By Manish Chandak
“What is EBMS?”, you may wonder while reading this article. EBMS stands for “Event Business Management Systems” and many of Ungerboeck’s long-standing customers across the globe remember it as the very first name for Ungerboeck’s event management software that was used for many years. Even today, when we meet at Unite events, whether virtually or in person, “EBMS” is still used to refer to the platform by many customers within the Ungerboeck community as it has become an essential tool in their event professionals’ careers.
35 years ago, the world’s event software provider was a small startup founded by a young Austrian couple, Catherine and Dieter Ungerboeck. Today, Ungerboeck has more than 500 employees worldwide and is at the forefront of event management technology, offering forward thinking solutions to elevate the event experience worldwide.
Ungerboeck has become a leader in the industry, powering over 980 organizations across the globe and supporting over 50,000 event professionals in their daily job.
Throwback on three decades of innovation and successes: 
1985 - Ungerboeck and EBMS were born
Ungerboeck Systems Inc. was founded in 1985 in Chesterfield, Missouri. At the time, the company was building custom solutions for the process manufacturing industry. The small team was led by Dieter Ungerboeck, in charge of customer relationships, and his wife Catherine, who was leading the development of the software.
In 1989, Ungerboeck Systems Inc. received a request from the St. Louis Convention and Exhibition Bureau and Los Angeles Convention Center to build a custom solution for their venues. Following the advice of their business partner at the time, IBM, Ungerboeck Systems Inc. took on the two projects and secured ownership of the code created. EBMS was created and the company kept on improving the software to answer the needs of the event industry ever since.
Over the years, Ungerboeck Systems Inc. kept on growing organically, expanding its footprint worldwide by opening regional offices in Oceania, Europe, Middle East, and China, to better support its global customers.
In 1994, the first PC-based software of “EBMS” was released, with the widely known “Version 19” of the system launched in 2003 and welcomed by a large customer basis for many years.
Version 20 – it all began with a sketch by Dieter Ungerboeck
In 2012, Ungerboeck Systems Inc. completely revamped the user experience and look and feel of its event management software. With the release of its browser-based Version 20, Ungerboeck decided to step away from the product name EBMS and from the company name Ungerboeck Systems Inc. The company was now referred to as Ungerboeck Software International, and the software name became Ungerboeck software. The shift towards browser-based software and increased usability was an important milestone in Ungerboeck history.
Version 30 – a leap towards UX, increased speed || Ungerboeck in the New Event World
In 2019, Ungerboeck Software International finally became Ungerboeck. The company took a big leap in its strategy, working on major software releases to significantly elevate its customers’ experiences. Focusing on mobility, agility, and connectivity, Ungerboeck is envisioning the solutions needed in tomorrow’s world.
Innovative mobile solutions allow for increased productivity in event management organizations across all departments. Real-time information gives event professionals the power to be more customer-centric and more flexible than ever.
2020 – Extending events with virtual elements
2020 certainly marks a year of change for many event organizations, with the COVID-19 crisis heavily affecting the execution of events, exhibitions, trade shows, and conferences. The international teams at Ungerboeck have been reactive and communicative towards their customer community from the beginning of the pandemic, allowing for support and guidance in every situation.
As the Unite Conferences in the APAC and EMEA regions were turned into Virtual Conferences, the company decided to open these online events to all customers for free, attracting a record number of attendees. With the sudden and forced rise of Virtual Conferences and Online Meetings, Ungerboeck quickly responded to the market’s changing needs and released a Virtual Event Extension to seamlessly manage online participants and events details as well as statistics within the Ungerboeck platform.
This extension is a first step towards new functionalities currently being developed by the team at Ungerboeck. The company is closely collaborating with customers and industry experts to shape the future of events, bring hybrid concepts to life and develop future event technology designed to bring people together, whether onsite or online.
Ungerboeck overcame many global crises over the past 35 years and the company has always shown stability, continued to innovate, and stood strong with its customers. As the event industry recovers from the latest and keeps evolving with new concepts, Ungerboeck will stay true to its mission of empowering people that bring people together by building the solutions for tomorrow’s world.
Manish Chandak, is CEO of Ungerboeck.
