“We wanted this year’s company offsite meeting to be a combination of fun, team-building activities and professional development. The Diversity & Inclusion training quickly turned into the focal point. Every single team member rated it as the best part of the day and we all are looking forward to the next session. I highly recommend Shakti Diversity and Equity Training for any organization that wants to energize their team, improve communication and collaboration, and take a big step toward creating an environment where every person knows their voice is valuable.”

— Scott Christiansen, CEO
Root3 Marketing & Business Development

"Cindu is passionate about meeting companies and DEI leaders where they are and guiding them along their inclusion journey. Her workshop was engaging, educational, and thought-provoking and our team learned so much about becoming more intentionally inclusive. She set us on a path to continue this important conversation, and I'm grateful for her leadership and guidance. Cindu is thorough, professional, and a joy to work with, and any company that is serious about building a more inclusive culture should schedule a Shakti Diversity and Equity training."

— Keisha Washington
Recruiting and DEI Program Manager
Buffer

"Our company was looking to broaden it’s DEI foundational base and Shakti Training came highly recommended. Cindu’s engagement with us during the discovery phase and then during the training, solidified that this was the program that we not only wanted to be a part of, but wanted to share with our clients. The content is thought provoking and highly relatable, especially as presented by Cindu. Our team was fully engaged throughout and is still talking about the experience."

— Rita Hernandez Figi
Chief Operating Officer
Med HQ

“Most of my executive experience has been within the corporate world and I have taken numerous classes on Diversity throughout the 80s and 90s and early 2000s. Cindu’s workshops are the best I have ever experienced because she helped me to see diversity from a new perspective and my thinking and way of being was re-framed as a result. Cindu helped me, from an empathetic point of view, see how people of different races, cultures, and sexual orientations experience, think, and feel about our world. In the past, I was taught what to say and what not to say so that as a manager/executive I wouldn't step in legal "hot water." I wasn't taught how to communicate and work with someone who is different from me. I highly recommend these programs.”

— Karen L. Schmidt
Executive Director/CEO
Houston Community College Foundation

Not only does our law firm have a diverse work force but we serve clients coming from a variety of cultures around the world. Cindu did a great job reminding us that everyone we deal with experiences the world and people in multiple different ways. More importantly, her program went beyond that important first step and provided us with frameworks for how different people and different cultures perceive and deal with one another. As a result we now have a set of frameworks and tools by which we can better understand and be understood by others. I absolutely recommend her program to everyone wanting to take that next step.

— Jeff Sharp
Managing Partner
Marshall, Gerstein & Borun LLP

"When we were beginning our DEI journey, we worked with a number of different recommended trainers. Immediately, Cindu singled herself out due to her experience, proactive council, and adaptability, particularly as we adjusted to all-virtual trainings in response to COVID-19. Our first DEI training session with Cindu was so well received by our staff that we immediately scheduled a follow up session for our management team and senior leaders. Cindu’s personal commitment and interweaving of her own story and DEI journey in her trainings really resonated with our staff. I’d highly recommend her as a trainer and facilitator regardless of where you are in your organizational DEI journey."

— Tina Fasset Smith
Director of Innovation and Strategic Alignment
Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning

"Cindu recently led a series of interactive workshops that she customized for members of our physical therapy organization’s inaugural Inclusive Leadership Academy. She impressed our team by tailoring the content to our industry and by expertly facilitating workshops that featured honest and constructive group discussion. She taught us as an organization how to see DEI initiatives less as a problem to solve and more as an opportunity to seize.

Her program has helped make our organization a better place to work and a more welcoming environment for our patients. In addition, when our team members completed the workshop, they earned Continuing Education Units (CEUs), which support the development and growth we like to foster with our leaders. Because of Cindu’s work, I now feel that our team is better educated and equipped to make meaningful change.

