OBI4wan is back. Although the name never really went away. In 2022, OBI4wan became part of Spotler and the product was renamed Spotler Engage. But even as Spotler Engage, many customers continued to call the platform OBI. Now that familiar name is officially returning.
Spotler is choosing to sharpen its focus by organising the business into specialised divisions. One of these divisions will operate under the OBI4wan name, bringing together the Engage, Message and Chat+ products. As an independent division, OBI4wan has the space to fully focus on the domain where it has been market leader for years: media monitoring and online customer service for the public sector.
A sharper focus
The decision to sharpen this focus did not come out of nowhere. Spotler has grown by acquiring companies. Nineteen companies, spread across the Netherlands, England, Germany, Sweden, Spain and Croatia, have become part of the group over the years. “That makes us an international organisation, but also a diverse one,” says Spotler CEO Alexander de Ruiter. At the same time, AI is transforming the software market at speed. “The market needs to reinvent itself. That requires the right focus, energy and investments, targeted at specific audiences.”
This approach goes beyond software development. The entire team works from that same focus. For customers, this should be felt in two ways above all: attention and speed. Customers will be working with a smaller, more consistent team with familiar faces. “They’ll notice that in the level of knowledge and the quality of communication,” says Alexander. New features and improvements will also become available faster. “Our customers will be even happier with the product because we are adding more automation and AI, while developing the platform faster than they have been used to.”
A new chapter, a familiar name
This new phase also brings back a familiar name. OBI4wan, the name that stuck with so many customers, is officially returning. Not as a nostalgic look back, but as a deliberate choice. Alongside the return of the name, OBI4wan is also sharpening its focus: the division will primarily serve the public sector. Municipalities, housing associations, healthcare institutions and educational organisations. Organisations where communication is not a side issue, but a core task. The name represents what the team has been doing for years: helping these organisations excel in communication and customer engagement.
Commercial organisations using Engage, Message or Chat+ can also continue to count on the same platform and the same team. The focus on the public sector benefits all customers. Public organisations set high standards for security, accessibility and privacy. Standards that OBI4wan has fully built into its platform. This means commercial customers also benefit from a secure and accessible platform that keeps getting smarter.
Expertise that makes the difference
Leading this new chapter is Harry Schouten. As managing director of OBI4wan, he builds on years of experience within the organisation and in the public sector. In recent years, he has worked closely with municipalities, housing associations, healthcare institutions and educational organisations. He knows the platform, the customers and the market inside out. He sees this knowledge, alongside the technology, as one of OBI4wan’s greatest strengths. “The team understands what is happening in the market, what developments are taking place and how our customers organise their work,” he says.
Compliance with Dutch laws and regulations plays an important role in the public sector. “We know the rules, we comply with them and we think ahead. That’s what our customers can expect from us.” This kind of expertise is crucial, Alexander agrees. “It builds trust,” he says. “You become an equal partner who understands what a customer needs, even before they ask.”
What does that look like in practice? “When we see in the news that an incident has occurred in a particular municipality, we set up a monitoring search query straight away and send over a live dashboard report,” says Alexander. “That’s service. We do it on our own initiative. But it saves a municipality valuable time at the moment it really matters.”
A passion for the public sector
The commitment runs deep in OBI4wan’s DNA. You can see it not only in the way the team works with customers, but also in the people who choose to help build the next phase. Almost the entire original OBI team is returning. For Alexander, that shows how much passion there is. “You can see that the team genuinely cares about the product. And not just about the product, of course, but also about the customers they help with it.”
Ultimately, that passion is about something bigger than software. For Harry, it’s simple: “I want to make an impact on residents, patients, students and tenants. That’s the most meaningful goal for me,” he says. Alexander shares this goal. “We build our software for the public sector, but ultimately it’s about the people that organisations want to serve as well as possible. Our job is to make sure our products help them do exactly that.”
