Aslı Tamtürk, General Coordinator of Enfotek ERP, PLM and PDM Software Solutions, gave an interview to the magazine of the Izmir Industrialists and Businessmen Association (IZSIAD). Her statements, which found extensive coverage in IZSIAD's official publication issued every three months, Tamturk shared about the history of Enfotek and its products, and explained the steps that companies need to take for digitalization, artificial intelligence, and having scalable data. Tamturk also emphasized the potential of Izmir to be a software city.
The interview with Aslı Tamtürk that found extensive coverage in the magazine, the official publication of IZSIAD that is issued every three months, is as follows:
Aslı Tamtürk, a member of the Board of Directors and the Project Manager of Enfotek, a company producing fast, easy and powerful corporate software solutions specifically for companies at Dokuz Eylül University Technology Zone DEPARK, both introduced her company for the IZSIAD Magazine and explained the steps that companies need to take for digitalization, artificial intelligence, and having scalable data. Stating that Izmir still maintains its potential to be a software city, Tamturk highlighted the importance of taking the necessary steps to embrace this interest.
Can you introduce yourself briefly? Who is Aslı Tamtürk?
I was born in 1979. I'm from Ödemiş, Izmir. I completed my primary, secondary, and high school education in Ödemiş. I completed my university undergraduate education in the Department of Industrial Engineering of 9 Eylül University in 2000, and my master's degree in the Department of Industrial Engineering of Dokuz Eylül University in 2003. Since 2003, I have been working at Enfotek Bilişim A.Ş. Currently, I am a Company Partner at Enfotek Endüstriyel Bilişim A.Ş, chaired by Tuğrul Tamtürk, while also performing the roles of Marketing and Project Coordinator.
Ever since my youth, I have believed in the significant role of social participation and civil organization in the democratic, modern development and progress of society. In this regard, I volunteer in project-based roles in professional chambers and NGOs on various issues such as gender equality, local development, education, and youth participation in social life, striving to fulfill my citizenship responsibility to my country in the best way possible.
I am the mother of a 16-year-old daughter and a 13-year-old son.
Can you tell us about the foundation of Enfotek and the services you offer?
We founded Enfotek in 2003. Enfotek is a company that develops ERP solutions, corporate software, and corporate management systems solutions. We do not call ourselves a software company because we are an engineering solutions company. Initially, we included the textile and ready-made clothing sector in our portfolio, but now we serve companies in various sectors such as automotive, metal, and chemical. The reason why we offer services in such a wide area is that we also provide management consultancy services. We develop business process solutions and information management systems. In this regard, we don't have a sector limitation. We are actually proud of this because our software has been developed entirely by our Turkish engineers. We do not buy and sell foreign-origin software. Here, we provide a holistic view.
In 2003, we applied to be included in the technology development zone. We were one of the first 10 projects to be accepted into the Technology Development Zone at IYTE. After staying at IYTE for 10 years, we are now operating as a registered R&D company in DEPARK. We founded it with zero capital and developed a sustainable structure.
So far, we have developed more than 100 projects and currently serve over 50 active companies. We are proud to be working with organizations that have become leaders in the export sector after receiving services from us when we were a small company.
Do you offer custom software, products?
Yes, exactly. Software is a management tool for us, and if the software can be placed on a scientific basis, a managerial structure, then it becomes useful for the institution using it. We strive to make companies understand this correctly. Technopark has given us a more scientific notion in this regard. We determine the purpose, return, and budget of a project, get its approval from a scientific judge panel, and then offer these projects.
Companies buy our software programs that we have developed specifically for sectors, however, they also make arrangements according to their needs and make the software specific to that institution. Since we created the main software ourselves, we are able to carry out trouble-free work in making changes and customizing it. Depending on the company's field of operation, business flow procedures, we also offer special solutions. With our broad team, we develop the correct model. This gives the company an advantage. As for our team, we have an R&D staff of 20 people. We have a wide range of R&D specialists from financial consultants to HR experts, textile, industrial, and machine engineers.
What are you doing in terms of sustainability?