— Ajay Gupta, CEO
Physical Rehabilitation Network

“Cindu is an amazingly gifted, knowledgeable and compassionate trainer and facilitator. I have attended many diversity, equity and inclusion trainings but never have I taken away so many relevant and concrete tools that I could use to share with others. Not only did she give great tools but she also helped me feel inspired to facilitate my own conversations on DEI with my team. I hope to get a chance to bring her to my university for trainings with others!”

— Shannon Aniciete
Assistant Director of Employee Engagement
University of Oregon

"Typically, I dread the response of staff members after a cultural competency training. In fact, we had never provided a Cultural Competency Training that our staff thought was “good”.  However two years ago OMNI was lucky to have Cindu lead us in a training.  The staff walked away stating that Cindu’s workshop was the best cultural competency training they have experienced. Her workshop was relevant and informative so we brought Cindu back this year, and our staff responded with the same positive feedback.  They especially loved the discussion of color blindness/color consciousness and equity vs. equality.”

— Doryce McCarthy
President of Omni Youth Services

“I found Cindu's Inclusive Leadership Academy series to be very beneficial for my personal and professional development as a leader. Over my career, I’ve attended numerous diversity workshops, many of which I walked away from disappointed. Cindu’s workshop was different in that it challenged me to think about differences in cultures and subcultures, unconscious bias and other diversity and inclusion challenges in the workplace. Diversity and inclusion is everyone’s work, and this training helped me renew my passion for this work."

— Eric Kurtz
Executive Director of Workforce & Professional Development Institute
College of Lake County 

"Cindu is a passionate, thoughtful and engaging DEI leader and trainer. She is fully grounded in research, data and facts but brings her own experiences and stories to help humanize the content and discussion. Cindu recently facilitated a talk on “Color Blind to Color Conscious” as part of a series called Uncomfortable Conversations about Race for FEI Chicago with an audience that was predominately white, male and 55+. Cindu set the tone effectively from the very beginning creating a safe space for sharing and dialogue. She presented relatable content that helped the audience learn and reframe what we thought we knew about race. Cindu is a partner you can trust with the important work of having authentic and difficult conversations and building the equity and inclusion muscle needed within your organization."

— Sharada Sullivan
Senior Director of Finance
CBRE

“We did a workshop on the fundamental concepts and theories of diversity and inclusion, with 50 managers via Zoom. I had some doubts as to the effectiveness of learning this particular topic remotely, but Cindu leveraged the technology for powerful one-on-one conversations. Cindu used her personal experiences and facilitation skills to effectively illustrate concepts, and created a safe environment for sharing our own experiences. After the training, employees gave the management team at least 10 actionable inclusion ideas as a response to the workshop. We had planned to do just one of three workshops, but given feedback from participants, immediately added the second and third workshops.”

— JoAnn Gilley
CEO
Overture Promotions

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"We were very pleased with Cindu’s workshop for our law firm, and we would highly recommend her program to other law firms and other organizations. Cindu approaches her topics in a highly organized and easy to understand manner and her style is both approachable and informative. For our firm, Cindu presented a two-part workshop on cultural differences in the workplace. Her topics resonated greatly with our group, and there was considerable enthusiasm and discussion. Overall, we believe it would be a great benefit for other businesses to have exposure to Cindu’s expertise and programs." 

— Claudia Stangle, Salim Hasan & Michelle Zimmermann
Shareholders of Leydig, Voit & Mayer's Diversity Committee

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"Our organization recently participated in our first workshop with Shakti Diversity and Equity Training to bring DEI to the forefront of our organization. Cindu's workshop greatly exceeded our expectations. Her training session was by far the highlight of our staff retreat and was one of the most positive and impactful team building activities we could have chosen. Her expertise, experience, and passion was clear and provided a personal and engaging experience for our team. We look forward to continuing our journey with future Shakti workshops!"

