Hi, I’m Cynthia.
I do what I do because I am profoundly aware of the systemic marginalization of women of color in the professional world. I am on a personal mission to use all of my skills and expertise to close the race and gender gaps in money, power, and respect.
Cynthia Pong, JD
Career Coach, Speaker, Author, Founder
Cynthia Pong, JD, is an award-winning career and executive coach, speaker, and author of Don't Stay in Your Lane: The Career Change Guide for Women of Color. An NYU-trained lawyer, she founded Embrace Change, a career coaching and consulting firm that specializes in working with women of color, with a singular mission: to get all women of color—and people of color—the money, power, and respect that we deserve in the workplace.
In 2023, the flagship leadership training program that Cynthia created and launched, the Leadership Accelerator, won an Anthem Award. Cynthia created and launched that leadership certification program in 2021; it was fully funded after 22 days of crowdfunding and 134% funded after one month. Graduates of the program (of whom there are now 40+) have gone on to land prestigious fellowships, paid speaking engagements, promotions and raises, and admission to elite graduate programs. Cynthia is frequently sought out for her expertise on all issues career, negotiation, and leadership, and has been featured in The Atlantic, CBS, Good Morning America, NPR and more. She has shared a virtual stage with Magic Johnson and is a LinkedIn Top Voice for Job Search and Career.
With a decade-plus of experience negotiating—first as a public defender, now as a CEO—she has studied and applied various negotiation styles and techniques. She has helped her clients negotiate increases as high as 67% and well over $500K more in annual salary, starting offer, or rate, in aggregate. She has coached countless clients to promotions and advancement as well.
Her clients are breaking down barriers in a variety of fields and industries, including: medicine, tech, public health, the arts, environmental justice, and the trades. Cynthia is a proud introvert, a classic middle child, and an unapologetic Rottweiler enthusiast.
Is there something we can help you with?
Working with Cynthia made me feel like the seas had parted and I could see a path ahead. The best part was negotiating a pay bump! I hadn’t even really expected that to be a big part of our sessions, but it ended up being a really important perk, which provided me with long-term lessons on how to better assert my value.
— Nana B.
More About Cynthia:
Prior to founding Embrace Change, Cynthia was a public defender in the Bronx, New York, for six years, carrying a caseload of 100 to 120 criminal cases at a time. She fought tirelessly for her clients' liberty and rights; all her felony trials resulted in acquittals. Before that, she clerked for Justice James E. Graves on the Mississippi Supreme Court. She earned her law degree from NYU School of Law (cum laude) and her Bachelor of Arts from Brown University in Ethnic Studies (magna cum laude).
Cynthia’s social justice background deeply influences the ways in which she supports her clients in their journey of self-fulfillment and wellness. Being a public defender taught her how to ask the right questions and reinforced her zeal for supporting people through times of great difficulty. She has counseled thousands of clients and helped them move forward through the worst experiences of their lives. As a practitioner of restorative justice, she follows the value of deep listening with the goal of truly understanding another person. As an entrepreneur, she has been through countless rounds of strategic trial and error in building her business over the past five years.