2025 Ascend A-List Awards: Honoring Pioneering Business Leaders Shaping the Future

A Celebration of Innovation, Influence, and Impact Across Industries and Communities

NEW YORK, March 27, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Ascend Foundation proudly hosts the annual A-List Awards, recognizing and celebrating outstanding global executives who have significantly and exceptionally contributed to driving positive and productive change in the workplace and in their communities. For their profound industry impact and unwavering commitment to the advancement of others, these transformative leaders will be honored at the Ascend A-List Awards Gala on April 29, 2025, at The Plaza Hotel in New York City.

Award-winning journalist Richard Lui will emcee this exclusive event, featuring a dynamic discussion between ABC's Selina Wang and CNN host and bestselling author Fareed Zakaria. These global thought leaders will take the stage to explore the critical issues of our time.

This year's honorees include:

Joe Adams, RSM US LLP
Kajal Amin, MGM Resorts Intl
Dr. Maria Ansari, The Permanente Medical Group 
Andrew Bregenzer, TD Bank, U.S.
Michelle Calope, Bristol Myers Squibb
Jenny Chan, EY
Tony Cheng, RGA
Lorraine Chow Hansen, JPMorganChase
Steve Chung, The Walt Disney Company
Moushmi Culver, Merck & Co., Inc.
Ivan Fong, Medtronic PLC
Hari Gopalkrishnan, Bank of America
Jennifer Guo, Chevron
Yie-Hsin Hung, State Street Global Advisors
Anjuli Kelotra, The Coca-Cola Company
Shahmir Khaliq, Citi
Sanjiv Lamba, Linde
Gloria Lio, The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC)
Michael Lopez, HSBC US
Minjae Ormes, LinkedIn
Amrita Patel, Wells Fargo & Company
Payal Sahni Becher, Pfizer Inc.
Gurpreet Singh, PwC
Dr. Henry Ting, Delta Air Lines
Agam Upadhyay, GSK
Julia Wang, Labcorp
Amy Whang, L'Oreal USA
Christopher Yang, Toyota Motor North America
Fareed Zakaria, CNN
Amit Zavery, ServiceNow

"The A-List Awards celebrate exceptional individuals from Ascend's vibrant community," said Sandeep Gupta, Chair of the 2025 A-List Benefit Committee. "We acknowledge the remarkable contributions of these leaders, whose dedication and impact cannot go without note. By recognizing their achievements, we strengthen our collective voice and foster community. Together, we look to inspire others and continue building a powerful network of support and collaboration going forward."

"This year, Ascend's mission feels especially relevant and important. Recognizing the exceptional leaders making a difference today is essential for our shared future," said Anna Mok, President and Executive Board Chair of Ascend. "Together, we will continue to focus on strengthening our network, amplifying executive leadership, and supporting business and talent growth. We are honored to recognize these outstanding leaders. They are exceptional role models of what we can achieve together."

About Ascend Foundation

The Ascend Foundation is a 501(c)(3) organization that aims to drive positive and productive change in the workplace and foster business growth. In partnership with leading business organizations across the Fortune 1000, the Foundation launches cross-industry thought leadership programming and networking, builds community through social impact initiatives like Ascend Cares, provides student scholarships for the leaders of tomorrow, and publishes noteworthy research on the state of business.

For more information or to request an interview, please contact Ascend Foundation [email protected].

SOURCE Ascend Foundation