Our Team

Editorial

Steve Piersanti | Founder, CEO, Publisher, and Senior Editor

Steve is CEO, publisher, and senior editor for Berrett-Koehler, which he founded in 1992. He previously served as CEO of Jossey-Bass Publishers, where he started as an advertising copywriter and subsequently became marketing director, editor, editorial director, and executive vice president. Steve is one of the most experienced editors of business, personal growth, and current affairs books in the country because he has continuously been an acquiring editor for more than forty years while also holding executive positions. Steve has acquired and edited many books that have sold millions of copies and over seventy titles that have sold over 100,000 copies. Steve has received numerous national awards, including the lifetime achievement award from PubWest in 2023. Steve got into publishing by starting an ambitious student scholarly journal in college.

Jeevan Sivasubramaniam | Vice President of Editorial

Jeevan Sivasubramaniam is vice president of editorial at Berrett-Koehler, where he keeps every book moving smoothly from proposal to production. In addition to various administrative and oversight duties, he manages the largest pool of editorial reviewers in the industry. Jeevan also handles author relations, connects the editorial team with the rest of the company, and manages copyright, trademark, and permissions issues. On top of all that, he still finds time to acquire a handful of titles each year himself. He gets a little giddy whenever someone is able to pronounce his last name on the first go.

Haven Iverson | Senior Acquisitions Editor

Haven Iverson is Berrett-Koehler’s senior acquisitions editor. She joined BK in 2026 after spending years at Sounds True, a mindfulness and spirituality publisher, where she edited books from teachers such as Pema Chödrön, Jon Kabat-Zinn, Jack Kornfield, and Clarissa Pinkola Estés. Haven is also a published author herself, having written two children’s books, Into the Wilderness and Slow Down, Tumbleweed! Based in Boulder, Colorado, she still runs her own writing and editing business, Wordhaven Studio, on the side. When she’s not acquiring the next great nonfiction book, she’s probably curled up in a tent somewhere in the Rocky Mountains with a good read.

Alexis Woodcock | Editorial Administrator

Alexis Woodcock (they/she) is the editorial administrator at Berrett-Koehler. They earned their master’s degree in book publishing from Portland State University in 2016 and joined BK in 2022. Alexis manages many responsibilities within the editorial department and cross-departmentally, including announcing new publishing deals, welcoming new authors, maintaining the author manual, filing for copyrights, creating tip sheets, setting up titles across BK’s systems, copyediting a portion of BK’s marketing copy, and maintaining product metadata. In their free time, they enjoy Brazilian jiu jitsu, kickboxing, video games, and writing genre fiction.

Marketing & Sales

Kristen Frantz | COO and Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing

Kristen Frantz (she/her) is the COO and senior vice president of sales and marketing at Berrett-Koehler. She works closely with Penguin Random House, BK’s print distributor, and CoreSource, BK’s ebook distributor, to get authors’ books into as many hands as possible. Kristen has been with BK since its founding in 1992, and she’s worked in nonfiction publishing since 1989, including a stint at McGraw-Hill. She’s been part of BK’s leadership for its entire history, helping steer the company through more than three decades of change in the industry. Outside of work, you can find her striking yoga poses or hiking with her mini Australian shepherd.

Christy Kirk | Associate Director of Marketing

Christy Kirk is the associate director of marketing at Berrett-Koehler. She guides our authors through all aspects of marketing and launching their titles. Before joining BK in 2023, she spent more than a decade in book launch marketing, supporting business and leadership authors through the book launch process. Earlier in her career, Christy worked in social media marketing for brands such as Procter & Gamble and Carlson Rezidor Hotels, and she started her career in television news. If you are on a call with Christy, there is a strong chance a cat may join the discussion.

Sarah Nelson | Digital Marketing Strategist

Sarah Nelson is Berrett-Koehler’s digital marketing strategist. She has spent fourteen years building campaigns for small businesses across email, social media, and website strategy, and she brought that experience to BK in 2022 for her first role in publishing. Sarah now focuses on building brand loyalty for BK’s authors and driving book sales through smart, targeted promotions, applying the same principles that work for any brand trying to connect with its audience. When she’s not planning a campaign, she’s usually deep into a video game, slaying monsters in far-off lands and plotting her next great quest.

