Nikola Names New Chief Commercial Officer
Nikola Corporation, a global leader in zero-emissions transportation and energy supply and infrastructure solutions, via the HYLA brand, announced the appointment of accomplished transportation executive Thomas “Tom” Schmitt as Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) of Nikola Corporation.
As CCO, Schmitt will align Nikola’s commercial efforts to scale the company’s business. He will oversee the company’s sales, commercial operations, dealerships, service, customer success, and marketing functions.
“Fortifying our commercial team is crucial to our success as we focus on our customers’ experience and expanding the zero-emission Class 8 marketplace,” said President and CEO, Stephen Girsky. “Tom brings a solid track record built over the past 35-plus years that will help drive forward Nikola’s strategic and operational goals, inside and out.”
Schmitt brings to Nikola decades of transportation leadership, having served as CEO of Forward Air, CCO of Schenker, CEO of Purolator and FedEx Supply Chain and is a longtime board member for various well-known entities.
“I’ve been following Nikola for years, and it’s an honor to join this mission-driven organization with the sole goal of decarbonizing the trucking industry,” said Schmitt. “I look forward to working with the passionate Nikola team in bringing that goal to fruition.”
Prior to Nikola, Schmitt served as President, Chairman and CEO of Forward Air, a major freight transportation business focused on North America. Under his leadership, Schmitt and his team led the company to profitable growth during the global COVID pandemic, with the share price more than tripling from early 2020 through December 2021.
From 2015 to 2018, Schmitt was a Management Board Member and CCO for Schenker, a freight forwarding, transportation and logistics company, operating in 140 countries with $30 billion in global revenues. He led a team of 22,000 in the Global Contract Logistics business, and as CCO, Schmitt led Schenker AG’s global Sales and Marketing activities, and in his first year, the company grew by more than €1 billion.
Between 2013 and 2015, Schmitt led Aqua Terra, Canada’s leading provider of natural spring water, reporting directly to the Board as one of the company’s owners, together with Private Equity firm Birch Hill Partners. Under Schmitt’s leadership, the company was transformed, and at the end of his tenure, Schmitt and Birch Hill executed the sale of Aqua Terra to a larger strategic buyer.
From 2010 to 2012, Schmitt served as CEO and director on the Board for Purolator, a $1.6 billion company with 12,000 employees and Canada’s top parcel and freight provider. Prior to Purolator, Schmitt spent 12 years at FedEx, where he served as CEO of FedEx Supply Chain, a FedEx operating company, and led FedEx Solutions, a FedEx Services division that developed and executed specific and integrated turnkey supply chain customer solutions.
Schmitt has served as a Director on the Ferguson plc Board of Directors since 2019, and from 2015 to 2019, he served on the board of Cyberport GmbH in Dresden, Germany. From 2014 and 2018 Schmitt was a Director on the Board of Dicom Transportation Group in Montreal, Canada; from 2013 to 2016, was a Director on the Board of Zooplus AG; and from 2008 to 2013, as a Director of the Board of Univar, Inc.
Schmitt is a strong believer in community engagement, and served as Chair of the Memphis Chamber, as well as on the boards of Ballet Memphis and Shelby Farms Park.
He holds an MBA as a Baker Scholar from Harvard Business School and a Bachelor of Arts in European Business Administration, First Class Honours, from Middlesex University. In 2006, Schmitt was co-author of “Simple Solutions,” a guide to management and leadership.