Always Moving Forward

Issue 1 2010 > Always Moving Forward

One-on-One with David Muir CEO EMEA & Executive Board Member

David Muir

CEO EMEA & Executive Board Member

David Muir is Crown’s Chief Executive Officer for Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) and serves as an Executive Board Member. David is responsible for 83 operations in EMEA, oversees the company’s strategic development and shares the management of all of Crown’s worldwide businesses.

With thirty years of experience in the industry–almost 15 years with Crown– David has held a variety of business development, marketing, quality, operational and management roles.

David is a regular speaker at industry related conferences. He is a British national currently living in Prague, Czech Republic.

We asked David to share his perspective on the relocation, information management and logistics industries and his views on the future of Crown’s various businesses.

You have lived and worked in the U.S., the UK and the Czech Republic. What have you experienced over the years?
Crown was global long before "globalization" entered the language. This means that there are almost no surprises out there, having survived so many economic and political ups and downs. In my career, I have lived through the oil crises in the 1970’s, the Falklands War in the 1980’s, the Gulf War in the 1990’s, SARS and the dot.com bubble burst, as well as the "9/11" and "7/7" tragedies and subsequent conflicts of this decade. Following the "credit crunch," we are now living through the worst recession since the 1930’s.

On the other hand, the excitement of the Man Landing on the Moon, the Berlin Wall coming down, the establishment and extension of the European Union, cheaper airfares, the Internet, rising house prices and expanded educational opportunities have all stimulated increasing global mobility on a scale never seen before.

Crown takes Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) very seriously. What role do you see CSR playing in Crown’s future?
As a core value, it is embedded in our DNA. We have been living CSR for years, without calling it that, often quietly by helping local communities, reacting to disasters, planting trees, etc. I entered the relocation industry as a direct result of voluntary relief work following a major earthquake in southern Italy.

Crown's Core Values

Now we have a formal programme, a Director of CSR and goals that are embedded in our managers’ incentives. This is a true "win-win-win" situation. The company runs more efficiently and our clients and staff like that. Our green suppliers can demonstrate their added value to us.

The communities we serve around the world benefit from our environmental responsibility as well as charitable activities. Two new schools built in Cambodia for AIDS orphans is a great example. In our records management business, clients are responding well to e-billing and self-serve online reporting to significantly reduce paper consumption.

As a company that always plans and invests for the long-term, energy efficient buildings and vehicles (often at additional capital cost) form a key part of our environmental strategy.

Since Crown’s inception over 45 years ago, Crown has followed a path of conservative growth and a steady re-investment in its people, its network, its technologies, its communities and in new facilities. How does this strategy benefit Crown’s clients?
One of the great benefits of remaining a privately-held business is our ability to plan for the long-term, without analysts planning short-term results. This benefits our clients in many ways. Firstly, they are partnering with a company that has solid appreciating assets in over 50 geographies, ensuring a strong financial base. Important today? – I think so!

The growth of the worldwide owned network means we are on the ground, with a quality model that helps relocating employees. We join this all up with world-leading technology and react to our clients’ needs. We partner with them and share our plans, which allows us to strategically direct our investments.

Crown has successfully diversified into a variety of businesses. What opportunities do you see for Crown in the future?
It is important to understand how Records Management underpins the financial strength of the company. It does not have the seasonal peaks and troughs of the relocation business and is pretty much recession proof. Companies have a legal duty to retain records and we serve both their hard copy and electronic data needs.

Fine Arts is one of our more recent and exciting developments. From a hugely successful base in Paris, we have expanded the model into other key markets such as Venice, London, Dubai, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Moscow.

Governments are increasingly using their art as a non-political medium to show goodwill and cooperation. We will continue to service governments, museums, galleries and private collectors.

Logistics can vary from supporting the energy industry sector with heavy lift projects in China to servicing the fashion industry with JIT (just-in-time) delivery solutions in London and Hong Kong. In the USA, we assist the hotel industry with the installation and refurbishment of new and existing hotel rooms. The common link is Project Management supported by trained staff that know their products.

Some of Crown’s newest locations are in the Middle East and Africa. What opportunities does Crown expect to see in these regions?
These regions are of huge interest to Crown. A growing number of our energy clients are relocating staff and their families into some of the more remote locations in the Middle East, and we are best positioned to provide crucial destination services to help them settle in quickly. Cross-cultural training in this region is essential, and we have developed our Global Passport programme which is growing fast.