There are audits in companies. Nowadays, even consumers have certain production demands, certain production conditions, and these need to be constantly auditable and the data needs to be manageable and scalable. As the company grows, it needs to grow according to these audit conditions. The European Green Deal has already brought this up in this regard. You should have scalable data. With the solution projects we do, we show businesses the areas they need to bend for more sustainable, scalable, and environmentally sensitive production. For example, production inspections came into play during Covid, the solution projects we offer at this point also support this.
A company can no longer stand without making a digital transformation. At a time when we are talking about artificial intelligence, I can say that we have passed the stage of discussing digitalization.
Artificial intelligence has come to the fore recently, what is your forecast at this point, what are you doing?
We have placed the subject of artificial intelligence in our main spine. We are focused on the use of artificial intelligence in our customers' relations with customers, on the use of artificial intelligence technology in their own databases, and on training the software with artificial intelligence. For this, you need to have completed the digital transformation of your processes in your hands. We are ready for this. We are a company that has a single digital transformation product integrated from design to foreign trade. I can say we are the only one in Turkey at this level. After achieving the digital transformation, evaluation of the data is on top of it. Artificial intelligence comes into play at this point. Now, the manager can communicate directly with the system and take daily reports, create projections, and many other studies, and can now receive reports from the workforce directly from the system himself. Turkey does not only consist of large companies, there is a wide range of SMEs. We aim to make SMEs step in. This can only be achieved with software infrastructures containing solutions where local, national, Turkish engineers work.
What is Turkey's potential in this regard?
Turkey has a serious potential in terms of labor as high as international logistic, production and competitive potential. However, due to economic developments, there is a serious bottleneck in the market. Currency fluctuations, rising raw material and labor costs, economic and political uncertainties are challenging our competitiveness.
There has been a problem with the employment of qualified labor in our country for a long time. We have a considerable brain drain. Despite being a country with a high young population, our educated, qualified young people are emigrating abroad. On the other hand, our qualified vocational education opportunities have weakened considerably, and currently, intermediate staff cannot be found in production. These negatively affect our value-added production and competitiveness. However, despite all the negatives, it is necessary to point this out. Turkey is a country that has emerged from very difficult conditions. We successfully emerged from the Struggle for Independence in poverty and deprivation, liberated this country from slavery, and we have brought society to the level of contemporary civilizations with the revolutions carried out afterwards. Therefore, I believe that we will overcome this period as well, with solidarity from all segments of society, benefiting more from scientific and technological developments, and increasing our value-added production power. I believe when we reach contemporary, secular, and scientific education conditions, increase our practical vocational and technical education opportunities, and create a corresponding value-added production potential, our young people who have gained work experience abroad will return to our country. I believe that even if 10% of our young people who go abroad return to our country, they can make a significant contribution to the development of our country.
There is talk of the potential for Izmir to become a software city. How do you see this?
The potential of Izmir is high. However, our industrialist profile does not like to take risks. Izmir is a more relaxed city. There are also wide opportunities in social life as well as work. Izmir is a mature and settled city in terms of education, social and cultural environment. It is also a city where professionals from all over Turkey would like to live. However, it seems like it will take time for the infrastructure to withstand the rapid population growth. The business environment that will embrace this intense qualified migration in the future has not yet been established in Izmir. Institutions need to take steps and contribute to the city in this regard.
How did your path cross with IZSIAD?
I have been following IZSIAD for many years actually. I got closer to it thanks to the corporate social responsibility projects of the association. I have been a member of the Board of Directors of ÇYDD Izmir Branch since 2019. IZSIAD Board of Directors and its members have made very valuable and important contributions to the projects we have developed so that children and young people living in socio-economically and socio-culturally fragile regions equally benefit from contemporary education opportunities. Thanks to these collaborations I got to know more closely, and I wanted to contribute to IZSIAD, which focuses not only on professional but also social solidarity. I think that under the difficult market conditions we are in, it is important for associations like IZSIAD to organize with a focus on business and professional solidarity for local and national economic development. I would like to thank the IZSIAD family for contributing to the multiplication of the spirit of solidarity and unity.