Our Team
Our team is dedicated to creating Decker’s communications experience for our clients:
- Our Program Leaders are the best in the industry – they deliver consistently superior quality programs every day that continually exceed our client’s expectations.
- Our sales professionals are consultative in their approach to ensure that programs are designed for maximum impact for each client.
- Our office staff brings it all together for an end-to-end seamless experience.
Keith Bailey
Program Leader
Keith originally came in contact with Decker several years ago when his first book was published. He hired Decker to help him be more effective when dealing with TV and radio interviews – so he knows first-hand how well the Decker methodology works.
Keith is co-founder of Sterling Consulting Group, a communications company specializing in customer service improvement. He has worked with some of the most prestigious organizations in the world including American Express, AT&T, Marriott Hotels, Microsoft, Lufthansa German Airlines and The British Government.
Keith’s expertise has been featured in dozens of magazines and newspapers including The New York Times, Newsweek and Time. He has also been interviewed on ABC, CNN, NBC, Fox and many other affiliates.
Keith has published 7 business books to date, and has a BA in photography. He loves to cook, take photographs and design websites. He lives in Mill Valley, CA with his wife, Deborah.
Baron Bruno
Sales Representative
As a seasoned sales consultant, Baron knows the value of exceptional communication skills, especially in high-pressure situations. Baron maintains a strong emphasis on customer service, teamwork, continuous learning and being held to the highest level of professional standards. His primary focus is to customize and implement collaborative communications solutions for our clients.
Baron holds a Finance degree from the University of Arizona and an Executive MBA from Thunderbird School of Global Management. Previously, he has led successful sales teams on Wall Street and in the commercial real estate and environmental industries. A Lee Strasburg trained actor, Baron has performed stand-up comedy and helped to produce and finance the feature film “Haiku Tunnel” which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2000. In addition to staying busy philanthropically, Baron enjoys traveling, wine tasting, photography, writing, music festivals and kayaking.
Meredith Good
Marketing Manager, Program Leader
Meredith credits her personal and professional achievements to the Decker Method, to which she was introduced in 2006. She loves to share Decker’s methodologies with people through promoting and marketing programs, and while also teaching directly to participants.
Prior to Decker, Meredith traveled the United States as professional campaign staff, working directly for some of the biggest names in presidential politics. Her experience on the trail further ignited her passion for great messaging and behavioral communication skills.
Meredith received her BA in Communication from the Annenberg School at the University of Southern California, emphasizing in media, law, and politics. She is based in Los Angeles, and enjoys advising her sorority Alpha Chi Omega at UCLA, as well as advocating for people with special needs on behalf of her twin brother Alex.
Karen Habegger
Program Leader
Karen loves being a Program Leader for Decker! She considers it a privilege to be a catalyst in people’s growth and is passionate about seeing participants transform in just two days. Her background in human resources at Gap Inc and Gensler Architecture has helped shape her philosophy of experiential learning. She finds her job rewarding because people get to practice and see immediate results. Karen received a BA in Psychology from Lafayette College and puts it to good use everyday.
Originally from Minneapolis, Karen decided to pack up her bags in 1994 and follow her childhood dream of living in San Francisco. An adventurer at heart, she takes every opportunity possible to travel, especially to beach destinations. Next on her must-visit list: Greece and Bermuda.
Nick Hanson
Sales Representative
Nick realizes just how important communication is for sales and is a great model of Decker methodology as he manages some of our top clients. He enjoys seeing our clients improve their confidence and credibility while communicating in all situations. Prior to Decker, Nick was an external recruiter for the finance and accounting industry and also worked for the Big 4 accounting firm, KPMG.
Nick graduated from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo with a BS in Business and enjoys playing golf and watching the San Francisco Giants.
Jonathan Kathrein
Program Leader
Nothing changes communication like Decker. Even with years of communication experience, Jonathan changed significantly having gone through Decker programs, and loves to see our participants go through the same transformation.
