Top CEOs and Leon Panetta, director of the CIA and former congressman and chief of staff to President Bill Clinton, are among the keynote speakers at of the annual convention of the National Association of Asian American Professionals (NAAAP).

Other keynote speakers include: Doreen Ho, former President and CEO of United Commercial Bank; John Chen, CEO of Sybase, Inc., and Jenny Ming, President & CEO of Charlotte Russe, Inc.

The 24th National Convention & Diversity Career Fair takes place on August 12-15 at the Palace Hotel in San Francisco, California. NAAAP (www.naaap.org) promotes professional development opportunities to its members on the local and national levels and engages in community service.

The NAAAP convention is an opportunity for members to benefit from the workshops on women’s issues, innovation, skill building, management, and leadership. Over 1,000 attendees and some 50 corporate sponsors are expected at the event.

Organizers say that “by helping promote professional growth and development, the NAAAP convention provides both attendees and sponsors a forum to contribute to the growth and vitality of the North American workforce and to the communities to which they serve.”

Sybase’s Chen has been Chairman, CEO, and President Chen since 1998. Under his leadership, Sybase has become the recognized industry leader in enterprise mobility infrastructure.

Ms. Ming was former president of Old Navy, and director of Kaiser Foundation Hospitals and Health Plan. She was part of the executive team that founded Old Navy in 1994, and became its president in 1999. In this role, she oversaw all aspects of Old Navy and grew the store base to over 950 in North America, the total revenue of $6.7 billion, and the company to 45,000 employees. She stepped down in 2006.

Ms. Ho, former UCB President and CEO, is a seasoned executive with over 35 years of banking experience. She is the former President and Chief Executive Officer of United Commercial Bank, a leading commercial and community bank in the country, serving the Chinese community in America and in Greater China with assets over $12 billion.

Prior to UCB, Ms. Ho worked with Wells Fargo, where she was the president of the Consumer Credit Group and a member of the Management Committee. She built one of the fastest growing and profitable asset groups within Wells Fargo from 1998 to 2007. Total portfolio managed under her leadership exceeded $100 billion, over 8,000 employees and over 12 operations centers across the country, as well as the servicing of over $2 trillion of corporate securities.