Cadence is a pivotal leader in electronic systems design, building upon more than 30 years of computational software expertise. The company applies its underlying Intelligent System Design strategy to deliver software, hardware, and IP that turn design concepts into reality.
Cadence customers are the world’s most innovative companies, delivering extraordinary products from chips to systems, chemicals to drugs, and specification to manufacturing for the most dynamic market applications, including hyperscale computing, 5G communications, automotive, mobile, aerospace, consumer, industrial, and life sciences.
We pride ourselves on creating and sustaining a company culture that drives innovation and business success. Cadence is recognized as a Great Place to Work around the world, including as one of the Fortune “100 Best Companies to Work For” for the last 10 years.
They're also open to speakers who can provide a skills-building workshop component, which could be a longer 90-minute session.
As a first-generation immigrant of Indian descent raised with lofty expectations, Rashmi excelled as a lawyer, graduating with honors from Columbia Law School. After gaining experience at major corporations, she embarked on an independent law practice in Miami. During the housing boom, she developed an ethical blind spot collaborating with a real estate developer engaged in questionable practices. Driven by her desire for success to provide for her children, Rashmi refrained from questioning her client's actions despite her inner voice urging caution. This led to a federal prison sentence for bank fraud.
During her six months in federal prison, Rashmi found inner peace and self-forgiveness. This humbling yet invaluable experience made her realize that while living with remorse is one thing, allowing it to define one's identity is another. Now a "recovering lawyer and investment banker," female leader, and community entrepreneur, Rashmi is an internationally recognized keynote speaker and TEDx presenter.
In-Person Fee: $15,000 + $2,000 Flat Travel, plus Local Ground and Hotel
Speaker Profile: https://www.gravityspeakers.com/speakers/rashmi-airan
Rashmi is based in Miami, FL.
Every day, leaders face a barrage of challenges, problems, and threats. While the initial instinct may be to avoid them, hiding from adversity often leads to further setbacks and long-term chaos.
In reality, the most difficult moments can become our greatest teachers if we intentionally choose to learn from them, solve them, and rise through them. True growth and leadership emerge from consciously deciding to "rise through" our challenges, rather than merely trying to "rise above" them to quickly escape.
Rashmi Airan learned first-hand what it means to Rise Through It™. Her remarkable journey—from an Ivy League education to federal prison—has unlocked immutable lessons in determination, growth, and transformation. Today, Rashmi is a sought-after expert helping leaders rise through challenges rather than avoid them using her proven system: The RISE Process™.
After working with Rashmi, leaders adopt a bold and transformative approach, shifting from being victims of circumstances to viewing challenges as opportunities for profound growth. She fosters a culture of courage, acceptance, and vulnerability to harness discomfort and thrive. Her proven framework illuminates the path to becoming bold, grounded, visionary leaders prepared to overcome the inevitable fear when dealing with change. When we RISE THROUGH IT™, we embrace growth and unlock our power to shine.
OUTCOMES:
Deeply Resonates with the AAPI Experience
Expertise in Leadership, Ethics, and Decision-Making
Alignment with Cadence’s Culture of Innovation & Integrity
Engaging and Practical Speaking Style
Impact Across All Employee Levels
More details on Rashmi's Workshop offerings: https://rashmiairan.com/workshops/
“Rashmi’s story illustrates the power of humility and transformation. Rashmi is an energy giver - whether live or virtual. She reminds us that we are all humans and fallible. I would recommend Rashmi, she is one the best speakers I have ever worked with and I will work with her again!” - Damien Atkins, Former General Counsel, Hershey’s Inc.
“The most mind capturing talk ever! 100% focused and visually present. Personable and relatable” - Roshni Kadhiwala, CEO/Owner JLM Hotel Group, Asian American Hotel Owners Association
Angela Chee is a media/communication coach, keynote speaker, creator of “YOU, Amplified!®”, author, and host of “The Power Of The Only” podcast. A former TV news anchor and reporter with more than 20 years of media experience, she now helps leaders own their voice and power, break through their barriers, and step into their leadership. Through one-on-one coaching, group workshops and online programs she helps her clients be YOU, Amplified!®,-clear, confident and connected and ready for any opportunity on-camera and off.
In-Person: $15,000 + $2,000 Flat Travel Fee, plus Hotel
Speaker Profile: https://www.gravityspeakers.com/speakers/angela-chee
Angela is based in San Diego, CA
In this uplifting and energizing keynote, media and communication coach Angela Chee shows your team how to embrace their individuality and transform feelings of being the “only” one in the room into a powerful advantage. Drawing on her pioneering media career, compelling real-world examples, and stories from trailblazing leaders, she shares “The Power Of The Only” principles and offers practical science-based tools and steps to help people own their opportunities, speak up with confidence, connect more authentically, and step into their leadership.
