting debates on the matter, always rooted in education and mutual understanding. The OCA will need to discuss these points one by one to find the best path for everyone, but it is worth noting that the large community behind it will surely facilitate any transition.
We firmly believe that it is important to adequately empower the OCA, as it provides significant value to both users and integrators. Therefore, we will be keeping an eye on the new developments that arise regarding this matter.