The story of UltraSoftBIS begins in the mid-1990s, long before the concept of flexible workspaces or coworking spaces became mainstream. It’s a tale of innovation, problem-solving, and the serendipitous evolution of a software solution that would go on to become a game-changer for the flexible workspace industry.
The Early Days: A Chance Encounter with Mark Dixon
In 1994, Harun Biswas (now UltraSoftBIS CEO) was based in Belgium, doing research in an academic environment and providing consultancy in the industrial automation sector. Little did he know, his career would soon take an unexpected turn. Biswas received an offer to join Regus (now known as IWG), which at the time was a fledgling company with only one newly opened business center in Brussels. Regus, a pioneer in the flexible workspace concept, was the precursor to what we now call coworking spaces.
When Regus was just starting out, its founder, Mark Dixon, struggled to articulate his vision for the future of flexible office space. Biswas recalls Dixon sharing his ambition to create a "McDonald's-style" model for serviced offices—where customers could access space with all-inclusive services, like telecom and secretarial support. The idea was to offer a simple, one-page agreement that allowed clients to start working right away, with the same consistent, reliable experience across all Regus locations, much like the uniform quality of a McDonald's burger.
Dixon was keen on introducing a “multi-tenant” environment, but being a technology professional, Biswas couldn’t fully understand the vision at the time. Instead, he focused on what he could contribute: technology and process automation.
Transforming the Workspace: Renovating and Automating Workspace Operation
From Typewriters to Computers: When Biswas joined Regus, his first task was clear: modernize their operations. The company was still using typewriters for secretarial and documentation services, and he immediately saw an opportunity to replace them with computers. This would automate and streamline the process of creating documents, eliminating the need for manual re-typing the entire document when clients made changes.
Though replacing typewriters with computers was an expensive move at the time, it paid off quickly by drastically improving efficiency. The system was rudimentary, but it laid the foundation for what would become a fully automated office management platform.
From Fax to Email: But the transformation didn’t stop there. One of Biswas's most impactful projects at Regus was revamping the company’s communication system—taking it from fax machines to email. At the time, email was still largely unknown outside academic and technical circles, but Biswas singlehandedly architected and deployed a system that connected all of Regus' global offices, enabling seamless communication across hundreds of locations.
This innovation revolutionized how Regus interacted with clients and internally. By replacing the fax machine with email, Biswas enabled clients to send and receive documents instantly, both domestically and internationally, all while maintaining original quality. This change not only sped up communication but allowed Regus to charge clients more for the superior, faster service—something faxing couldn’t match. The email system also opened up new revenue streams, as large documents that were once impossible to send via fax could now be transmitted efficiently, creating a whole new service offering.
Internally, the change from faxing and mailing physical documents to using email transformed daily operations. Key performance indicator (KPI) reports and financial data that once had to be printed and physically mailed or faxed between offices were now transmitted instantly by email. This increased productivity and cut down on the time it took for managers to receive critical information. Consolidation of financial reports was automated, ensuring that local sets of accounts were quickly sent and consolidated at the head office, all in real time.
This didn’t just save time and money; it provided Regus with one of the most reliable platforms to fuel its growth. By automating communication, document transmission, and consolidating data, Biswas helped create a more efficient, data-driven company—one that could scale quickly and meet the demands of its growing global network.
The Challenge: No Systems to Fit the Need
As Regus expanded, so did the complexity of managing multiple locations. By 1995, Biswas was no longer just an engineer, and he started managing IT operations for the entire company as it scaled across the UK and beyond. However, one problem remained: there was no software system that could handle the unique needs of flexible workspace operation and management.
They scoured the market, searching for a solution—be it for hotel management or property management. But no system could match the requirements of a flexible workspace operation, where the key challenges were managing sites, office spaces, office rentals, IT-TECO, meeting room bookings, membership services, contracts, ad-hoc services, billing, and client demands across multiple locations in real-time.
Enter UltraBIS: The Birth of a Software Solution
In 1998, after years of frustration, Biswas decided to go part-time with Regus and build a solution himself. Drawing on his technical background and deep understanding of the flexible workspace market, he created a rudimentary billing platform “UltraBIS” that would serve as the heart of the flexible office management system. This became the first iteration of what would now become UltraSoftBIS.
When he presented UltraBIS to Mark Dixon and his team, they were beyond impressed and eager to implement it immediately across all their locations. By 2000, UltraBIS was running in over 330 locations in 48 Countries, managing everything from office space allocations to inventory, contracts, services, client billing and real-time reporting. It was a massive step forward for the industry, and Regus could now scale its operations with technology at its core.
From UltraBIS to UltraSoftBIS
While UltraBIS was revolutionary, technology was advancing rapidly, and so were the needs of the flexible workspace market. By 2004, they had grown beyond UltraBIS, and the system had become outdated. Biswas was already working on the next iteration of the platform: UltraSoftBIS.
UltraSoftBIS was not just an upgrade—it was a complete reinvention of what a workspace management system could be. Biswas expanded beyond billing automation and introduced powerful features like complex billing algorithms for thousands of client contracts, forward booked revenue, and occupancy management — which allowed operators to track billables, performance, revenue, and occupancy in real-time. This became an invaluable tool for business owners, enabling them to see at a glance how their locations were performing and where they could improve.
A Legacy of Innovation and the Road Ahead
From 1994 to 2004, Biswas and Dixon had built not only a software system but also a foundation for an entirely new way of managing flexible office spaces. The industry we see today, with its focus on coworking, private offices, virtual offices, dedicated desks, and hot desking, owes much of its infrastructure to the innovations they introduced.
In the years since, UltraSoftBIS has continued to evolve, expanding to include a full suite of features that help businesses manage every aspect of flexible workspace operations. While the first system UltraBIS was initially licensed to Regus, their success led UltraSoftBIS to offer it to other operators in the industry. Today, UltraSoftBIS is used by many of the biggest names in the flexible workspace sector.
Looking back, it’s incredible to think that what started as a simple need for automation in a small business center grew into a software solution that is now the backbone of the entire industry. The journey from creating the first version of UltraBIS to today’s sophisticated UltraSoftBIS was not planned—it was driven by the problems Biswas encountered and the desire to solve them.
It’s a story of evolution, persistence, and a belief in the power of technology to transform industries. And as we look to the future, we’re excited to continue supporting the growth of the flexible workspace sector with our innovative solutions.
UltraSoftBIS was born out of necessity, but it’s grown into something much bigger—a tool that enables the future of work. And we're just getting started.
