Steven Shindler

Chairman of the Board, Nikola Corp

Steve Shindler is Chairman of the Board of Nikola Corporation (Nasdaq NKLA), a hydrogen fuel cell trucking company providing zero emissions solutions, and an executive officer of VectoIQ Acquisition Corp, a SPAC seeking business combinations in the auto technology sector. Steve serves on the board of Roundtrip EV, which provides trucks as a service in the electrification of the waste industry, and on the advisory board of Glydways, a low-cost, low emission public transportation service. Previously Steve was CEO of NII Holdings, Inc., a provider of differentiated mobile communications services in Latin America. In 2004 Steve was named International CEO of the Year by Latin Trade Magazine. Prior to NII, Steve was CFO of Nextel Communications, Inc. and prior to joining Nextel, he was managing director at Toronto Dominion Bank, providing capital to the wireless industry. Steve is also a founding partner of RIME Communications Capital, which invests in early-stage media, tech and telco companies. 

After Michigan, he received an MBA in finance from Cornell University. In non-profits, Steve serves on the Board of Educando, which provides teacher and principal training in Latin America; is a trustee at Miss Hall’s School, an all-girls boarding high school in Pittsfield, MA; and serves on the advisory board of Interwoven Congregations (founded by U-M graduate Pat Jackson), which brings people of different races together across faith-based congregations. Steve has been an active member of the DAC for 16 years and served as co-chair of its “Liberal Arts for Life” task force, which ultimately led to the LSA Opportunity Hub. Steve attributes his own success to the critical thinking skills cultivated at LSA, and believes the Hub provides the link for how students can excel in their careers and in life based on a liberal arts education. Steve’s wife and 2 of his 3 children are also LSA graduates.