Lanny Griffith

Lanny Griffith serves as Chief Executive Officer of BGR Group. Lanny has guided BGR Group from its earliest days by maintaining a consistent focus on our clients and their needs. He has put together industry coalitions and successfully battled some of strongest and best-funded lobbying operations in Washington. He has helped companies navigate major mergers and acquisitions, and secured funding for universities and medical research. Having worked in the White House when the Berlin Wall came down, Lanny has leveraged that experience with BGR clients in Eastern Europe, helping governments, political parties and private companies transition to democracy and a market economy. Griffith joined BGR in 1993 after serving in several roles in the Administration of President George H.W. Bush. On Jan. 20, 1989, Lanny was sworn in as Special Assistant to the President in the East Room of the White House, serving as President Bush’s liaison to governors and other statewide elected officials. At the White House, he was a principal architect of President Bush’s 1989 Education Summit in Charlottesville, Va., and also was involved in the development of the National Goals for Education. In 1991, President Bush nominated Lanny to be Assistant Secretary of Education, and he was confirmed by the U.S. Senate in February 1992. At the U.S. Department of Education, Lanny directed Secretary Lamar Alexander’s successful effort to build a national consensus around educational standards and testing. He also managed the launch of the G.I. Bill for Children and coordinated the administration’s role on the National Education Goals Panel. On the international front, Lanny represented the U.S. on the Education Committee of the Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. He served as Co-Chairman of the Advisory Council on Dependent Education, which serves as the school board for all dependent schools worldwide under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Department of Defense. Lanny’s political career dates back to the early 1980s, when he worked for the Republican National Committee, managed Haley Barbour’s U.S. Senate race in 1982 and served as the Executive Director of the Mississippi Republican Party for three years. In 1988, he served as Southern Political Director for Vice President Bush’s presidential campaign. Lanny directed 10 states in the Super Tuesday primaries and 11 states in the general election. All 21 state efforts were victorious. Lanny’s work for the Bush family continued with his role as national chairman of the Bush-Cheney 2000 Entertainment Task Force and entertainment coordinator for the 2001 Bush Inaugural. He later served as a Ranger as well as a member of the Bush 2004 National Finance Committee. In 1998, he was one of three transition directors for Governor-elect Jeb Bush. Lanny is a founder of the Trust for the National Mall and currently serves on the Board of Directors. He also serves as National Treasurer for the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award in the United States. He is an elder in the Presbyterian Church and is currently Chairman of the Westminster Presbyterian Foundation. He received his undergraduate degree in accounting and JD from the University of Mississippi. An avid student of American history, Lanny has completed renovations in the historic district of his hometown of Corinth, Miss. He and his wife, Susan, have one daughter and reside in Alexandria, Va.