Lalit Agarwal Named APPA President & Chief Executive Officer

ALEXANDRIA, VA: The APPA Board of Directors—Leadership in Educational Facilities is delighted to announce that Lalit Agarwal has been chosen as the association’s next President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO).

With more than two decades of transformative leadership experience within the educational facilities management sector, Agarwal stood out among a robust pool of highly qualified applicants to lead this 110-year-old association that supports the professionals who design, plan, manage, and maintain the physical campuses of colleges, universities, K12, and other educational institutions around the world. Agarwal currently serves as the Vice President of Energy Management & Sustainability at EnergyCAP, an energy management & sustainability software solutions company. Before joining EnergyCAP, Agarwal worked for the University of Nebraska-Lincoln for more than 20 years, where he served in various leadership roles, including Executive Director of University Operations, which equipped him with a deep understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing educational facilities organizations. In addition, he has participated in several key volunteer roles within APPA, demonstrating his dedication to the higher education facilities landscape and professional associations.

“Lalit stood out among an outstanding group of finalists as the one who best encompassed the key presidential qualities identified by APPA members, including an understanding of and passion for educational facilities management,” said Dave Irvin, APPA Chair and member of the Board of Directors. “As a longtime APPA member who has served the association at regional and national levels, Lalit is uniquely qualified with an unsurpassed passion, extensive knowledge, and deep commitment to our profession and APPA. He has the distinctive, rare experience, expertise, and qualities to lead us to an exceptional future.”

“During the interview process, Lalit impressed the Board of Directors, search committee, and other key stakeholders as an effective leader and active listener with a network of peers and industry members,” said APPA Vice Chair Margaret Tennessen. “His engaged, curious nature along with his positive outlook, good sense of humor, and dedication to lifelong learning reflects the embodiment of APPA’s members, which makes him the ideal person to lead our association at this critical juncture.”

APPA Treasurer Crystal Smith commented, “Lalit also possesses sharp business acumen and budget experience with a savvy understanding of using technology, data, and metrics to improve facilities management. I was impressed by his transparent and collaborative leadership style as well as his commitment to innovative problem solving and accountability.”

“I am honored and excited to be selected to serve as the next APPA President and CEO,” said Agarwal. “APPA members face numerous headwinds, and the association has enabled interactions that lead to re-envisioning and remaking educational facilities management. I am particularly drawn to APPA’s commitment to responding to change and leading it. I am completely aligned with APPA’s focus on creating a welcoming environment where diversity of thought and perspective is highly valued. This allows all stakeholders to feel valued and empowered. Over the last decade, I have actively participated in and led numerous APPA programs and initiatives. This opportunity to serve the association and its members more directly is truly humbling.”

The process to recruit the next APPA President & CEO began earlier this year with a series of listening sessions with the APPA community in which key traits for APPA’s new leader to possess were identified. These traits included leadership skills, visionary strategic thinking, strong financial skills, and a commitment to lifelong learning. From there, a diverse search committee representing the APPA membership conducted initial interviews and recommended finalists to the Board of Directors for in-person interviews.

Agarwal will assume the position of APPA President and CEO in early September. He succeeds E. Lander Medlin who stepped down in late 2023 after leading the association for nearly 30 years.

The APPA Executive Committee will host a town hall webinar for the APPA community at 1:30 pm ET on Friday, July 26^th to provide a more detailed overview of the selection process. Click here to register for Friday’s webinar. In addition, a virtual meet and greet with Agarwal will be scheduled for a future date to be determined. More information will be forthcoming.

For more information, please contact Dave Irvin, APPA Chair.