ROFF, the Portuguese market leader in SAP solutions implementation, announced, on the occasion of the inauguration of its new premises in Lisbon by the Minister of the Economy and Employment, Álvaro Santos Pereira, the opening of a new subsidiary in Macau and the signing of a new contract with the Swiss multinational Givaudan, the world's largest producer of aromas and fragrances, which thus consolidates its position as ROFF's largest client.
The strategic investment in the Asian market, and particularly in Macau, is essentially due to the experience gained during recent years on projects developed in Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and China. Due to its historical ties with Portugal, this new location also benefits from favourable conditions for Portuguese companies in a booming market with numerous opportunities for the development of business solutions.
The investment in this new branch reinforces the internationalisation strategy of the company, which expects to earn around 1.5 million euros in the first year of business in the Chinese market. At present, ROFF Macau has a permanent team of 10 consultants, which is expected to increase in the short term through the recruitment of more European and locally recruited resources.
The contract signed with the Swiss multinational, the largest contract ever signed by ROFF, includes the maintenance of an integrated management system that enables the company to optimise its business processes and sustain the group's strategic growth. The project will have the duration of three years.
Francisco Febrero, ROFF's CEO, considers that "taking into consideration the quality and eager acceptance of Portuguese human capital, we can be extremely competitive in the Asian market, where significant growth can be expected in the demand for SAP solutions. Furthermore, we believe that this investment is an important contribution to the increase of Portuguese companies exports." Regarding the signing of the largest contract by the company he has been managing for 16 years, Francisco Febrero concludes that "we are very pleased to be continuing to work with Givaudan and we believe that this will be a long-lasting relationship."
Since the start of its internationalisation in 2006, ROFF has been developing operations in various international markets, such as Switzerland, Norway, Poland, the United States, as well as a number of equally strategic regions including the Middle East and South America. At present, the foreign market now represents 54 per cent of the company's turnover, which resulted in the recruitment of around 60 new employees in 2012.
Besides its offices in Lisbon, Porto and Covilhã, ROFF currently has six international branches: the strategic market of Macau, São Paulo, where the company set up in April 2012, Luanda, Paris, Stockholm and Casablanca.