About
Four decades of helping leaders get results through people
John R. Rodgers, Jr. has spent his career on the people side of business strategy — teaching, coaching and building the leaders who carry organizations forward.
John graduated from Penn State University in 1984 and later earned a Master of Arts in History, with a concentration in research methods, from Shippensburg University. That training in evidence — asking better questions, testing what you think you know — still shapes the way he coaches.
He became a Dale Carnegie instructor in 1989 and has taught the material ever since, earning international recognition as one of the organization’s top instructors and marketers. From 2001 to 2022 he owned JR Rodgers & Associates, holding the Dale Carnegie franchises for Central Pennsylvania, Western Pennsylvania and Northeast Ohio, and he served as president of the International Dale Carnegie Franchise Association — an organization representing 180 franchises in 80 countries.
When it came time to hand the business on, John did what he coaches others to do: he planned it. He led a deliberate three-year succession to new ownership that protected the culture, the clients and the team. Dale Carnegie now features that transition as a case study in how a succession should be run.
Today John is solely focused on Rodgers Executive Coaching, working one-to-one with executives, with leadership teams, and with owners planning their own handoffs.
The path
Milestones
1984
Graduates from Penn State University.
M.A.
Earns a Master of Arts in History with a concentration in research methods from Shippensburg University — the discipline behind his evidence-first approach to assessment and coaching.
1989
Becomes a Dale Carnegie instructor and goes on to be recognized internationally as a top instructor and marketer.
2001–2022
Owns JR Rodgers & Associates, holding the Dale Carnegie franchises for Central Pennsylvania, Western Pennsylvania and Northeast Ohio.
Leadership
Serves as president of the International Dale Carnegie Franchise Association, representing 180 franchises across 80 countries.
2019–2022
Leads a model three-year succession to new ownership — a transition Dale Carnegie now features as a case study.
Today
Solely focused on Rodgers Executive Coaching.
A servant-leadership philosophy
John believes leadership is a stewardship, not a status. The leader’s job is to unlock the abilities of the people around them — to ask more than tell, to give credit away, and to build the kind of trust that makes hard conversations possible. Strategy matters; but strategy is executed by people, and people respond to how they are led.
Away from work
John lives in State College, Pennsylvania with his wife, Colleen. They have five adult children, and he is a proud grandfather. He will happily talk Penn State football with anyone who asks — usually right after he asks about your family first.
Curious whether we'd work well together?
A 20-minute intro call is the simplest place to start. No pitch — just a conversation about where your leadership is stuck and whether coaching would help.