OAKS, PA — SEI (NASDAQ: SEIC) is marking the end of a defining chapter in its corporate history as founder Alfred P. West Jr. prepares to step down as executive chairman and board chair, handing leadership of the board to longtime director Carl A. Guarino in a carefully planned transition effective January 1, 2026.
West, who founded SEI in 1968 and led the company as chief executive officer for 54 years, has resigned from his role as a director and board chair. He will assume the title of chairman emeritus, a lifelong appointed position that reflects his enduring influence on the firm he built from a small Pennsylvania-based financial technology startup into a global publicly traded powerhouse.
Today, SEI manages, advises, or administers approximately $1.8 trillion in assets and generates more than $2.1 billion in annual revenue. Its origins trace back to West’s early bet on technology as a force capable of reshaping finance, beginning with the industry’s first computer-based commercial credit simulator.
Since moving into the executive chairman role in 2022, West has remained deeply involved in shaping SEI’s strategic direction, providing continuity as the company navigated leadership succession and ongoing transformation across its investment, advisory, and technology platforms.
Chief Executive Officer Ryan Hicke credited West’s leadership style and long-term vision as central to SEI’s growth and culture, noting that West’s influence spans generations of employees and leaders. Hicke said West will continue to serve as a trusted advisor even as he formally steps back from day-to-day governance.
The board has appointed Guarino, an independent director since 2014, as chairman effective January 1, 2026. Guarino currently chairs SEI’s compensation and nominating committees and brings nearly four decades of executive experience to the role. His career includes recent service as chief executive officer of WizeHive Inc., a software-as-a-service provider focused on grants, scholarships, and employee giving platforms, as well as earlier leadership of Procurian Inc., a procurement outsourcing firm serving Fortune 1000 companies.
Guarino also has deep ties to SEI, having previously served as executive vice president and head of the company’s Investment Advisors segment. He said the opportunity to succeed West as chairman carries both responsibility and promise, emphasizing continuity, innovation, and long-term value creation for clients, employees, and shareholders.
For SEI, the transition represents more than a change in titles. It closes a rare, founder-led era that spanned more than half a century, while positioning the firm to carry forward its technology-driven strategy under a new generation of leadership, guided by a board steeped in the company’s history and its future ambitions.
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