When we look back at the journey that led to the creation of UltraSoftBIS, it's clear that innovation doesn't always follow a planned roadmap. Sometimes, it arises out of necessity—out of the challenges our customers face in the real world.
That’s exactly what happened when UltraSoftBIS CEO Harun Biswas began developing our Contract Module (also known as Licence Agreement Module, or LAM), a key feature that would transform the way businesses in the workspace industry handle contracts, discounts control, approvals and billing.
Starting Out As a Billing Platform
Between 2005 and 2010, UltraSoft was undergoing a major transition. After completing worldwide implementation of UltraBIS with Regus, we moved on to building our own software platform. We had initially focused on creating a billing system based on the technology used for UltraBIS. However, as we began to market the platform, we realized it was no longer enough. The technology underneath the UltraBIS system was outdated, and the industry was progressing extremely quickly. The database management system, information technology, system platforms, internet speeds, and user expectations were changing at a fast pace, and our UltraBIS system simply couldn’t keep up. Read more about the UltraBIS system here.
That’s when we made the decision to revamp everything and create UltraSoftBIS (Business Information System). It wasn’t just a billing platform anymore—it would become the first all-in-one workspace industry platform capable of handling a wide range of business needs, from billing to sales contract management and management reporting platform.
The Turning Point: The Need for a Contract Management Solution
In 2006, one of the first major companies we signed up for UltraSoftBIS was MWB, a UK-based workspace provider. They had multiple locations and a growing business with 60+ sites. When we started working with MWB, we quickly discovered that their problems extended far beyond just billing. The sales team and finance departments were struggling with contract management. Specifically, they were facing issues around approval processes, discounts, and discrepancies between what was agreed upon during the sales process and what ended up on the contract and ultimately in the billing system.
Contracts were often complex—sometimes involving discounts, free periods, or phased pricing (step deals) —and there was a real risk of human error when transferring contract details into the billing platform. Sales managers, finance teams, and directors were constantly bickering about contract terms, price offered, and deal values, which not only slowed down the process but led to mistakes that resulted in significant financial losses.
That’s when we realized something had to change. UltraSoftBIS could solve these problems if we could integrate contract management directly into our platform.
Creating the Contract Module Was a Daunting but Necessary Task
It was a daunting challenge. Biswas knew he needed to create a system that could manage complex contracts with multiple pricing structures with multi-layer securities, discounts, approvers, and approval processes. But, as we had learned through our journey with UltraSoft, we weren’t afraid of complexity. We dove in headfirst, working closely with MWB and other clients to understand the intricacies of their processes.
The goal was simple: we needed a system that would automate contract creation, ensure the right discounts and approvals were in place, and integrate seamlessly with our billing platform so that once a contract was signed, the billing system could automatically schedule billing for the duration of the contract, and generate invoices—without any manual input.
The result of this effort was what we now call the License Agreement Module (LAM) within UltraSoftBIS.
How the License Agreement Module Transformed the Industry
The License Agreement Module became a game-changer for workspace providers. It simplified what was previously a complex, error-prone process into a seamless, automated flow. Here’s how it worked:
Automated Contract Creation:
Users could create contracts with just a few clicks. They’d select the offices from a list of real-time available spaces, input the monthly price, and the system would automatically fill in all other details, such as inventory, pricing, and discounts, and update the room availability and occupancy. The system even accounted for things like target or walk-away prices, free periods, steps and terms & conditions, so users didn’t have to worry about mistakes.
Approval Workflows:
To prevent unauthorized discounts and pricing errors, the system automatically routed contracts through the right approval channels based on the level of discounts. For instance, if a discount exceeded a certain threshold, the system would route the contract to the appropriate manager or director for approval. This eliminated the need for manual interventions and reduced the chances of costly errors. Moreover, if any special terms were offered beyond the standard ones, the system would automatically route the contract to the legal team for approval.
Standardized Calculations:
One of the biggest challenges in contract management for workspace providers was calculating "partial months." Depending on the start date of a contract, the number of days in a month could vary, and this led to disputes with customers about how much they were being charged. We developed a set of formulas to handle these calculations consistently and logically, ensuring that both parties were always on the same page.
Integrated Billing:
Once the contract was signed and the deposit/retainer was received, the system would automatically transfer the agreed-upon prices and terms into the billing platform, ensuring that invoices were accurate and generated on time. There was no need for sales teams to re-enter data manually—everything was handled by the system.
Legal and Compliance Integration:
To further streamline the process, we integrated pre-approved terms and conditions into the system. Legal teams no longer had to review each contract individually. As long as the sales team followed the system’s guidelines, contracts could be generated and signed without additional legal scrutiny. In case of any special terms—which are often necessary in workspace sales processes—the Approval Workflows would handle the legal approval swiftly and get the contract ready for signing with little effort.
From Concept to Successful Industry Standard
The response from customers was overwhelmingly positive. MWB, in particular, saw a significant reduction in errors, faster contract approvals, and improved profitability. They no longer had to worry about manual data entry or discrepancies between sales agreements and billing. The entire process—from contract creation to invoicing—became fully automated.
Over the next few years, we continued to refine and improve the License Agreement Module, adding new features and simplifying the user experience. But the core of the system remained the same: it was a comprehensive, fully integrated solution for contract management and billing, tailored to the specific needs of the workspace industry.
Looking back, the creation of the License Agreement Module was a pivotal moment for UltraSoftBIS. It was a direct result of listening to our customers’ pain points and responding with a solution that addressed their needs head-on. We had no intention of building a contract management system when we first started developing UltraSoftBIS, but the demand was there, and we were more than willing to take on the challenge.
As UltraSoftBIS continues to grow and innovate, we remain committed to solving real-world problems for businesses in the workspace industry.
We’ve always strived to create tools that make business easier, more efficient, and more profitable, and we aren’t even close to done yet with our mission.
