Acquisition marks Di Cristoforo’s departure but business as usual
Transport consultancy Advantia is undergoing a change of ownership and leadership.
After more than two years in Advantia’s leadership team, general manager Victor Trumper has acquired the business and will take over from Rob Di Cristoforo as managing director, effective May 1.
The acquisition has had a long gestation, the pair says, with exploratory discussions starting when Trumper took on the role of general manager in November 2018.
“Advantia serves an industry that I’m proud to be part of,” Trumper says.
“I’ve been involved with this industry for 10 years, and the decision to purchase Advantia was an easy one, giving me greater opportunity to strengthen an industry that’s vital to Australia’s economy.”
According to the company, it will be business-as-usual for staff, clients and suppliers, with Advantia having “already demonstrated almost a year of operation under a model closely resembling Trumper’s ownership”.
Changes resulting from the acquisition will be largely “under-the-hood” and are not expected to noticeably impact on any stakeholders.
Read how Trumper first came to Advantia, here
Di Cristoforo will be leaving the business in good hands after 12 years at the helm.
“Since I founded the business I’ve watched it grow from a home-based sole trader operation into something I’d never thought possible,” he says.
“I’m proud of having built Australia’s most capable team of PBS assessment engineers, and giving so many bright and talented people a career boost along the way.”
Di Cristoforo credits many others for their contributions to the business over the years. “I’ll be forever grateful for what Advantia’s team members past and present have helped me to achieve, and wish them all the best for the future,” he says.
“I’m especially grateful for some of the long-term client and supplier relationships that have helped grow the business, and I trust that those relationships will continue to develop under Victor’s ownership.”
Trumper says that Advantia continues to develop its capabilities in vehicle assessment, route assessment and network access facilitation to enable safer and more efficient heavy vehicle operation.
“Two of our four full-time engineers have become accredited PBS assessors and road safety auditors,” he adds.
“Advantia’s capabilities will continue to be developed to meet the needs of our clients.
“For example, we’re soon to release a free online tool that we believe will be really handy for most of our client base.”
Di Cristoforo insists now poised to enter a phase of diversification and continued growth.
“I can’t think of a better person than Victor to lead the business through that, and to take it to the next level,” he says.
“His impact on the business to-date has been highly valued. I’ll be focusing on fatherhood for a little while, with a view to possibly resurfacing in a different capacity at some point down the track.”