Salesforce acquisition: If it happens the 'harsh realities of economy will hit the company', warns TNT CIO

Acquisition could also lead to 'dilution' of customer service levels, says Phil Parkin

If a Salesforce acquisition is indeed in the works, the "harsh realities of economy will hit" the company, the CIO of parcel delivery firm TNT has told Computing.

Speaking to Computing at yesterday's Salesforce World Tour event in London, Phil Parkin said that there is "potential" for a dilution of the company's tradition of offering a high level of customer service if it were to be absorbed by the likes of Oracle or Microsoft.

"I guess it depends on the [company's] lifecycle where it gets taken over, because it is, to excuse the pun, a force now," said Parkin.

"It's a bit like Fedex buying us," he continued, referring to the recently announced acquisition of TNT by that company, which he describes as "a good fit".

"[The company who may acquire Salesforce] won't want to lose the good bits. There are some bits they will definitely address, but it's not like you're buying a failing company," said Parkin.

Parkin said he is "not worried per se" about the possible acquisition of a company he credits with providing TNT with dedicated account management and insightful technical support - even to the point of Salesforce drafting staff into the company to ensure high performance and good value for money.

However, Parkin said there are still questions to be raised about Salesforce's management structure should acquisition be discussed.

"It's one man isn't it, fundamentally?" he said, referring to Salesforce's charismatic founder and CEO Marc Benioff.

"But we went through that too - we had a CEO through the 2000s who had U2 on stage and in the meantime we were losing money. So it's difficult when you've been there, but the harsh realities of economy will hit, eventually, and if they're taken over, they'll hit quicker."

Check back to Computing soon to see a full case study interview with Phil Parkin and learn more about TNT's experiences as a Salesforce customer.