USGBC Names Next CEO

By Adrian Maties, Associate Editor

Mahesh Ramanujam

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) announced the name of its next CEO. COO Mahesh Ramanujam will take over responsibilities from Rick Fedrizzi, co-founder of the USGBC and its current CEO, after the latter steps down at the end of 2016.

A native of Chennai, India, Ramanujam joined the USGBC in 2009 as senior vice president of technology. Two years later, he was named COO and, in December 2012, he became president of the Green Building Certification Institute, which earlier this year changed its name to Green Business Certification Inc.

“Mahesh has a highly impressive track record of success in both his role as USGBC’s COO and as President of Green Business Certification Inc.,” USGBC Board Chair Marge Anderson said in a statement. “He is a proven leader who has exhaustive knowledge of the organization, respect from its volunteer leadership and strong support from its team. He has extensive global experience and broad business acumen. He is the perfect choice to lead the organization into the future.”

Ramanujam holds a bachelor’s of engineering in computer sciences from Annamalai University. Before joining the USGBC, he was the COO of North Carolina-based Emergys, and he also led various transformation programs at IBM and Lenovo.

“As a founder, I could not be happier, and as a CEO, I could not be more satisfied that I’ll be able to leave USGBC in the best hands possible,” Rick Fedrizzi added. “Since Mahesh first joined USGBC in 2009, he has transformed every corner of the organization, focusing on high performance and putting the needs of our customers and community members first. His personal core values are deeply aligned with our mission and his comprehensive understanding of our work make him the ideal leader for this role.”

“As USGBC’s CEO, I pledge to continually modernize and enhance our capabilities and performance to ensure we deliver the future that our founders envisioned,” Ramanujam said after the announcement was made. He also expressed his gratitude to Fedrizzi and the USGBC Board for placing their trust in him and added that innovation will be one of his top priorities.

Photo via USGBC