— Michelle Klein
Senior Program Director
Professional Education International

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"Like many other institutions across the country, we renewed our efforts in diversity, equity, and inclusivity over the last 18 months and sought external expertise to guide us in these efforts. Cindu’s knowledge, experience, and expertise in this area, in addition to her being a faculty member at an academic institution, was a solid match for us. Cindu’s ability to lead a thoughtful and inclusive discussion in a virtual format was unmatched. The breakout rooms in Zoom allowed our team members to connect and discuss topics that many of us haven’t given much thought to as they relate to our positions in higher education. My only complaint was that we didn’t have more time! We are looking forward to collaborating with Cindu for future workshops."

— Meryl Alappattu, DPT, PhD
Faculty of Physical Therapy
University of Florida

"Cindu came to my attention with the highest recommendations from multiple sources and I can now confirm what they already knew, Cindu is a very powerful, impactful, and transformational trainer and presenter. She was extremely professional and responsive from the first email inquiry to the final delivery of training. In tailoring the training specifically to Nicasa, Cindu took the time to understand our history, mission, vision, and values. Cindu provided us with an exceptional professional development experience that was highly praised by all those in attendance and has served to further develop the inclusion and anti-racism lens of Nicasa Board Members and Staff. We look forward to future engagements with Shakti Diversity and Equity Training."

— Bruce Johnson
CEO
Nicasa Behavioral Health Services

"Introducing Cindu to our team was a choice we would make a hundred times over. Her teachings are digestible for people at all different stages of their DEI journey, laying the foundation for delving deeper into diversity, equity, and inclusion-- not only at a company level but on an individual level as well. Cindu was a wonderful speaker, bringing a radiant energy into all of our sessions. Her ability to engage a large group in a conscientious, thought-provoking and vulnerable way was impressive, especially since we elected to do the trainings virtually. We would strongly recommend Cindu to anyone looking to create a more inclusive and aware company culture."

— Tom McMakin
CEO
Profitable Ideas Exchange

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"Cindu is an expert in diversity, equity and inclusion. I have attended several of her sessions and most latterly the one she ran for a the Equity Task Force of the Lake County Workforce Investment Board. The trainings were thoughtful, detailed and full of new perspectives. Everyone got a tremendous amount out of the training course. Cindu says we should "get comfortable being uncomfortable" and that was certainly achieved. I would highly recommend Cindu and her company for any type of DEI training or consultancy."

— Andrew Warrington, PhD
President
UCC Environmental

"Cindu offered a wonderful workshop that offers a solid overview of the foundational topics in DEI, while also bringing to the table an extensive academic background rooted in specific subject matter. In a short time, Cindu was able to present a tailored session specific to our industry, and my team really enjoyed the breakouts and activities. I'm looking forward to working with Shakti again in the near future as we continue our DEI journey as an organization."

— Jonathan Alvares
Vice President of Operations & Production
Three Point Media​

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“Cindu did an amazing job providing an interactive workshop that also catered towards not only the industry, but also NACIS group itself. I had a few discussions with Cindu how we wanted to frame the workshop (focus it on interpersonal work) and Cindu did just that, and also did an amazing job with breaking down difficult topics into something digestible. The post-workshop questions of reflection also were really useful and helped the conversation to continue beyond the workshop.”

— Vanessa Knopple-Wetzel
Chair of DEI Committee
North American Cartographic Information Society

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“Our team is still early in our DEI journey, and we could not be happier with the decision we made to have Cindu come in and present our first training to us. She was able to take such a complex topic and break it into relevant and easy to understand pieces. She is extremely engaging and knowledgeable, and you can tell she is passionate about what she does. Our team walked away feeling more confident on our journey to create a diverse and inclusive workspace for all. Thank you, Cindu!

— Emilee Wilson
Office Manger
Chicago’s First Lady Cruises

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“I engaged Cindu to help me through a personal journey focused on learning new skills and obtaining the insights needed to effectively lead an organization with a deep commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.  The power of Cindu’s work came from her presentation of examples, stories, and resources.  She understands the DEI space extremely well, brings personal experience to the table, deeply understands the resources and writing that is available, and relates all of it to specific issues.  She helped me understand my journey, where my gaps were, and provided resources I could use to build skills based on insight and understanding.”

