Today at Xos, we are thrilled to announce the nominees for our combined board of directors following our combination with NextGen Acquisition Corp, a special purpose acquisition company. Each nominee brings a wide breadth of leadership and operational experience from companies like Ford, Caterpillar, Goldman Sachs, and various other multinational businesses.
With decades of strategic, financial, operating, industry, and public company governance, the nominees offer diverse leadership perspectives to help us fulfill our mission to decarbonize commercial transportation.
Meet our New Xos Board of Directors nominees below.
Burt Jordan — Former VP, Global Purchasing Operations and Supply Chain Sustainability, Ford Motor Company
Independent Director Nominee
Burt Jordan brings both strong automotive supply chain experience and worldwide supplier contacts to the New Xos Board of Directors.
He recently retired from the Ford Motor Company, where he spent more than 20 years, most recently serving as Vice President, Global Purchasing Operations and Supply Chain Sustainability. In this role, Jordan drove strategy transformation, growth, and efficiencies through program delivery, purchasing strategy, and supply chain sustainability. I’m excited to welcome him to the Xos Team.
Sara Mathew — Former Chair and CEO, Dun & Bradstreet
Independent Director Nominee
Sara Mathew was selected for her strong public company board experience, public company CEO and CFO experience, and strategic leadership background.
Mathew served as Chair and CEO of Dun & Bradstreet from 2010 to 2013. She also served as President, COO, and CFO of Dun & Bradstreet. In these positions, she initiated and managed the redesign of the Company’s accounting processes.
Sara also spent 18 years at Procter & Gamble, serving as CFO of the Baby Care and Pamper Products businesses, as well as Vice President of Finance in Asia. She currently serves as Chair of the board of directors of Freddie Mac, and also serves on the boards of directors of State Street Corporation, Reckitt Benckiser Group plc, and NextGen Acquisition Corp.
Edward Rapp — Former Group President and CFO, Caterpillar
Independent Director Nominee
Edward Rapp has both public company board and CFO experience to bring to the Xos table. He also has a deep understanding of the inner workings of the commercial vehicle sector.
Rapp served as the Group President for the Resource Industries Group at Caterpillar Inc., the world’s leading construction and mining equipment manufacturer, from 2014 until his retirement in 2016. He previously served as Group President, based in Singapore, from 2013 to 2014 and as the CFO of Caterpillar from 2010 to 2013. Currently, he serves as a director of AbbVie.
George Mattson — Co-Founder, NextGen Acquisition Corp., and Former Partner, Goldman Sachs
Independent Director Nominee
George Mattson has robust public company board experience, deeply strategic and financial experience, and broad industry and customer relationships.
George Mattson is the Co-Founder and Co-Chairman of NextGen Acquisition Corp. & NextGen Acquisition Corp. II, two special purpose acquisition companies.
Previously, Mattson was a Partner at Goldman Sachs, where he formed and was the Co-Head of the Global Industrials Group. He was responsible for the firm’s investment banking activities in a diverse set of industries, including the automotive, trucking, and transportation sectors.
Mattson also serves as a director of Delta Air Lines, Inc. and Virgin Galactic Holdings, Inc. He joined the board of Virgin Galactic in conjunction with the completion of Virgin Galactic’s business combination with Social Capital Hedosophia Holdings Corp., a blank check company formed in 2017.
Giordano Sordoni — Co-Founder and COO, Xos
Giordano Sordoni is a Co-Founder of Xos and has served as COO and a director of Xos since 2016. Sordoni will serve as COO of the New Xos after the closing of the merger.
Before Xos, Gio served as Co-Founder at Calibur Inc., a startup consulting business advising early-stage businesses, from 2015 to 2016. He was also Director of Marketing at Malibu Family Wines, a wine production company, from 2014 to 2016.
Similar to my own experience and background, Gio possesses strong operations management experience and a deep understanding of commercial fleets and the commercial vehicle sector.
Dakota Semler — Co-Founder and CEO, Xos
As for myself, I’m a co-founder and have served as the CEO and a director of Xos since 2016. After the close, I’ll serve as Chairman and CEO of the New Xos. I’ve been working in the transportation and trucking industry for nearly a decade, having grown up working on my family’s fleet business and serving as a fleet operator myself.
Before Xos, I was the CEO of Malibu Management Services, a hospitality operator, and Bucket List Experiences, a tour operator company, from 2014 to 2016. I also worked as an independent contractor for TSG Group, a real estate holding company, from 2014 to 2016.
I’m excited about the knowledge and leadership experience that this group will bring to the New Xos. Together, we will move the world forward to a zero-emission future.