A promising long-term investment
Wendel’s acquisition of Crisis Prevention Institute (CPI) in December 2019 represents its fourth investment in North America, and follows the previously successful investments in Deutsch Group, CSP Technologies and Allied Universal.
Adam Reinmann, CEO of Wendel North America, noted that “CPI presented a unique opportunity to invest in a clear market leader with attractive long-term, global growth prospects in partnership with an accomplished management team, and an important mission that aligns well with Wendel’s values. Tony Jace, CPI’s CEO, and his team have a long track record delivering profitable growth, notably through increased penetration of professionals working in education and healthcare. We are already working with Tony to help accelerate that growth and expand into additional end-markets and international geographies.”
Based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, CPI is the leading provider of crisis de-escalation training in the U.S. The Company’s core de-escalation training, developed 40 years ago, has become the standard for teaching educators, healthcare professionals and human service providers how to safely manage potentially traumatic encounters with people in their professional setting. CPI operates through a “train-the-trainer” model, whereby the Company trains select customer employees in its program, who are then certified to teach their colleagues. With relatively limited resources, the Company has developed a network of nearly 39,000 Certified Instructors who, in turn, train approximately 1.5 million people, each year, and regularly renew their certification.
Mr. Reinmann notes that “the Company has developed an incredibly strong relationship with its customers that extends well beyond the periodic training and includes active personal dialogue and clinical support to help professionals prepare for and safely and confidently handle traumatic and potentially dangerous situations that they often encounter on a daily basis. The growth in the installed base and high certification renewal rates provide a strong foundation from which CPI can further expand its presence, both to help reduce violence in the workplace and provide caregivers of people with behavioral health issues the tools they need. We learned of CPI’s success and leadership through our ownership in Allied Universal, whose security professionals are often trained on CPI’s programs, and subsequently approached Tony Jace about a potential partnership. Recognizing CPI had been sold three times during his ten-year tenure, we agreed a longer-term partnership was well-suited to developing the Company’s potential.”
Tony Jace added that “the CPI team is thrilled to have found a long-term partner in Wendel, particularly given our shared vision for the important work and social impact our team has on the communities we serve every day. We fully expect that the investments we are now able to make in our programs, our people and technology will accelerate our long-term growth and help us expand CPIs reach, particularly given Wendel’s global presence, financial foundation and team of ‘mission-first’ professionals that are truly folding into the greater CPI family.”
In discussing the potential impact of Covid-19, Mr. Reinmann highlighted that “while the current crisis presents extraordinary challenges that will weigh on CPIs results in the short-term, we think it also presents great opportunities. Tony and his team have done an incredible job navigating through the current environment and have accelerated program launches and technology investments that will only help to improve the Company’s position and growth prospects for the future. We are incredibly proud to be involved with people doing such important work and look forward to supporting them and the Company for a long time to come.”