By Mike Harris Friday, March 10th, 2023

Goleta-based AppFolio is heading in a new direction after the company announced on March 2 that its board of directors has unanimously elected Shane Trigg as its new president and CEO effective immediately.

Trigg succeeds Jason Randall, who served as president and CEO since 2017.

AppFolio is a provider of cloud business management solutions for the real estate industry.

Trigg previously served as the company’s president and general manager, real estate. Randall will be a transition advisor to the company until March 31.

Trigg said in a release that he is “honored to lead AppFolio through our next growth phase rooted in our values, inspired by our customers, and fueled by our world-class innovation and people.”

In a report filed with the Securities and Exchanges Commission on March 2, Trigg will be paid an annual base salary of $525,000 and will receive a sign-on bonus of $300,000, only subject to repayment if he is terminated for “cause” or resigns prior to the first anniversary of his start date.

He will also be awarded time-based restricted stock units covering a number of shares of Class A Common Stock of the company with an aggregate value of approximately $1.5 million, according to the filing. 

“Real Estate businesses depend upon the right technology partner now more than ever to achieve their goals around growth, efficiency, and delivering exceptional experiences to their customers,” Trigg said in a press release. 

“We have an incredible opportunity to leverage our core platform in property management and grow our return on investment.”

Randall said he was “very proud of our accomplishments during my almost 15 years at AppFolio,” including his last five as president and CEO.

In the report filed with the SEC, the Board approved that Randall will be entitled to $625,000, $500,000 of which covers his current base salary and the $125,000 would be a bonus for the work he has done for the company through March 31.

Moreover, the filing stated that he is set to receive cash payments of $14.3 million, which represent a pro rata portion of his long-term cash incentive payments under the Company’s Long-Term Cash Incentive Plan, payable in accordance with the timing specified in the Separation Agreement, so long that he does not violate said agreement.

“The past three years working with Shane have been especially rewarding and I am extremely excited for him and the future of AppFolio,” Randall said.

Board Chair Andreas von Blottnitz said the board thanks “Jason for his meaningful contributions – overseeing AppFolio’s success in creating value for customers and shareholders.

“We are grateful for his continued service to AppFolio during this transition as we build for this next exciting chapter,” von Blottnitz said.

AppFolio’s Board will also make key changes as Trigg will take over Randall’s board seat while co-founder and former Chief Strategy Officer Klaus Schauser will transition from a board director to a board observer. 

Filling his vacant seat will be Olivia Nottebohm, former COO of Dropbox and a 20-year veteran of online software businesses, the press release said.

In the days since the announcement, AppFolio shares have remained flat, closing at $127.57 on March 7.