Departure of SWANA CEO David Biderman Leaves Gap in Industry Association Leadership

After eight years, David Biderman's tenure as the Solid Waste Association-North America's (SWANA's) executive director and CEO has ended abruptly.

The organization and Biderman parted ways on Monday, March 13. SWANA published an announcement to its members, saying that "it is time for new leadership to guide us into the future and achieve the goals in our strategic plan."

President Tim Flanagan commented that SWANA's goal is to "benefit from fresh perspectives and new insights."With an evolving industry and changing vision, SWANA and David agree that it is an opportune time for new leadership to guide us toward achieving the goals in our new strategic plan and for him to pursue other opportunities. We wish David all the best in the future.”

Biderman said in a statement that working with the organization was a "tremendous privilege."

"I am very proud of my successful tenure there, which included leading the association’s 34% membership growth, spearheading the rapid expansion of its safety program, and positioning SWANA as a thought leader on federal policy issues in Washington DC." he said. "I want to thank and express my gratitude to SWANA’s members, board, and staff for the opportunity. I look forward to continuing to work in this great industry, focusing on safety, government affairs, and sustainability issues, and helping local governmental agencies and solid waste companies achieve their operational goals.”

Biderman added that he will attend Waste Expo, May 1-4 in New Orleans.

With a vacancy in its organizational structure, SWANA announced a search for an interim executive director and CEO. 

"We hope to have our new ED/CEO selected prior to WASTECON in September, but we are not rushing the process," it stated.

As of Thursday, March 16, neither SWANA nor Biderman had additional comments about the departure.