2026 ACG WI | Rod Copes

Rod Copes is currently an independent board member for Slate Automotive and is actively engaged in advising their execution of manufacturing/operations for vehicle launch and ramp.  He was employee #1 at Slate and served as the Executive Chairman for over three years as they progressed from concept through revealing the company and vehicle in the spring of 2025.  He is also on the Board of a modular construction company, Volumetric Building Companies, and two non-profit companies.

Rod was the COO of Rivian Automotive for almost two years before briefly retiring at the end of 2021. As the company’s first COO he was responsible for operationalizing the company to launch three vehicles and ramp production as the company transitioned from a deep focus on engineering/product development to a public manufacturing company with customers.  He helped scale the company from 1500 employees to over 10,000, while maintaining a “fast, frugal and scrappy” culture.

Prior to Rivian, he was President of the Americas for Royal Enfield, an English motorcycle brand that was founded in 1901 and became an India-based company in 1970.  Rod was literally the first non-Indian employee of the company and was responsible for re-introducing the brand into the Americas. He led the company to become the largest middle-weight motorcycle company in North America in less than five years.

Rod had a very successful 20-year career with Harley-Davidson and left in late 2012 to pursue his dream and passion of a more entrepreneurial second half of his professional career.  Rod joined Harley-Davidson in 1993 and held a variety of executive positions across several different functions including: Senior V-P Global Sales and Customer Service, Senior V-P, International Sales, Marketing, and Business Development, V-P Asia Pacific, V-P Continuous Improvement, V-P and Managing Director of Powertrain Operations and General Manager Tomahawk Operations. 

Rod is a 1993 graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Leaders for Global Operations (LGO) program, where he earned an MBA and an S.M. in mechanical engineering. He also holds a BS degree in mechanical engineering, from the University of Wisconsin - Madison.