KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Service Management Group (SMG), a global customer, patient and employee experience management partner to more than 500 brands, today announced that it has received a significant investment from Brentwood Associates, a growth-oriented middle market private equity investment firm. The firm’s customer-centric approach, high-growth operations, category leader experience and capital support will benefit SMG and its growing network of brand partners.
“SMG has unmatched category leadership, partnering with many of the largest restaurant and retail brands across the globe,” said Brentwood Partner Craig Milius. “The experience management market is rapidly evolving, and we look forward to expanding SMG’s market presence through strategic investments that accelerate technology development and further differentiate the professional services practice.”
For SMG, the investment will accelerate innovation and growth, increasing the value brand partners get from the smg360 experience management (XM) platform and allowing the firm to introduce its unique software with a service (SwaS) model to new industries and geographies. The acquisition brings the appointment of new CEO Davin Cushman, a software industry veteran who has held numerous leadership positions. Cushman most recently served as CEO of privately held Ignite Technologies, a leading provider of a large suite of enterprise software solutions.
“As the experience management industry’s lone software with a service (SwaS) provider, SMG has a unique partnership model that’s helped brands achieve meaningful business outcomes for three decades,” said SMG CEO Davin Cushman. “I’m honored to have an opportunity to lead a team that’s committed to building on its rich history, expanding its technology and services offerings and helping brands get more value from their XM programs.”
With the completion of the transaction, Chairman and CEO Andy Fromm has stepped away from day-to-day operations and will transition to a role as passive, yet passionate investor. Fromm co-founded SMG in 1991 on the principles of The Service Profit Chain, a model that links employee satisfaction to customer loyalty and financial performance.
“As I reflect on my 30-year career at SMG, I’m grateful for the experience, humbled by the success and proud of everything our team and clients have accomplished while helping improve experiences for millions of consumers and employees,” said SMG Chairman and CEO Andy Fromm. “I look forward to the next chapter of my life and am excited to have an opportunity to play a role in the company’s future success as an investor.”
About Service Management Group
SMG inspires experiences that improve people’s lives. We are a catalyst for change—helping organizations generate new revenue, grow existing revenue, reduce churn and detractors, and drive operational efficiencies. Our unique software with a service (SwaS) model puts a dual focus on platform technology and professional services, making it easy for brands to activate insights based on customer, patient, and employee feedback. To learn more about our customer, employee, and brand experience management (XM) solutions, visit www.smg.com.
About Brentwood Associates
Brentwood Associates is a Los Angeles-based private equity investment firm with a 30+ year history of investing in middle-market growth-oriented consumer and technology-enabled business services companies. Since 1984, Brentwood’s dedicated private equity team has invested in over 50 portfolio companies with an aggregate transaction value of over $6 billion. With significant experience in both investing and brand building, Brentwood is a value-added partner for entrepreneurs and senior management teams building world-class companies. For more information about Brentwood, please visit www.brentwood.com.
Author Information
As a detail-oriented researcher, Sherril is expert at discovering, gathering and compiling industry and market data to create clear, actionable market and competitive intelligence. With deep experience in market analysis and segmentation she is a consummate collaborator with strong communication skills adept at supporting and forming relationships with cross-functional teams in all levels of organizations.
She brings more than 20 years of experience in technology research and marketing; prior to her current role, she was a Research Analyst at Omdia, authoring market and ecosystem reports on Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, and User Interface technologies. Sherril was previously Manager of Market Research at Intrado Life and Safety, providing competitive analysis and intelligence, business development support, and analyst relations.
Sherril holds a Master of Business Administration in Marketing from University of Colorado, Boulder and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Rutgers University.
