Blue Bird Appoints New Electrification and Chief Strategy Officer

Blue Bird Corporation has appointed Britton Smith as senior vice president for electrification and chief strategy, replacing Trevor Rudderham in the role.

In this role, Smith is responsible for further strengthening Blue Bird’s leadership in electric-powered school buses, expanding the company’s electric vehicle (EV) ecosystem, and establishing strategic partnerships to drive performance.

Smith has over 20 years of leadership experience in public and private-equity-owned companies across manufacturing, industrial, healthcare, financial services, and services sectors. Most recently he served as director, strategy and deal advisory at KPMG. Before then, Smith held various executive roles, including CEO at financial services company DFC Global Corp, and associate principal at management consulting firm McKinsey & Company.

“Britton’s broad industry and leadership experience makes him a strong executive team member to further fortify Blue Bird's leadership position in zero-emission electric school buses,” said Matthew Stevenson, president and CEO, Blue Bird Corporation. “He will be instrumental in turning our vision of an employee-centric, high performance organization into reality. Together, we will advance clean transportation solutions to shape the future of the industry.”

Smith succeeds Rudderham, who has decided to retire after a distinguished, over 40-year career in the automotive and transportation industry. Rudderham has served in the role of senior vice president for electrification since July 2020. He will stay on through the end of May to ensure a smooth leadership transition.

Smith holds a master’s degree in business administration from Harvard Business School and a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering with highest distinction from the United States Naval Academy.