In Africa, we also have a number of Government, NGOs and charitable organizations that are urging us to expand our network, as the quality of service delivery can vary hugely. Recruiting qualified staff is one of our challenges, so home grown talent is being developed through our Executive Leadership Journey training programme.

As in Asia, Africa presents many worthwhile projects for our CSR activities, often in conjunction with our clients. As an example, we partner with Standard Chartered Bank in their Aids Awareness programme. Watch this space–a lot will be happening in Africa!

Recent news reports have indicated that Expats are still finding it difficult to assimilate into diverse cultures such as China and the Middle East. How does Crown help to reduce failed assignment rates?
There are a few key strategies to reducing the chance of a failed relocation. I speak as an expat myself, who has lived in some of the "easier" destinations.

However keen the employee is to take on the exciting new opportunity presented, buy-in from the rest of the family, or the life partner, is essential. This means a look-see trip to check that the excitement level is shared. The upfront investment cost is way less than repatriating the family (and their possessions) prematurely. I can example one family from Chicago who never got further than the Mumbai airport because they had not been properly prepared.

Evaluate the advantages of a full relocation versus a short-term or "commuter" assignment. Some locations are simply too tough for a normal family life (poor housing, no schooling, etc.), so this begs the question–are the candidates in tune to such an assignment?

Invest in cross cultural training, yes, even between the UK and USA where it appears "easy." Ignorance is no excuse in the law and an unprepared manager can walk straight into an HR law suit that can prove very expensive.

Support on arrival is also an essential strategy. Some corporations and embassies have this well in hand for their larger postings, but all too often, the newcomers are left to figure it out on their own. Crown has developed welcome programmes and clubs that bring expats together and ease them into the new environment. With Crown, you have a friend in town.

The advancement of the GMS industry is directly aligned with the business needs in different worldwide regions. How does Crown manage the needs of its global, regional and local corporate clients?
The secret is flexibility. A U.S. single sourced global model may not play well at a regional headquarters in Singapore. Likewise the transportability of a private pension plan is probably a higher priority to an Australian than an Indian.

Our job is to recommend the best model for the client, based on their culture, scale and internal structure. Whether centrally managed at headquarters, regionally managed through hubs or devolved to country management, Crown can find a solution that mirrors that requirement. Importantly, all the mobility data and statistics can be consolidated for reporting and budgeting purposes. This avoids that most embarrassing of answers to the question "How much does your relocation programme cost the company?"..."I don’t really know on a global basis!"

We are constantly looking at our suite of global mobility services to check that they are relevant, cost effective and simple to administer. Our clients expect us to be creative and find solutions to issues such as spousal employment, multi-currency invoicing and expense management.

Hayko Kroese, Global Head of HR Management,
Royal Philips (left) signing contract for
Crown’s Global Mobility Services with David Muir (right).

As the Crown network continues to expand, this must present higher risk for the business. How do you plan for this and still sleep at night?
This is a highly relevant question in an age where, for example, data privacy is a hot issue.

Fortunately, our systems are robust and constantly being upgraded to comply with regional legislation, often centered around national and individual security. We have signed up to a number of security related initiatives and religiously follow the procedures to minimize risk at all the touch points.

Our integrity must never be questioned. Our facilities are secure and protected and of course, properly insured. Our VP of Risk Management has developed our Business Continuity Programme, as disasters do occur in our world, and we must be prepared. One connected IT system worldwide, with backed-up servers in secure offsite regional data centres, means we can react quickly when any port becomes inactive for any reason.

Financial controls are in place and subject to both internal and external audit. Very rarely, a bad egg is exposed and always prosecuted. We maintain "zero tolerance" in this regard.

Whilst we will never be risk-free, and can never truly relax in this respect, we are proud of our record over the last 45 years, and our people who manage this risk daily.

What’s next?
The centre of the world economies is shifting eastwards, and this will no doubt impact political alliances too. If we can peacefully coexist, the opportunities for international trade and cultural exchange will grow as never before. This is excellent news for our various businesses for the next 45 years. Until we can teleport individuals around the globe, both the airline and relocation industries will remain intact.