September 17, 2026

SEI

Beherndt

SEI, an employee-owned management consulting firm, has appointed Joel Beherndt as managing director of its Seattle office.

Beherndt succeeds Bonnie Cote, who has led the Seattle market since its launch in 2023 and will remain with SEI as a principal consultant following parental leave.

“Building this market over the past three years has been one of the most rewarding chapters of my career, and I couldn't be more confident in Joel as the person to lead us forward,” said Cote, in a news release. “Joel has already made a tremendous impact on our team and our business. He cares deeply about our people, builds genuine relationships with clients, and has the ownership mentality and ambition to continue expanding what we've built. I'm incredibly excited to see him take the helm and lead SEI Seattle through its next stage of growth.”

Beherndt brings extensive consulting and business development experience, with particular depth in large-scale strategy, technology, and operations transformations. He will focus on expanding SEI's presence across the West while preserving the entrepreneurial culture and client-first model that have shaped the Seattle business from the beginning.

“I'm excited to lead SEI's continued growth in the Puget Sound and across the West,” said Beherndt. “There's a real opportunity here to build something distinctive: a consulting business where experienced people stay close to the work, relationships are built on trust rather than transactions, and everyone thinks like an owner because we are owners. We want to bring that model to more clients across the region by helping leaders tackle their hardest problems with teams that are pragmatic, accountable, and focused on outcomes that last.”

Since launching three years ago, SEI Seattle has established a strong presence in the Pacific Northwest while increasingly serving clients across the broader West. The Seattle team works with organizations spanning healthcare, aerospace, retail and consumer goods, financial services, life sciences, and transportation.