Ralph Nichols
President & CEO

Ralph Nichols is the founder of the Ralph Nichols Group, Inc. which offers the Dale Carnegie Courses in southern Michigan and southwestern Ontario. He became a Licensee for Dale Carnegie & Associates in 1968. He received his undergraduate degree from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, New London, Connecticut, and served as a Lieutenant in the Coast Guard for six years before resigning to pursue a career with the Dale Carnegie organization. He is personally active and visible in the marketplace. He was selected for the cover of the January, 1986 issue of U.S. News & World Report, and was featured on ABC's 20/20 show. He has appeared on numerous TV and radio programs. He is the originator of the Positively Yes! Campaign in Michigan.

Ralph is deeply involved in the educational community. He was a featured speaker for Wayne State University's Awards Banquet. He conducted one of the top rated sessions for ASTD's National Conference on Technical & Skills Training. He is a past trustee of the 4H division of Michigan State University. He was president on the board of directors of Henry Ford Community College. He was a trustee of Madonna University in Livonia, Michigan. He also serves as a consultant and is on the board of directors for several small private companies.

Darlene Regula
Managing Director, Grand Rapids Area

Darlene Regula is the Managing Director in the Grand Rapids, Holland and Muskegon areas for the Ralph Nichols Group, Inc., Dale Carnegie Franchisee in Michigan. She is a certified multi-course Dale Carnegie Instructor, Sales Manager and Training Consultant. Since 1987, Darlene has organized and taught public programs, as well as customized corporate projects in West Michigan. Darlene partners with companies and individuals interested in achieving performance improvement in the following areas: leadership, communication skills, public speaking, professional selling, human relations, presentations, coaching, customer service, team building and management skills.

Her B.S. degree in Special Education from Wayne State University and her Masters Degree in Education from Oakland University in Rochester, MI, bring a solid foundation to her dedication to quality results. Prior to joining the Ralph Nichols Group, Darlene was a teacher and Dept. Head for the hearing impaired in Oakland County Schools.

Darlene has received national sales awards numerous times in her Dale Carnegie career and personally trained more than 4800 people in a variety of industries including manufacturing, construction, finance, technology, nuclear power and engineering. Her enthusiastic commitment to continuous learning gives her the extra edge expected of a leader in her field.

Bob Skylis
Managing Director, Kalamazoo

Bob Skylis has represented Dale Carnegie Training and the Ralph Nichols Group in Western Michigan for more than 24 years and currently manages the Kalamazoo area. Bob earned his undergraduate degree in Education from Oakland University in Rochester, MI. and his M.B.A. in Marketing from Central Michigan University. He is a multi-course instructor trained in presenting the Dale Carnegie Course, Leadership Training for Managers and seminars in the Professional Development Series.

Since 1982, through his consulting, workshops, coaching and customized training programs, Bob has trained thousands of participants in the areas of leadership, communications, team building, improving personal and professional performance, sales and customer service. His client list includes Pfizer, General Motors, Kraft Foods, Lear, American Axle and Stryker.

Linda Ketterer
Training Consultant and Instructor

Linda Ketterer has worked to organize classes and as a certified Dale Carnegie Instructor since 1989. In addition to teaching public and private classes of the Dale Carnegie Course and Leadership Training for Managers program, Linda conducts workships and seminars for West Michigan businesses designed to help employees improve their communication, leadership and human relations skills. She is also certified to teach Dale Carnegie's Leadership Advantage, High Performance Teams, World Class Customer Service, and Professional Development Series programs.

Prior to joining the Ralph Nichols organization, Linda worked for the Whirlpool Corporation in Benton Harbor for 13 years. The experience gained in various managerial positions in the research, Customer Assurance, and Corporate Quality functions, help Linda provide real world business focus to the classroom and workshop activities she now conducts. She volunteered her time to the United Way in Grand Rapids for 14 years as the Training director, annualy training Loaned Executives, United Way Staff, and Speakers Bureau participants.

Linda's educational background includes a B.S. from the University of Washington in Seattle, WA and a M.S. from Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa.