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Regus and NS, the Dutch national railway company, have opened the first-ever Regus NS station2station business center. The business center behemoth chose Amersfoort, near Utrecht, for the first stage of its mobile worker experiment.

This is just the beginning, but your eyes should be on Regus. Regus will open another new mobile business center every two weeks for the balance of 2012. By the end of the year, the Regus brand name will be on 13 mobile workstations across the nation.

“The remarkable potential of mobile, tablet and cloud technology is wasted if workers cannot find somewhere conducive to use it,� says Mark Dixon, Group CEO of Regus. “Even on the move, people need access to work space—be that a quiet space to think, or decent printing facilities, maybe just for 20 minutes at a time. Otherwise their work suffers or they miss business opportunities.�

Regus is pushing forward very aggressively with its mobile business center strategy. Beyond the NS deal, Regus also has partnerships with SNCF and Shell in France and Trenitalia in Italy. Through those partnerships, Regus plans to open mobile business lounges in train and gas stations across Europe. The goal: to change the way people work and travel.

Why the big push? For reasons that Officing Today has been trumpeting for the past year: There are more than 1 billion mobile workers in the world today and IDC predicts that number will rise to 1.2 billion by the end of 2013. Regus equates that to a soaring demand for drop-in workspace from professionals on the go as well as from a new breed of flexible workers.

Mobile workers aren’t making much of a sacrifice technology-wise when they enter a Regus mobile business center. These flexible workers still have access to facilities and technology found in modern offices, such as workstations, meeting rooms, Wi-Fi, videolink facilities, administrative support and, of course, free tea and coffee. Regus expects to see workers drop in to use the Internet, do paperwork, print documents, and meet colleagues or customers.

“Passengers at Amersfoort Station are among the first people in the world to benefit from a change that will improve the way people work and make businesses more productive,� says Michiel Noy, CEO of NS Trains. “Having instant access to a good working environment whilst on the move will help workers harness the potential of mobile working technology like smartphones and tablets. The launch of the first Regus NS station2station is thus an important step forward in the global shift to flexible and mobile ways of working.�

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Regus may be doing its business center competitors a big favor—or it may become a bigger threat. It all depends on your perspective.

The executive offices suites giant just published a new book that aims to answer the key business question of the decade: How do you grow a business in today’s ultra-competitive landscape?

Dubbed Growth in a Difficult Decade, the book offers advice from successful entrepreneurs, along with practical insights for managers and business owners in every industry.

Regus pulled out all the stops to offer a resource to its would-be tenants, including advice from more than 60 entrepreneurs and corporations. Donald Trump and Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz join teenage Internet millionaires, winning serial entrepreneurs, and founders of billion-dollar family businesses that are now being transitioned to the next generation in offering the secrets of success.

“At Regus we work closely with successful entrepreneurs all over the world, so we wanted to help share their insights into how to achieve sustainable business growth, even in times of recession or economic uncertainty,� says Mark Dixon, CEO of Regus.

Growth in a Difficult Decade, the Regus book offers guidance on every facet of running and growing a business, from how to monetize and execute a business idea to the importance of validating and iterating ideas to how to build a business sustainably, tips on raising finance, how to expand a business into new countries or continents, and what to look for when hiring key staff or finding business mentors.

“This book shows there’s no single formula for success and growth—there’s a fascinating diversity of ideas and approaches,� Dixon says. “But it also shows there are common themes for success—from the power of marketing, to the importance of mentors and colleagues whose talents complement your own, to perseverance, to the importance of exploring new markets. The insights and practical tips in this book will help businesses of all sizes and at all stages of growth.�

Regus’ strategy is simple and effective: Become a resource for entrepreneurs, small business owners and large corporations alike. People value books, and they especially value books with practical advice for doing business in today’s economy.  What’s more, Regus has demonstrated that it can grow in a difficult decade, which gives it the credibility it needs to author such a book.

Regus’ book is now part of its marketing arsenal. It will become a calling card, of sorts, a resource for would-be tenants that shows Regus gets it. Professionals in all industries have been authoring books to build their personal brand for years. Regus has taken a similar approach with Growth in a Difficult Decade. Ultimately, the book alone won’t help Regus win customers. But it becomes part of a larger branding and marketing effort that helps turn heads.

What can your business center to do position your brand as an expert resource in the field?

Compass Offices is beating the expansion drum in Hong Kong once again. The business center operator opened its first location in Kowloon earlier this year,

Compass Offices is beating the expansion drum in Hong Kong once again. The business center operator opened its first location in Kowloon earlier this year,

Compass Offices is beating the expansion drum in Hong Kong once again. The business center operator opened its first location in Kowloon earlier this year,

Compass Offices is beating the expansion drum in Hong Kong once again. The business center operator opened its first location in Kowloon earlier this year,

Compass Offices is beating the expansion drum in Hong Kong once again. The business center operator opened its first location in Kowloon earlier this year,

Compass Offices is beating the expansion drum in Hong Kong once again. The business center operator opened its first location in Kowloon earlier this year,

Compass Offices is beating the expansion drum in Hong Kong once again. The business center operator opened its first location in Kowloon earlier this year, followed by another in Sheung Wan in March. Now, Hong Kong’s largest serviced office provider is opening its 17th location at the Aon China Building in Central.

“We are very excited about this new location in Central, as it adds to our existing network of serviced office locations already in Hong Kong so we can offer our premium service to even more clients,” said Lachlan Sloan, co-founder and COO of Compass Offices. “The Aon China Building location will be a flagship for our network, not only for its great location, but for its state-of-the-art and high quality fit-out so we are really looking forward to the opening.”

With the Aon China location, Compass Offices continues its tradition of selecting strategic locations. The new business center is across the street from Compass Offices Central Building location on 29 Queen’s Road Central at the intersection of Pedder Street. Compass will take up the 16th and 17th floors of the Aon China Building. The building offers fast access to the top of the Central MTR station and offers ground level access from three directions: Queen’s Road, Pedder Street and Theater Lane.

“We are continuing our excellent track record on Hong Kong Island and Kowloon, and are looking to expand into more locations in the CBD in the near future,” says Andrew Chung, co-founder and CEO of Compass Offices. “With skyrocketing commercial property rents, we believe serviced offices will be the next big trend in Hong Kong’s commercial property industry.”

Of course, serviced offices are more than just office space and Compass Offices is one of the best examples in Hong Kong. Compass Offices offers state-of-the-art IT infrastructure and fully furnished business centers, including multiple TelePresence systems. Essentially, a company of any size can operate on a large scale without the upfront costs and investments that would traditionally be required.

Compass Offices also offers an unbranded business center experience so client visitors get a stronger first impression. That experience includes a dedicated reception area, secretarial and concierge services, meeting rooms and communal spaces. Compass Offices Virtual Office network offers virtual offices for mobile workers.

Positive feedback from clients on the quality and value of its services has seen Media Village, one of Avanta’s 15 business centres in London, receive