— Vince Hockett
President
XYPN Planning 

The knowledge gained from Cindu's workshop served as an excellent foundation for further discussion throughout the school year. We often heard teachers referring back to the training in various meetings throughout the course of the school year, referencing things such as cultural differences in communication or reminding one another to be mindful of the impact poverty or another cultural factor might be having on a particular student. We highly recommend this training!"

— Susan Running
Edgerton School District

 Cindu's daylong workshop facilitated a transformational change in our company culture. She masterfully wove together concepts, stories, and prompts for reflection and action. Our full team, which ranges from equity-focused practitioners to equity beginners, learned so much and felt like Cindu's content spoke to them on multiple levels and challenged them into an elevated place of progress. I'd recommend Cindu to anyone.

— April Mendez
Chief Executive Officer of Green Print Partners

If you have the opportunity to either attend a training or provide a training by Cindu, do not miss it. Cindu recently presented at our Lake County Juvenile Justice Council. The audience was a mix of attorneys, law enforcement, judges, community members and educators. Though it was a diverse group, Cindu managed to speak to each one of us directly. The interactive method that she used really helped to make us understand the importance of diversity and inclusivity. Cindu has mastered her skill to discuss the sensitive topic of racial and ethnic disparities while imparting valuable lessons to disrupt those disparities. It is with great pleasure that I recommend using Cindu for a wonderful, informative diversity and equity training experience.

— Karen Levi
Chief of Juvenile Justice of Lake County State’s Attorney Office

Cindu tailored and presented a foundational DE&I workshop split into two sessions for my organization. Although we are a mid-size company when it comes to employee count, we are a complex organization operating in 15 countries and multiple states within the U.S. Cindu understood our needs and challenges and knew how to assist us in getting DE&I off the ground. We were in an infancy stage of DE&I and her coaching and workshop sessions have been a valuable asset in steering us in the right direction. She is well versed in DE&I topics and knowledge and brings a unique style that is easy to understand as well as engaging. Walking away from the workshop and our post-workshop discussion, our employees, and more importantly, our Leadership Team, couldn't say enough great things about the information and her style of communicating the information. I would recommend for anyone, local or otherwise, to reach out to Cindu if you are looking to implement or enhance your DE&I initiatives. We will be working with her in the future on more advanced cultural and communication workshops.

— Thomas Mellnick
Global HR Director of Angus Chemical

I’ve had the opportunity to work with Cindu on several occasions. She’s led sessions at our firm, has provided individual coaching opportunities, CWLA participation for our employees, and most recently led a Cultural Intelligence training. Working with Cindu has been fantastic. What I enjoy most about Cindu is her style. She uses her experiences to provide examples and creates an environment where everyone feels safe and comfortable sharing. Cindu takes the time to understand your organization and will work with you to customize content that works within your company. I would highly recommend Cindu and look forward to partnering with her in the future.

— Rachna Velamati
Chief Diversity Officer of Heitman

There are not enough words to describe my invaluable experiences with Cindu! I have been fortunate enough to receive her training on numerous occasions. She also coached our newly formed DEIJ Council which put us on the right track. This has been essential to reinforce our commitment to DEIJ in our organization. Finally, I had the opportunity to receive individual coaching sessions with Cindu as part of my own professional development, which I found to be the most helpful as she creates a safe, open, and honest space in which to discuss challenging situations as they relate to leadership development. Cindu is not only knowledgeable, but she is also relatable. She is not just reading from a book or recycling information from other sources. I love and appreciate her passion, commitment, and engagement. I recommend Cindu to anyone who is looking to learn, commit, and/or strengthen their knowledge, skills, and abilities as it pertains to DEI and creating a better space for everyone.

— Vicky Tello
Director of Philanthropy of Nicasa Behavioral Health Services

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