Roger Nielsen

Roger Nielsen joined Proterra’s Board of Directors in March 2022. He previously served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) from April 2017 to April 2021, with responsibility for all aspects of DTNA and its affiliated companies in the Western Hemisphere, Australia, and New Zealand. During the same period, he also served as a member of the Board of Management of Daimler Truck AG. From May 2001 to April 2017, Nielsen served as DTNA’s Chief Operating Officer with responsibility for the company’s manufacturing network in Mexico, the U.S., and Canada, as well as all levels of operations in quality, supplier management, logistics, and application engineering.

Beginning in 2001, he also served on the boards of DTNA’s subsidiaries, Thomas Built Buses and Freightliner Custom Chassis Corporation, serving as the Chairman of both entities from April 2017 to April 2021. From 2001 until their divestitures in 2003 and 2005, respectively, Nielsen was Vice-Chairman of Orion Bus Industries and American LaFrance.

Nielsen is a member of the Board of SafeAI, a privately held company that retrofits heavy equipment for autonomous applications in mining and construction; a member of the Board of Nodar, a privately held company that develops software for autonomous driving applications; and a member of the Advisory Board of GPR, a privately held company that provides ground-penetrating radar systems for autonomous driving applications. Nielsen earned a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering from Oregon State University.