Rachel Monti
Knight-Swift Transportation HoldingsAbout Rachel Monti
Rachel Monti is Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resource Officer (CHRO) of Swift (a Knight-Swift subsidiary), a role she has held since 2017, with 27+ years at the company after joining Swift in May 1998 in pricing, then leading ISO quality assurance efforts before moving into HR roles of increasing responsibility . She is 50 (as of the 2025 proxy) and holds a B.A. in psychology from the University of South Alabama and a Master of Counseling from the University of Phoenix, with multiple professional HR certifications . Company performance context during her tenure includes strategic diversification into LTL (AAA Cooper and MME acquisitions), expansion of the LTL network to >$1B revenue, and the U.S. Xpress acquisition in 2023; management reported a $144M annualized run-rate of realized improvement at U.S. Xpress and expects that transaction to be ~$1 accretive to EPS by 2026 .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Swift Transportation | Senior Vice President & CHRO | 2017–present | Leads enterprise HR for Swift; role positioned within Knight-Swift’s executive officer roster . |
| Swift Transportation | VP – Legal Administration & Loss Prevention | 2016–2017 | HR-related risk and administration leadership aligned to compliance and employee relations . |
| Swift Transportation | Vice President, Human Resources | 2008–2016 | Oversaw HR functions in a period of growth and pre/post-merger integration readiness . |
| Swift Transportation | Director – HR Services | 2004–2007 | Built HR services infrastructure supporting operations scaling . |
| Swift Transportation | Pricing; ISO Quality Assurance Lead; HR roles | 1998–2004 (pricing/ISO); HR roles since 2000 | Early operational and quality credentials; led ISO certification efforts before transitioning to HR . |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dignity Health | Human Resources Consultant | 2007–2008 | External HR consulting experience broadened perspective on healthcare-sector HR practices . |
Fixed Compensation
Company executive compensation design (applies to named executive officers and informs broader executive policy; Monti’s specific cash compensation is not disclosed as she is not a named executive officer):
- Base salary targeted at market median, balancing stability and discouraging excessive risk-taking .
- Short-term cash incentive plan aligned with operating strategy; payouts capped to discourage behavior oriented to short-term gain .
- No tax gross-up payments and no re-pricing/back-dating of stock options; vesting periods under the Omnibus Plan generally not less than 12 months; no dividends paid on unvested stock awards .
Performance Compensation
Company-level incentive structure and features (specific metric weightings/targets/actuals for Monti are not disclosed):
- Long-term incentives: 60% performance-based awards with three-year vesting; new LTI cycle commences annually to avoid focus on a single time period .
- ESG modifier: Incorporated within the short-term cash bonus plan design in 2022 and 2023; compensation plan highlights reaffirm strategic alignment and risk mitigation .
- Strategic priorities: Emphasis on diversification of revenue streams, profitable growth, cost controls, and operating efficiencies in compensation design .
Note: Monti is not listed among the named executive officers (NEOs) for 2023/2024 in the proxy, so detailed metric-level payouts and targets for her individual plan are not disclosed .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Policy/Practice | Detail | Applicability |
|---|---|---|
| Stock Ownership & Retention | Key officers must meet minimum ownership requirements; named executive officers’ multiples: CEO 5x, CFO 3x, Executive Chair 5x, Vice Chair 3x, General Counsel 2x; retain at least 50% of certain shares for two years after they are earned . | Monti’s specific multiple is not enumerated in the proxy; policy applies to “key officers,” with explicit compliance noted for named executive officers . |
| Anti-Pledging & Hedging | Pledging/hedging of company securities limited for executives and directors; no hardship exemption; legacy pledging allowed only for Kevin and Gary Knight with share count reduced by 50% in 2020 . | Strong alignment guardrails; no exceptions indicated for Monti. |
| Section 16 Compliance | Company reported inadvertent late Form 4s for specific officers (Fitzsimmons, Flanagan, D. Jackson, K. Knight, D. Vander Ploeg); Monti not cited among late filers in 2023 review . | No reported late filings for Monti; limited visibility on her insider transactions. |
Employment Terms
| Term | Policy/Provision | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Clawback | Amended and Restated Clawback Policy adopted under Dodd-Frank/NYSE Rule 10D-1: in event of a material financial restatement, reimbursement of incentive-based compensation above amounts that would have been earned; 3-year look-back . | |
| Change-in-Control | Omnibus Plan requires double-trigger vesting upon change of control for equity awards . | |
| Anti-Pledging/Hedging | Limits pledging/hedging; legacy grandfathering only for Kevin Knight and Gary Knight (50% reduction in 2020); no hardship exemption . | |
| Ownership Guidelines | Multiples for named executives; 50% retention of certain shares for two years post-earn; full compliance reported for NEOs . | |
| Tax Gross-Ups | No tax gross-up payments . |
Severance multiples, non-compete/non-solicit, and individual employment agreement terms for Monti are not disclosed in the proxies reviewed; no Item 5.02 8-K events specifically reference Monti’s appointment/compensation changes based on document searches [List: 8-K 5.02; Search returned none].
Investment Implications
- Long-tenured HR leader with deep organizational knowledge and operational/quality roots (pricing/ISO), supporting stability of talent systems through major integrations (LTL platform build-out, U.S. Xpress acquisition); this mitigates execution risk around workforce initiatives critical to cost control and efficiency .
- Alignment guardrails are robust: double-trigger CIC vesting, strict anti-pledging/hedging, clawback, and ownership/retention requirements—reducing governance red flags and potential misalignment; Monti’s specific ownership multiple is not enumerated, but she is within the “key officer” cohort covered by the policies .
- Insider selling pressure appears limited for Monti based on proxy-reported Section 16 compliance (late filings noted for others, not Monti), but absence of detailed Form 4 data constrains precise assessment; monitor future Section 16 filings for changes .
- Pay-for-performance analysis is constrained: Monti is not a named executive officer and individual cash/equity award details, targets, and payouts are not disclosed; rely on company-level compensation design (60% performance-based LTI, three-year vesting, ESG modifiers) and enterprise performance signals for triangulation until/if more granular CHRO disclosures emerge .