Through reflective exercises, authentic storytelling, and strategies grounded in psychology and neuroscience, participants will leave inspired to claim their voice and realize that by owning who they are, they unlock new levels of collaboration, innovation, and impact. This keynote empowers teams to thrive together, igniting a deeper sense of purpose and creating lasting impact both within your organization and beyond.
Angela’s The Power of The Only™ Principles help organizations discover new possibilities, inspire clear and confident action, transform unique perspectives into competitive advantages and create authentic connections that last. Ultimately, her teachings are the keys that will take you from merely surviving to successfully thriving.
Key Outcomes for Your Audience:
Angela’s relatable style and interactive approach spark genuine excitement and meaningful insights. By celebrating and elevating every individual’s voice, your organization fosters deeper trust, collaboration, and a stronger sense of belonging. Participants leave feeling equipped and motivated to continue growing—both personally and as a unified team—well beyond the keynote.
Bring your organization together under a shared vision of empowerment. When people dare to Own your Only™, everyone thrives.
Empowers AAPI Professionals to Find Their Voice and Lead with Confidence
Expert in Leadership, Personal Branding, and Inclusive Innovation
Interactive and Actionable Speaking Style
Aligns with Cadence’s Commitment to Workplace Excellence and Employee Growth
Relevant for Employees Across All Levels
“Angela is an exceptional speaker. Her personality and energy are great. Her professionalism in her preparation and presenting was thoughtful and audience specific. We had a difficult group to please and had extremely positive feedback about her keynote and session. She was a motivational kick off for the rest of the day. Our audience not only enjoyed her story, but she opened everyone up to have more meaningful and connecting conversations. We look forward to seeing her again soon!” – Kim Lanham, “Break The Glass", Executive Women’s Summit
Lorraine K. Lee is an award-winning keynote speaker and bestselling author of Unforgettable Presence: Get Seen, Gain Influence, and Catapult Your Career, which was also recognized as a must-read by Next Big Idea Club. She is recognized as a LinkedIn Top Voice with hundreds of thousands of followers, and has a decade of experience leading editorial teams at top tech firms. Her insights have appeared in outlets such as CNBC, Bloomberg, and Fast Company.
In-Person Fee: $20,000
Lorraine is based in San Francisco, CA.
Speaker Profile: https://www.gravityspeakers.com/speakers/lorraine-k-lee
San Francisco, CA
In today’s dynamic business landscape, cross-functional collaboration, open communication, and productivity are key to helping remote teams thrive.
However, when managers know how to lead their teams effectively — from implementing thoughtful onboarding and leading engaging team meetings to creating supportive feedback loops and building positive team dynamics — they create teams and cross-functional partners that trust each other and collaborate better.
This empowers team members to achieve their own professional goals while positively impacting company objectives.
Learn from Lorraine K. Lee, a LinkedIn Learning instructor with multiple popular management courses focused on leading highly functional remote teams.
Key Takeaways:
For General Audiences and AAPI Groups
Building influence feels tougher than ever these days with so many distractions grabbing others’ attention. We need to juggle building relationships both in-person and virtually, while delivering results with fewer resources.
The solution? Harnessing your influence. Influence has the power to help us get promoted, become more trusted and recognized, and be seen as a leader who moves work forward.
Follow the simple but highly impactful RAVE Model to increase and strengthen your influence in the workplace. After the session, you’ll be able to immediately implement actionable advice for key areas of influence at work.
Learn from Lorraine K. Lee, a leader at the intersection of editorial and tech, a top-rated virtual keynote speaker, and an instructor with LinkedIn Learning and Stanford Continuing Studies.
Key Takeaways:
Expert in Remote Work, Leadership, and Career Growth
Empowers AAPI Professionals to Build Influence and Confidence
Engaging, Interactive, and Practical Speaking Style
Aligns with Cadence’s Culture of Innovation and Employee Growth
Relevant for Employees Across All Levels
“She was by far the most engaging speaker we've had in the series.” -Arun, Zoom
Neil Sahota (萨冠军) is an IBM Master Inventor, United Nations (UN) Advisor, Artificial Intelligence (AI) subject matter expert, Faculty at UC Irvine, and author of Own the A.I. Revolution. With 20+ years of business experience, he works with organizations to create next-generation products/solutions powered by emerging technology.
In-Person Fee: $20,000
Neil is located in Southern California
AI & Tech Visionary with Global Impact
Empowering AAPI Professionals in Tech & Innovation
Engaging, Futurist Perspective with Actionable Insights
Aligns with Cadence’s Focus on AI, Future of Work & Business Success
Relevant for Employees Across All Levels
Neil Sahota’s AI expertise, innovation-driven mindset, and leadership experience make him a high-impact speaker for Cadence’s AAPI Heritage Month event, inspiring employees to lead the future of AI and technology.
