CMAC ACQUISITION:
On 13 February, CMAC Group announced that it has been acquired by ComfortDelGro Corporation through CDG’s wholly-owned subsidiary CityFleet Networks. CMAC has operations in the UK, France, Spain, Portugal, Greece and The Netherlands, managing journeys for nearly three million travellers annually on behalf of airlines, train operators, corporations and consumers.
This acquisition is aligned with ComfortDelGro’s strategy to expand its point-to-point mobility services increasing the group’s footprint to 12 countries worldwide. In the UK, CDG Corporation owns and operates taxis and private hire vehicles through CityFleet Networks in Aberdeen, Liverpool and the Northwest regions.
Naturally questions have been raised by current CMAC supply partners regarding how this acquisition will affect them moving forward. PHTM has therefore put the following questions to Peter Slater, CEO of CMAC, and we hope that all topics of concern have been covered and answered.
• With the 100 per cent acquisition of CMAC by ComfortDelGro, can you remain truly independent?
Yes, CMAC have built a successful business over the last 17 years, and our vision and strategy were one of the contributing factors behind the acquisition. CMAC will retain 100 per cent operational independence to continue to deliver on this.
• Are future company decisions to be made by your current team or in their base in Singapore?
All future decisions will continue to be made by the current Senior Leadership Team which has remained with the business post acquisition. It is business as usual as we continue to deliver on our existing long- term strategy.
• What are the benefits of acquisition to both yourselves and to ComfortDelGro? Is there a natural synergy to the partnership or is it a case of a greater monopolisation of a sector?
The natural synergies are what makes this partnership so exciting. When you consider what ComfortDelgro does as a business globally across coach, bus, tram and rail, these are all verticals in which CMAC already operates. The opportunity to expand our services to new markets internationally is now possible with the backing of CDG.
• What managerial and staff changes are likely?
With the exception of our Chairman / founder, Steve Turner, who has decided to step away from the business to pursue new opportunities, our entire senior leadership team remains in place and there are no plans to change this.
6 • Will there be any job losses?
No, with a parent company like ComfortDelGro backing us, and as we move into new international markets, we expect to grow the CMAC team not reduce it.
• What assurances can you make to CMAC’s suppliers that this acquisition will not negatively impact previous working practices/relations and that the status quo will be maintained?
We value our supply partners immensely, as they are key to our success. We work with over 1,200 fleets across the UK and very much look forward to continuing this. Due to the nature of the contracts we service we can never have enough fleets. The work we offer is incremental and no one fleet can do 100 per cent of the work. We therefore rely on maintaining positive relationships with our partners and would not do anything which negatively impacts this.
• What is your current process for allocating contracts and is this likely to be change?
There are several factors which determine allocation of work, including customer preference, performance and availability. Whilst we always look for ways to improve, we have no plans to materially change a logic which has led to our success.
• How is your current selection criteria enacted?
Like any business we look to automate as many processes as possible, including our supplier selection logic. This considers coverage areas, historic perform- ance, handbacks and availability, whilst being fully backed up by our 24-hour control centres which retain the ability to intervene and allocate jobs manually.
MARCH 2024 PHTM
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