Bill Douglas, OpticWise, Inc. CEO: “We utilize our Building of Things^® strategy coupled with our 5S^® Solutions to deliver substantial NOI.”

Even though a company’s primary consideration when choosing new real estate is location, there are changes being made to the standards that are being used to assess buildings. It is clear that highly connected individuals and enterprises are relying more and more on high-performance networks capable of supporting secure connectivity for any high-bandwidth application. This not only makes having a very reliable network connection crucial, but it also makes a facility’s digital infrastructure a crucial component of its tenants’ IT strategy and daily operations. One of the most crucial decisions a company can make is where to locate its facility because it will have an impact on its customers, staff, and other stakeholders. Contrarily, no two tenants are alike, with everyone having unique requirements for office space based on their line of work. The same is true for apartment tenants.

Ninety percent of the building owners and property managers who participated in an online survey to learn more about the importance of superior Internet and communications services said that they are the fourth most important selling point, after location, price, and parking. Communications’ potential increased even further in high-rise commercial office buildings and with owners or directors of assets of 2 million square feet or more. Globally there are various companies delivering excellent property technology solutions, but OpticWise stands out from the rest. From its years of experience focused on designing and implementing property technology solutions for multi-tenant properties, OpticWise knows how today’s tenant users like to roam throughout a property. And whether they are at their desk, in the cafe, or on the rooftop deck, they need secure access to their network-connected services and devices to remain productive. No matter where they are on the property or campus, users need reliable and secure access to cloud applications, network services, and printers, and the typical public Wi-Fi solution simply doesn’t solve this challenge adequately or securely.

Tenants and many property managers likely don’t appreciate the complexity of providing the secure private-network solution required to accomplish this seamless user experience. And without the right infrastructure, not only are your tenants at risk, as the network provider you are also at risk. Indoor and campus-wide connectivity is becoming a new essential utility for most properties, and it’s often overlooked and not adequately planned in most real estate developments. The best part of outsourcing your in-building network to OpticWise is they turn the expense of what is now known as the “fourth utility” into a profit center. Regardless of whether your property is new or existing, the OpticWise team can solve the needs of the modern commercial real estate property and ensure you are prepared for the demanding connectivity requirements of the future.

In conversation with Bill Douglas, CEO of OpticWise, Inc.

Q. What was the motivation behind starting OpticWise, Inc.? And please brief us about the company’s history so far.  

OpticWise was founded 19 years ago to solve network problems for multitenant real estate. We made a shift 7 years ago to focus entirely on apartments and office buildings, investing heavily in the SaaS platform that provides our unique 5S^® user experience. CRE owners and tenants value what OpticWise provides, particularly the security, privacy, and support, and that has been the underlying force behind our growth.

Q. What has helped the company distinguish itself and its services from others? What makes OpticWise, Inc. unique?

It comes down to the 5S^® user experience:

• Seamless Mobility
• Security
• Speed
• Stability
• Service

Add to that the Ultimate Privacy Policy for users and the Building of Things^® strategies to drive Net Operating Income (NOI) for owners. These are why we stand out in our markets.

Q. How does OpticWise, Inc. help CRE owners & operators to monetize technology assets?

Our clients own multi-tenant commercial real estate (CRE) properties. Each of those is full of technology, devices, systems, sensors, networks, etc. Yet most properties only think about the building’s physical assets, not all its technology assets. We utilize our Building of Things^® strategy coupled with our 5S^® Commercial Firewall NOI Capture platform to deliver substantial NOI.

Clients benefit from:

• Improved market positioning
• Increased income
• Control of systems & data

Clients also love the results:

• Significantly increased NOI
• Reduced first costs (CapEx)
• Reduced operating expenses (OpEx)

Q. How important is technology to what you do and deliver as an organization?

Technology is at the core of everything we do. We utilize it to deliver premier services to clients and users, AND we monetize technology for our clients who are CRE owners. We pride ourselves as a tech forward company and a fast-moving thought leader in our space.

Q. How secure are your solutions and the client platforms you manage?

Security is critical in ensuring the delivery of the full 5S^® user experience. Users on the platform – whether the ownership group, management group, colleagues within a commercial tenancy, or roommates in a residential tenancy – rely on the total privacy of their network traffic within a 5S^® campus. Each tenant device has access to encrypted authentication options native to the platform, as well as all IoT devices allowed in any private network.

Q. Brief us about your fully managed solution for multi-family property managers and owners. How affordable and seamless are your proptech services?

Our Solution, which monetizes technology assets for CRE owners, is comprised of three major elements:

5S^® Priority User Experience: We spoil tenants with our 5S^® user experience, Ultimate Privacy Policy, and customer care.

Branded Services: We implement the OpticWise Commercial Firewall NOI Capture Platform which provides multiple new revenue streams while saving tenants money.

Digital Infrastructure Management: We design and operate the property’s digital infrastructure, which the client owns. It’s built on the SIC^® (security, infrastructure, connectivity) standards and leverages the Building of Things^® strategies.

Of unique and major importance: OpticWise doesn’t monetize its users or their data. Instead, it gives complete authority to users, keeping their connected experience and activities private at all times. We publish the details in our Ultimate Privacy Policy.

Our Solution is extremely affordable. In fact, it generates income and has a material impact on property valuations. NOI, ROI, and Yield are consistently enhanced with all of our clients.

Q. Could you share a story where you helped out a client – a client success story?

For a client of ours who operates a multi-million square foot facility, they had a last-minute large tenant move-in change and needed same-day turn-up of technology services for the tenant in their new space. The tenant was literally moving in people at the moment we were alerted to this change. We were able to adjust their provisioning on the fly so that, as they accepted their onboarding invitations, they were able to immediately begin using the 5S^® Wi-Fi joined into their private virtual domain.

Another success story, this time in the apartment space, was during COVID. A large financial institution’s IT infosec group realized how secure the 5S^® platform was after they setup a user within a 5S^® apartment site. Afterwards, their company proceeded to move nearly a dozen employees to that complex so they could work from home securely and in full regulatory compliance.

Q. What does the future hold for your company and its customers?

We intend to drive further ahead with new initiatives, setting standards across the industry and benefitting everyone, not just our clients. International expansion is also on the horizon.

Meet the leaders behind the success of OpticWise, Inc.

Bill Douglas, OpticWise CEO, is a lifetime entrepreneur, having started/sold/acquired/exited multiple businesses, made the INC & others growth lists, awarded a US Patent, and more. He’s a mechanical engineering graduate from Georgia Tech and of the Entrepreneurial Master’s Program at MIT. Bill’s a father of two adult men and enjoys fitness, biking, skiing, volleyball & golf.

Drew Hall, OpticWise Founder & Chief Systems Architect, is an expert in network architecture, with a demonstrated history of overseeing teams in the design and operation of high security and low latency network applications worldwide. He has a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from Baylor University. Drew’s a father of two young men and enjoys family time, mountain biking, and performing improv comedy. 

“Technology is at the core of everything we do. We utilize it to deliver premier services to clients and users, AND we monetize technology for our clients who are CRE owners.”

“CRE owners and tenants value what OpticWise provides, particularly the security, privacy, and support, and that has been the underlying force behind our growth.”