Senate Confirms Ex-Cushman & Wakefield CEO Ed Forst to Lead GSA

The General Services Administration (GSA) finally has a congressionally approved leader under President Donald Trump’s second term.

Ed Forst, a former Cushman & Wakefield CEO who spent 17 years at Goldman Sachs, was confirmed as GSA administrator by the Senate on Thursday night, according to a GSA LinkedIn post. Forst had been awaiting confirmation since landing Trump’s nomination in August. The GSA, which manages the federal government’s non-military property, has been without a permanent administrator all year. 

“We’re proud to announce the Senate’s confirmation of Ed Forst as GSA’s new administrator,” a GSA spokesperson told CO in an email. “Ed has an impressive background in finance, real estate, academia, government and senior management. He’s ready to use that to execute GSA’s mission and President Trump’s agenda.”

Forst, who most recently acted as chairman for London-based private equity firm Lion Capital, is stepping into a GSA lately defined by change. Trump had appointed tech entrepreneur Stephen Ehikian as acting administrator earlier this year, though Ehikian left the agency in August after just eight months to return to the private sector, becoming CEO of tech firm C3 AI. Michael Rigas, former acting director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, was appointed to replace Ehikian that month.

The GSA meanwhile has for years aggressively pursued a downsizing and efficiency strategy for the federal government’s real estate portfolio. That effort has only sped up under the second Trump administration — the agency has since March identified dozens of buildings for “accelerated disposition,” including the 1.1 million-square-foot Robert C. Weaver building in Washington, D.C., and instituted a “space match” program to further consolidate departmental office needs.

Nick Trombola can be reached at ntrombola@commercialobserver.com.