Daseke Announces Conclusion of Executive Chairman Role and Brian Bonner Named as Chairman of the Board

With executive leadership transition complete and transformation gaining momentum, Bonner to assume role as Independent Chairman of the Board

ADDISON, Texas, Aug. 18, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Daseke, Inc. (NASDAQ: DSKE) (“Daseke” or the “Company”), the largest flatbed, specialized transportation and logistics solutions company in North America, today announced that Brian Bonner ended his term as Executive Chairman, effective August 14, 2020. Bonner will continue to serve the Company as an Independent Director and Chairman of the Company’s Board of Directors, maintaining the responsibilities commensurate with the Chairman position. Bonner has served as an Independent Director since 2015.

Brian Bonner commented, “It has been a privilege to serve our company and our shareholders as Executive Chairman of our Board for the last year. The decision to end the position reflects the thoughtful completion of our managerial leadership transition and the successful re-establishment of Daseke’s strategic direction. When I assumed this role as Executive Chairman a year ago, our Company was going through significant managerial and cultural changes, requiring more hands-on stewardship from the Board. This started with finding the right leader to guide our transformation, and there is no doubt Chris Easter was the right individual to assume that position.  Chris rapidly identified and prioritized the right transformation actions, while mobilizing a team of leaders from our existing operating units to execute those actions.  His decisive leadership has re-established Daseke’s strategic direction centered on operational execution, while reshaping our culture around one of continuous improvement and best practices. He has executed a dramatic turnaround in our financial performance and reinvigorated our company, while simultaneously navigating the early stages of a pandemic.  As importantly, he set the path forward to deliver even stronger operational performance by recently framing our long-term potential to deliver an operating ratio of sub-90%. While there is still much to achieve, the results of the significant changes that have taken place over the last year speaks volumes.”