Jonathan’s bold love for the outdoors led to his first national television appearances at the age of 16. He has been featured on Dateline NBC, the Discovery Channel’s Shark Week, and the National Geographic Channel. After finishing his degree at UC Berkeley, he co-founded and led an organization that develops leadership skills in at-risk youth. He has written two books and has spoken at schools as far away as Hawaii, England, and South Africa.
When Jonathan is not in the office, he is working with youth or exploring the beautiful Bay Area. He received a BA in American Studies from the University of California at Berkeley.
Allie Khalatbari
Program Leader
Allie joined the firm to become a Program Leader in order to help business professionals transform into more effective communicators. She said was sold on the Decker Method when she first attended the program back in 1999.
Prior to joining Decker, Allie spent more than a decade in the premier buy and sell-side financial boutiques encompassing: Institutional Sales, Trading and Research as Senior Equity Product Manager, Principal, and Managing Director. Her motto has always been “A good stock is a good stock story—you have to know how to tell it!”
Allie holds an MA in Speech Communications from Cal State University, Hayward and BA in Rhetoric from University of California, Berkeley. On her time off, Allie prides herself in being a soccer mom to both her daughter and husband in Marin County.
Terry Lee
Vice President, Sales
In this selling role, Terry uncovers communication needs and challenges in various companies and business categories, and offers Decker solutions that can meet those needs. He feels strongly that Decker is the preeminent communications training and consulting company in the business, and our clients share that feeling through the relevant, usable results they experience.
Terry has been in sales and sales management for practically all of his 35 years in business. Having graduated from the University of Notre Dame with a degree in English, he realized the importance of solid communication in selling – and all aspects of business – and has a great deal of enthusiasm for “spreading the Decker word.” He is one of seven children, and is proud to be a husband, father and very active in the Big Brother Big Sister organization.
Amelia McCormick
Program Development Manager, Program Leader
After experiencing a two-day program, Amelia was hooked on the Decker methodology. Since joining the Decker team, Amelia has enjoyed making a direct impact on the communication skills of others and seeing their confidence grow by the completion of a program. She also enjoys the challenges of tailoring programs to meet specific client needs, goals, and timeframes.
Prior to Decker, Amelia was director of marketing and fundraising for a countywide nonprofit in Riverside, California. She has a background in advertising and strategic communications working with a variety of regional and national clients.
Amelia received her MS in Strategic Communication from the William Allen White School of Journalism & Mass Communications at the University of Kansas. She holds a BS in Speech Communication & Journalism from Kansas State University.
In addition to volunteering with Kappa Kappa Gamma Fraternity, Amelia enjoys wine tasting, running, and culinary adventures. She lives in San Francisco with her husband and their two delightful miniature schnauzers.
Jennifer McMahon
Program Leader
Jenny has long been fascinated by what people say and how they say it. She is passionate about leveraging storytelling in business and loves helping participants craft their messages. A former newspaper reporter in Los Angeles, she covered gritty urban crimes, investigated the inner world of street gangs, followed high-profile celebrity trials, and tracked the occasional Presidential visit. Her breaking news story about the murder of a social worker at a clinic won a statewide award and led to tighter OSHA security measures.
A San Francisco native, Jenny holds a BA in Journalism with Phi Beta Kappa and Magna Cum Laude honors from the University of Southern California.
At Decker, Jenny also draws upon her experience working at CBS-TV, Hyatt Hotels, and Williams-Sonoma. But it’s her love for travel and a job as a cruise ship activities director that gave Jenny a lifetime of stories and taught her an essential skill for Decker road trips: how to pack light.
Sonya Medema
Program Leader
As a Program Leader for Decker, Sonya enjoys the opportunity to help people and loves to see their personal growth, right before her eyes.
Prior to joining Decker, Sonya worked at The Sharper Image for ten years as a Buyer. She traveled all around the world, searching for the latest techie products and also working closely with manufacturers on product development. In this role, she became quite familiar with how critical communication skills are in business.
Sonya holds a BA in Sociology from the University of Colorado at Boulder.
