Motiv names new CEO

Motiv Power Systems, a supplier of medium-duty electric trucks, has appointed Scott Griffith as its new Chief Executive Officer and board member.

Griffith spent the past 30 years founding, leading, scaling and advising leading technology-based companies that have often been market disruptors operating at the intersection of technology and mobility. Prior to joining Motiv, Griffith served as CEO of Ford Motor Co.’s autonomous vehicles and mobility businesses, where he oversaw the development of Level 4 autonomous vehicles as well as Ford’s portfolio of investments in future mobility businesses.

“The challenge in front of us is scale and I’m looking forward to Scott’s proven success in building strong teams and high-growth, profitable businesses,” said Jim Castelaz, Motiv’s founder, Chief Technology and Revenue Officer.

Comparing its own sales and deployment data with public data published by CALSTART in its Zeroing in on Zero Emissions Trucks report, Motiv calculated that 45% of the electric step vans in California and nearly one in five (19%) of the electric step vans deployed nationwide carry the Motiv nameplate.

Scott Griffith (Photo: Motiv)

“Most people don’t know it, but medium and heavy trucks only comprise about 10% of vehicles on the road but they emit over 30% of all harmful ground transportation-related greenhouse gas emissions and that number that will only continue to grow as a result of our insatiable appetite for online shopping and same day delivery,” said Griffith. “Medium duty trucks are the lifeblood of modern commerce and they are also in the early adoption sweet spot of vehicle electrification. Motiv’s innovative products are showing that it’s possible to support the growing demand for local and short route commercial trucking in a safe, cost-effective and sustainable manner, without the need for 300-plus miles of battery range or the high level of disbursed publicly-accessible charging infrastructure required to support passenger cars. I truly believe Motiv will become a large profitable operation and as we grow, we will have a big positive impact on the planet.”

Griffith takes the helm from Matt O’Leary, who stepped in as interim CEO following Tim Krauskopf’s departure last fall. O’Leary will serve as an executive chairman of Motiv’s board.

“Scott has an impressive track record of building teams and scaling businesses in the technology, transportation and mobility spaces,” said O’Leary. “We’re expanding our installed base of trucks in large fleets like Purolator, the leading integrated freight, package and logistics provider in Canada. Scott’s background is a perfect fit for Motiv at this stage in our journey and I am thrilled to have him on the team.”

As CEO of Zipcar for over 10 years, Griffith led the car sharing company from its seed stage. He was credited with shepherding the development and popularity of the car sharing category. During his extended tenure, Griffith raised several rounds of venture capital from top-tier investment firms, grew the business organically and through acquisitions in the U.S. and Europe and eventually took the company public.

After facilitating the sale of Zipcar to Avis Budget Group, Griffith became an executive-in-residence at General Catalyst Partners (GCP), a venture and growth stage investment firm, where he was a chairman in portfolio companies. During his tenure at GCP, he also co-founded TrueMotion, a mobile phone and IoT-based telematics platform that later merged with Cambridge Mobile Telematics.

Griffith was recently appointed to the board at EVgo, a pioneer in the development of large-scale fast-charging networks for electric vehicles. His EVgo board role puts him in an industry that is critical to the success of passenger and commercial vehicle electrification.