Elsa Frantz | Sales, Marketing, and Publicity Specialist

Elsa Frantz is Berrett-Koehler’s sales, marketing, and publicity specialist, where she manages author orders, author event sales worldwide, and corporate group sales. Since joining BK in 2022, she has taken on a wide range of responsibilities in the sales and marketing department, including internal organization, scheduling, sales reporting, and designing promotional collateral. Elsa is one of BK’s publicists, developing targeted media campaigns to promote upcoming titles. She also works closely with the Penguin Random House Publisher Services team to ensure BK’s titles are prepared for successful launches. Between emails, she can be found crouched on the sidewalk attempting to befriend a cat she spotted.

Catherine Lengronne | Director of Subsidiary Rights

Catherine Lengronne is Berrett-Koehler’s director of subsidiary rights, responsible for selling the rights to BK’s books around the world. Catherine has worked at BK since 2002 and has led subsidiary rights sales for more than twenty years, personally securing over half of the subsidiary rights deals closed since BK’s inception in 1992. Originally from France, she entered publishing in 1998 at Aufbau Verlag in Germany before eventually finding her way to BK. Fluent in three languages, she’s built relationships with publishers across the globe who consider her a trusted partner. Catherine is proof that great books deserve to be read in every language.

Production

Edward Wade | Vice President of Design and Production

Edward Wade is Berrett-Koehler’s vice president of design and production. He joined BK in 2015 and delights in collaborating with two of the most creative and multiskilled book-production professionals in the industry. Together they manage the design, production, and manufacturing of all BK and MSP books. Edward’s publishing career includes many years at Morgan Kaufmann, publisher of professional and academic computer science books, and Wadsworth / Thomson Learning, publisher of college textbooks of all disciplines. When not making or reading books, Edward can be found in remote (okay, semi-remote) desert wilderness or quiet beaches with his dog Izzy (with his husband sometimes tagging along).

Ashley Ingram | Creative Director

Ashley Ingram is Berrett-Koehler’s creative director, guiding the visual strategy for BK’s entire frontlist and branding. She joined BK in 2022 after spending more than eight years as the sole designer at Heyday Books, where she designed covers and interiors for a wide range of titles. At BK, Ashley designs covers by working closely with authors, editors, and the sales and marketing team to make sure every cover captures the heart of the book, and she also art directs interior graphics and creates prepress files and cover proofs. With fifteen years of experience in publication design, Ashley brings both a sharp eye and a steady hand to everything BK puts into the world.

Katelyn Keating | Associate Director of Design and Production and Inventory Manager

Katelyn Keating (she/her) is Berrett-Koehler’s associate director of design and production. She coordinates interior book production for half of BK’s titles, manages the digital conversion program, and serves as department admin. She joined BK in 2021, having worked in book and magazine publishing since 2015 for companies such as CRAFT, the Los Angeles Review of Books, and Prospect Park Books. Since 2023, she’s also been BK’s inventory manager. When Katelyn left veterinary health to earn an MFA in creative writing, publishing became her fourth career, one that finally allows for some of the nomadism she adores—you’ll often find her in an RV down a dusty road.

Operations & Finance

Kenneth Cook | Director of Operations and Technology

Kenneth Cook is Berrett-Koehler’s director of operations and technology. He joined BK in 2022 and brings thirty years of experience in IT, systems, and project management across industries ranging from robotics and semiconductor fabrication to global financial transaction processing and S&P 500 ERP systems. Kenneth specializes in building and managing remote teams, fixing broken operations, and leading technology transformations, all while keeping a close eye on data integrity and compliance. Kenneth has spent his career making complicated systems run smoothly, and BK is lucky to have him doing it here.

Lili Gonzalez | Executive Accounting Manager

Lili Gonzalez is Berrett-Koehler’s executive accounting manager. She joined BK in 2025, bringing over twelve years of specialized accounting experience to oversee the organization’s financial operations, reporting, and fiscal strategy. Holding a mastery certificate in Excel, Lili excels at turning complex data into streamlined systems that maintain BK’s financial health and sustainability. Outside of work, she enjoys getting outdoors to camp, hike, or visit hot springs. She also adores spending quality time with her family.

Juana Castro | Accounts Receivable and Royalties Accounting Manager

Juana Castro is Berrett-Koehler’s accounts receivable and royalties accounting manager. She joined BK in 2025, bringing more than a decade of experience in the publishing industry. Before joining BK, Juana spent many years at Ulysses Press, a small independent publisher in Berkeley, where she gained firsthand insight into the many steps involved in bringing a book to life. Over the years, she focused on administrative and accounting responsibilities, with a particular focus on author royalties. Outside of work, Juana enjoys going on adventures with her husband and their two children, often discovering new places and creating new experiences together.