Scott Ocholik
SHYFAbout Scott Ocholik
Scott M. Ocholik is Interim Chief Financial Officer and Vice President, Chief Accounting Officer & Corporate Controller at The Shyft Group (effective January 1, 2025). He joined Shyft in 2019 as Vice President & Corporate Controller and has served as CAO & Controller since 2022; prior roles include Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at Gestamp North America. He holds a BA in Accounting and an MBA from Michigan State University. During 2024, Shyft delivered Specialty Vehicles Adjusted EBITDA margin of 19%, generated $30 million of operating cash flow, and paid $7 million in dividends; Ocholik executed Sarbanes-Oxley CEO/CFO certifications on the company’s 2024 Form 10-K and Q1 2025 Form 10-Q .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Shyft Group | Vice President & Corporate Controller | 2019–2022 | Led corporate controllership; built financial reporting continuity |
| The Shyft Group | Vice President, Chief Accounting Officer & Corporate Controller | 2022–present | Oversight of accounting and controls; continuity across executive transitions |
| The Shyft Group | Interim Chief Financial Officer | Jan 1, 2025–post-merger | Ensured stability in financial operations during CFO transition and Aebi Schmidt merger; continued as officer post-closing |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gestamp North America | Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer | — | Senior finance leadership at major auto supplier (prior to Shyft) |
Fixed Compensation
| Component | Amount | Start | End | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Interim CFO incremental base payment | $25,000 per month | Jan 1, 2025 | For duration of interim service (not disclosed) | Not factored into any element expressed as a function of salary (e.g., bonus calculations) |
Performance Compensation
- Not disclosed for Ocholik. Shyft’s NEO program emphasizes pay-for-performance tied to predetermined financial goals and operates under clawback and double-trigger CoC principles, but specific metrics/weights for Ocholik are not provided in filings .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Policy Element | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Stock ownership guidelines | Robust guidelines; counts direct holdings, certain unvested RSUs/earned PSUs; excludes options/most PSUs; continuing NEOs and directors in compliance as of 12/31/2024 | |
| Anti-hedging | Prohibits hedging, short sales, derivatives for directors, officers, employees | |
| Anti-pledging | Prohibits purchasing on margin, margin accounts, pledging company stock by directors/executives | |
| Ocholik beneficial ownership | Not disclosed in 2025 proxy tables (Ocholik was not a 2024 NEO) |
Note: We attempted to retrieve Form 4 insider transactions for trading/ownership insights; access was denied (401). Monitoring future Form 4s would help quantify vested/unvested positions and any selling pressure.
Employment Terms
| Provision | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Interim CFO Letter Agreement | $25,000/month incremental base for interim CFO service; payment prorated for partial months; not included in salary-based elements; cessation of interim payment is not Good Reason if offered CAO role with at least prior compensation/benefits | |
| Executive Severance Plan (general) | Double-trigger: cash severance and accelerated vesting only upon qualifying termination following change-of-control | |
| Tax gross-ups | No excise tax gross-ups on change-of-control payments | |
| Clawback (SEC/Nasdaq) | Mandatory recovery of excess incentive-based compensation over 3-year period following accounting restatement; supplemental clawback for misconduct/detrimental activity | |
| Change-in-control event | Aebi Schmidt merger closed July 1, 2025; Ocholik continued as an officer post-closing alongside the FVS President | |
| Insider trading/controls | Insider Trading Policy governs trading; prohibitions on hedging/pledging; documents available via corporate site and 10-K exhibits |
Performance & Track Record
- Certifications: Ocholik signed 302/906 certifications on Shyft’s FY2024 10-K and Q1 2025 10-Q, attesting to disclosure controls and fair presentation of financials .
- 2024 operating highlights: Specialty Vehicles Adjusted EBITDA margin of 19%; operating cash flow $30 million; $7 million dividends paid, reflecting disciplined capital allocation and operational execution through the year .
- Strategic transition: Managed through CFO departure and served during the merger closing; remained an officer post-merger, supporting continuity in finance leadership .
Investment Implications
- Compensation alignment: The interim CFO pay is a fixed, temporary uplift and explicitly excluded from salary-based incentive calculations, limiting misalignment risk while compensating for added responsibilities .
- Governance safeguards: Strong anti-hedging/pledging restrictions and SEC/Nasdaq-compliant clawbacks reduce risk of misalignment and support pay-for-performance integrity; severance is double-trigger without excise tax gross-ups .
- Retention/transition risk: The CFO search and merger completion place premium on stability; Ocholik’s continuation as officer post-closing indicates near-term continuity, but future role changes could alter severance/change-in-control outcomes—monitor 8-K updates and Form 4s for real-time signals .
- Data gaps for trading signals: Person-specific equity grants, vesting schedules, and ownership are not disclosed in the proxy; Form 4 monitoring is necessary to assess insider selling pressure and alignment. We attempted an insider-trades fetch but were denied; future filings should be tracked for actionable signals (401 error encountered).