-
- News
- Books
Featured Books
- design007 Magazine
Latest Issues
Current IssueShowing Some Constraint
A strong design constraint strategy carefully balances a wide range of electrical and manufacturing trade-offs. This month, we explore the key requirements, common challenges, and best practices behind building an effective constraint strategy.
All About That Route
Most designers favor manual routing, but today's interactive autorouters may be changing designers' minds by allowing users more direct control. In this issue, our expert contributors discuss a variety of manual and autorouting strategies.
Creating the Ideal Data Package
Why is it so difficult to create the ideal data package? Many of these simple errors can be alleviated by paying attention to detail—and knowing what issues to look out for. So, this month, our experts weigh in on the best practices for creating the ideal design data package for your design.
- Articles
- Columns
- Links
- Media kit
||| MENU - design007 Magazine
Dr. Alessandra Nardi Receives Marie R. Pistilli Women in Engineering Achievement Award
July 6, 2020 | Business WireEstimated reading time: 4 minutes

Dr. Alessandra Nardi, software engineering group director at Cadence Design Systems, has been selected as the 2020 recipient of the Marie R. Pistilli Women in Electronic Design Award, a prestigious annual honor that recognizes individuals who have significantly helped advance women in electronic design. The award is named for the late Marie R. Pistilli, co-founder of DAC, who placed a high value on equality, diversity, and acceptance.
Dr. Nardi’s outstanding achievements include the creation of new research and development (R&D) methodologies for automotive applications, with an emphasis on functional safety and reliability. A computational software leader in automotive electronic design automation, Dr. Nardi spearheaded the Cadence Automotive R&D initiative based upon her vision for a holistic approach to functional safety, which involved embedding functional safety directly into the semiconductor development flow. In support of the initiative, Dr. Nardi developed a patent for the automatic design and verification of safety-critical electronic systems, and she managed cross-functional collaborations on the development of a functional safety flow for digital, analog, and mixed-signal systems-on-chip (SoCs) for semiconductor and system companies.
In addition to Dr. Nardi’s contributions to Cadence, she works to drive the development of the broader industry and ecosystem. For instance, Dr. Nardi is the chair of the Accellera Functional Safety Working Group and serves on the industrial advisory boards of the Association of Computer Machinery (ACM) Special Interest Group on Design Automation (SIGDA) and at Wayne State University. Moreover, she has spoken at several conferences including the Design Automation Conference (DAC), International Conference on Computer-Aided Design (ICCAD), and Custom Integrated Circuits Conference (CICC). She is currently serving on the technical program committee for the Design and Verification Conference (DVCon) Europe and previously served on these committees for the ICCAD and Design, Automation and Test in Europe (DATE) conferences.
In response to the award, Dr. Anirudh Devgan, Cadence president, said, “In all the years I've known her, Alessandra brings an extraordinary passion to all of the technologies she touches. She is a strong technical leader who is driven by innovation, and she is able to work with both customer and R&D teams and come up with unique solutions to address the ever-evolving nature of electronic industry. I am delighted to see her receive the 2020 Marie Pistilli Award.”
Before joining Cadence, Dr. Nardi spearheaded the technology for statistical static timing analysis and developed four other patents related to design-for-yield (DFY) and design-for-manufacturing (DFM) technologies. The patents covered some key features that ended up in the product that went to market. She also served as an R&D lead for library characterization, which showcased her ability to take on leadership roles across a broad range of technology areas.
Dr. Nardi was featured in an EE Times article, titled, “Women in Tech: 25 Profiles in Persistence.” The piece includes a detailed Q&A featuring direct comments from Dr. Nardi as well as testimonials from longtime key influencers in the EDA space including Dr. Devgan and Professor Alberto Sangiovanni-Vincentelli, the Edgar L. and Harold H. Buttner Chair of EECS at the University of California Berkeley.
Dr. Nardi holds a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Padova, Italy. After her post-doctoral work at Berkeley, she held various R&D lead positions in Magma Design Automation, Synopsys and Cadence.
“I’m very honored to be presented with the prestigious Marie R. Pistilli Women in Electronic Design Award, and I’m very thankful to all those who have supported and encouraged me along the way,” said Dr. Alessandra Nardi, software engineering group director at Cadence. “Engineering is very satisfying because it’s quantitative, but it also requires creativity to problem-solve and define new directions or find new solutions. I’m passionate about technology, people and teamwork, and I enjoy sharing this passion with other women because I have an opportunity to encourage them to explore, get out of their comfort zones and strive for excellence.”
The Marie R. Pistilli Women in Electronic Design Award to Dr. Nardi will be formally announced and listed on the DAC award recipient website on Friday, July 24, during the virtual DAC conference. For more information on the Virtual DAC program and registration please visit: www.dac.com
About the Marie R. Pistilli Women in Electronic Design Award
Women have made important contributions and strides in the semiconductor industry for over 20 years. To recognize those who have dedicated time and effort toward these achievements, the Design Automation Conference (DAC) Executive Committee presents an annual award to honor an individual who has made significant contributions to help women advance in the field of EDA technology. The award is named for DAC’s former organizer, the late Marie Pistilli, who worked hard to further the advancement of women in engineering. Marie passed away in November 2015, but her memory and her legacy live on through her namesake award.
Suggested Items
Meet the Author Podcast: Martyn Gaudion Unpacks the Secrets of High-Speed PCB Design
07/10/2025 | I-Connect007In this special Meet the Author episode of the On the Line with… podcast, Nolan Johnson sits down with Martyn Gaudion, signal integrity expert, managing director of Polar Instruments, and three-time author in I-Connect007’s popular The Printed Circuit Designer’s Guide to... series.
Showing Some Constraint: Design007 Magazine July 2025
07/10/2025 | I-Connect007 Editorial TeamA robust design constraint strategy balances dozens of electrical and manufacturing trade-offs. This month, we focus on design constraints—the requirements, challenges, and best practices for setting up the right constraint strategy.
Elementary, Mr. Watson: Rein in Your Design Constraints
07/10/2025 | John Watson -- Column: Elementary, Mr. WatsonI remember the long hours spent at the light table, carefully laying down black tape to shape each trace, cutting and aligning pads with surgical precision on sheets of Mylar. I often went home with nicks on my fingers from the X-Acto knives and bits of tape all over me. It was as much an art form as it was an engineering task—tactile and methodical, requiring the patience of a sculptor. A lot has changed in PCB design over the years.
TTCI Joins Printed Circuit Engineering Association to Strengthen Design-to-Test Collaboration and Workforce Development
07/09/2025 | The Test Connection Inc.The Test Connection Inc. (TTCI), a leading provider of electronic test and manufacturing solutions, is proud to announce its membership in the Printed Circuit Engineering Association (PCEA), further expanding the company’s efforts to support cross-functional collaboration, industry standards, and technical education in the printed circuit design and manufacturing community.
Bell to Build X-Plane for Phase 2 of DARPA Speed and Runway Independent Technologies (SPRINT) X-Plane Program
07/09/2025 | Bell Textron Inc.Bell Textron Inc., a Textron Inc. company, has been down-selected for Phase 2 of Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Speed and Runway Independent Technologies (SPRINT) X-Plane program with the objective to complete design, construction, ground testing and certification of an X-plane demonstrator.