Author of Big Asian Energy, TEDx Speaker, Founder of Mastery Academy, and Social Media Creator
John Wang is the author of Big Asian Energy (Penguin Random House, 2025), a leadership and communication coach with 15+ years of experience. He has spoken on stages at TEDx, McKinsey, and leading colleges, sharing insights on breaking internal barriers to success. An engaging and uplifting speaker, John shares relatable stories of breaking free from our cultural and social barriers, and gives tangible techniques to help audiences speak up boldly and authentically, even when facing imposter syndrome, inner-criticism, or self-doubt.
In-Person Fee: $10,000 + $2,500 flat travel fee includes flights, hotel, ground transfers.
Speaker Profile: https://www.gravityspeakers.com/speakers/john-wang
John is based in Vancouver, Canada
This engaging and relatable talk features storytelling and hands-on techniques that help audiences identify the myths that often face Asian employees which hold them back from leadership-- and how to break through the barriers.
How many hidden overachievers—especially women and minorities—go unrecognized at work, afraid to speak up and without advocates? In this keynote, John Wang shares research on why top talent is overlooked and leaving, and provides actionable strategies to help them step into leadership with confidence and self-advocacy.
Champion of AAPI Leadership & Cultural Empowerment
Expert in Communication, Influence, and Personal Branding
Engaging, Entertaining, and Actionable Speaking Style
Aligns with Cadence’s Focus on Employee Growth & Workplace Excellence
Relevant for Employees Across All Levels
"Loved his energy and the “ACE” framework...something that I can still remember. Loved the follow up resource (ACE assessment). John did an amazing job with the presentation."- Christina Sheane, Chair Of Asian Colleagues Initiative, Mio Mckinsey
"His stage presence, his confidence, his ability to break down big and complex and challenging and sensitive topics into things that are easily understandable and digestible is such a profound skill."- Toper Ravadilla, Community Organizer, Mighty Networks
Rising to notoriety with his most-viewed TED Talk (top 200 out of 60,000), What I Learned from 100 Days of Rejection, which became the basis for his bestselling book and #1 audio book, Rejection Proof: How I Beat Fear and Became Invincible Through 100 Days of Rejection, Jia Jiang has become the world’s foremost expert on rejection. A top-booked speaker, Jia is the sought-after authority on empowering confidence and resilience, overcoming one’s fear of rejection, and daring to be bolder in both life and career. His upcoming book, The Art of Achieving Ambitious Things (Simon & Schuster, May 2026), expands on his mission to help anyone overcome obstacles and achieve their dreams and goals by adopting his breakthrough One Action Goal system.
In-Person Fee: $22,500
Jia is based in Palo Alto, CA
For too many of us, the fear of rejection is the #1 obstacle to achieving our goals and dreams. It’s our natural tendency to avoid the risk of rejection, even when it’s detrimental to our businesses, careers, and lives. Nobody knows this like entrepreneur Jia Jiang. To overcome his own fear of rejection, he conducted an experiment in which he purposely sought it out every day for 100 days.
From asking complete strangers for $100 to requesting a “burger refill” at a fast food restaurant, Jia’s experiences (and surprising results) became the basis for one of the most-watched TED Talks of all time (top 200 out of 60,000) and the bestselling book: Rejection Proof.
It also transformed Jia Jiang into the world’s foremost authority on rejection. In this engaging presentation, Jia shares insightful—and often laugh-out-loud—stories from his 100 Days of Rejection.
Audiences learn how to become more resilient and make becoming rejection-proof their superpower for success in life. He also explores the basic principles of turning a NO into YES, as well as how to get more YESes. By transforming a keynote speech into a unique and inspiring experience, Jia has earned rave reviews from Fortune 500 audiences and praise from individuals who have thanked him for changing their lives.
Teaches a Mindset Essential for Innovation and Leadership
Empowers AAPI Professionals to Speak Up and Take Initiative
Engaging, Humorous, and Interactive Speaking Style
Aligns with Cadence’s Culture of Innovation & Continuous Growth
Relevant for Employees Across All Levels
"Not only did Jia share valuable lessons, he transformed these lessons into a message of empowerment. Jia’s talk was particularly successful because he took the time to learn about the audience and weaved in practical and relatable stories. His insightful talk struck a human chord and was truly inspiring." - CHARITY L., Director of Engineering, Google Search
"I love the positivity (learning) from the experiences. I never thought about how my fear has caused me to miss things in my life. This is life-changing." - DIANA, Dell Technologies