She and her husband, Aaron, live in San Francisco with their two young children.
She loves to cook and spend time enjoying nature.
Maria Ralph
Program Leader
Maria joined Decker to increase the effectiveness in personal and professional communication for individuals looking to be influential in all their interactions. Prior to Decker, Maria worked as a Marketing and Sales Director across various industries to design, develop and implement go-to-market strategies and early adopter customers. She has worked with notable companies such as Monster Cable and Skire Inc. Maria also spent more than three years in various consulting and training positions for clients such as Nike and Eastman Chemical. Maria holds an MBA from San Francisco State University and a BA in Industrial Design from California College of Arts.
Maria lives and breathes communications – even outside of Decker programs. She and her husband Jeff raise their two children to be bilingual in Russian and English. Maria is also well versed in the language of wine and loves making recommendations – especially to our program participants.
Celeste Steenburgh
Office Manager
Celeste is the glue that holds the Decker office together. She works magic behind the scenes as the single point of contact for end-to-end program execution. As a result, participants experience a seamless program, helping them fully commit to honing their communication skills. Celeste holds a BA in Speech and Communication from San Francisco State University and took her degree into the working fields of hospitality, media, and now brings her communication skills to Decker.
Celeste has spent the majority of her life in the Bay Area and recently made her first major life purchase on a home in the North Bay.
Domini Tarman
Program Leader
As a Decker Program Leader, Domini thoroughly enjoys the rewards of helping people feel more comfortable with their communications and speak more effectively. The most rewarding part of her job is receiving the many emails from participants after completing Decker programs sharing their new success stories.
Domini has a BA from University of Southern California in Public Relations and Marketing. She spent over 20 years in sales management with American Express, EMC and Dun & Bradstreet. It is the knowledge from this experience that she feels adds a special touch to the programs, along with some hilarious stories of mishaps.
She and her husband, John, have two grown children, Aimee and Brandon and are diehard college football fans. Having grown up in a family of eight children Domini learned early on how to get her way with her communication, which she currently uses today.
Susan Taylor
Program Leader
"It’s not only rewarding, it’s fun to see our Decker Communication’s clients achieve immediate results!” As someone who has spent her career in the communications field, Susan brings a medical and journalism background to Decker.
Earningher undergraduate degree from Stanford University, Susan received dual master’s degrees from the University of Michigan. She served as chair of a major speech and hearing clinic in San Diego and began her journalism career as a medical reporter for the CBS affiliate in her hometown of Phoenix, Arizona.
During the seventeen years she was a news reporter and anchor, Susan received numerous awards including several Emmys. Susan has served as Chair of the Board of Directors of the Stanford Alumni Association and on the Board of Governors of the Stanford Associates.
Susan is the proud mother of two sons, and recently became the youngest grandmother in the world!
Diana Thompson
Program Leader
“You can have brilliant ideas, but if you can’t get them across, they won’t go anywhere.” Diana is a committed believer in this quote by Lee Iacocca and in the incredible power of effective communicating. Knowing that people judge you by how well you communicate, she set a personal goal to further her own skills and help others do so as well.
This desire, combined with her passion for coaching and motivating others, led her to Decker. Her position as Program Leader leverages many years of experience in marketing, training, and sales across diverse industries.
Diana received an MBA from San Diego State University and a BS in Social Science from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. She considers herself a student of life and feels enlivened when traveling and experiencing various cultures. Diana lives with her two sons in Danville and enjoys planning memory-building experiences for all of them to share.
Jonathan Willard
Eastern Region Director
Jonathan leads Decker’s New York office. He brings two decades of experience in designing and delivering organizational communications and performance improvement programs for some of the world’s most admired companies.
Jonathan has worked extensively in the areas of strategy, innovation, leadership, business development, and brand activation. His agency affiliations have included JWT, the Involvement Practice, Bonfire Communications, and New York Consulting Partners.
In addition to his work in communications, Jonathan is an accomplished artist whose paintings and drawings have been widely exhibited, and his writing has appeared in numerous journals and literary reviews.