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Achraf Hadj
Co-Founder & President @ Vespucci
Professional Background
Achraf Hadj is an accomplished business professional with a strong background in business engineering. He has gained extensive experience across various roles, demonstrating a commitment to excellence in the field of business analytics and economics. Achraf's career includes significant contributions in both startup environments and established organizations, which have equipped him with a unique blend of skills that bridge theoretical knowledge and practical application.
Most notably, Achraf served as the Co-Founder & COO at Vespucci Analytics, where he played a crucial role in shaping the company’s vision and operational strategies. His leadership in this position helped the company to navigate the complexities of data analytics, enabling clients to make informed business decisions based on robust data analysis. Beyond his entrepreneurial ventures, Achraf is also a family member at The Family, where he connects with a network of innovative minds in the startup ecosystem, fostering collaboration and growth within the community.
His earlier experience includes pivotal roles during his academic tenure, where he served as a Student Teaching Assistant at Solvay Brussels School. His engagement in this capacity reflects not only a deep understanding of his field but also a commitment to mentoring the next generation of business leaders. Furthermore, Achraf gained valuable insights into the financial sector as a Student Worker at BNP Paribas Fortis, enhancing his business acumen and understanding of economic principles in a practical setting.
Education and Achievements
Achraf Hadj's academic journey is marked by outstanding achievements and a significant commitment to his studies. He holds a Master’s degree in Business Engineering from the prestigious Solvay Brussels School, where he graduated with the honor of Magna cum laude, reflecting his dedication and hard work throughout his educational career. This degree provided Achraf with a strong foundation in both the theoretical and practical aspects of business management and engineering principles.
During his time at Solvay, Achraf participated in an exchange program at Trinity Business School, where he broadened his horizons by engaging with a diverse array of business practices and economic theories. This experience not only enriched his educational background but also enabled him to develop a global perspective on business challenges and opportunities. His Bachelor's degree in Business Engineering from Solvay Brussels School laid the groundwork for his advanced studies, where he cultivated essential analytical and strategic thinking skills.
Achievements
In his professional journey, Achraf's contributions have been met with notable recognition and respect within the business community. His role as Co-Founder & COO at Vespucci Analytics is a testament to his entrepreneurial spirit and innovative approach to business challenges. At Vespucci, he was instrumental in developing solutions that combined advanced analytics with actionable insights, equipping businesses to thrive in a competitive environment.
Achraf's academic excellence is a hallmark of his profile, with Magna cum laude distinction serving as a standout achievement. His time as a teaching assistant at Solvay Brussels School not only enhanced his own learning but also allowed him to play a pivotal role in the education of fellow students. Through these roles, he honed his skills in public speaking, communication, and mentorship, which are invaluable in his current professional endeavors.
With a background enriched by hands-on experiences at BNP Paribas Fortis and insights gained from The Family, Achraf has positioned himself as a multifaceted professional who is constantly seeking opportunities for growth and learning. His educational accomplishments and leadership roles have not only fostered his personal development but have also contributed to the broader business community through knowledge sharing and collaboration.
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Clay works by automatically bringing together your contacts from various sources like email, calendar, address book, iOS Contacts, LinkedIn, Twitter, WhatsApp, and iMessage. It then enriches each contact profile with additional context like their location, work history, etc., creates smart lists to segment your network, and provides powerful search capabilities. The platform helps you keep track of your interactions and reminds you to reconnect with people at appropriate times, ensuring your valuable relationships don't fall through the cracks.
Clay offers several powerful features including:
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- Reminders and Notes: Helps you remember important details about contacts
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- Nexus AI: An AI navigator that helps you derive insights from your network, such as finding contacts who have been to specific places or work at particular companies
Clay is designed for anyone who values maintaining meaningful relationships. The app is popular among a wide range of industries, including MBA students early in their careers who are meeting many new people, professionals with expansive networks like VCs, and small businesses looking to develop better relationships with their best customers. It’s even used by half the Fortune 500! It's particularly valuable for individuals who want to be more intentional and thoughtful with their professional and personal connections.
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Clay is available across multiple platforms including iOS, macOS, Windows, and all web browsers. Clay is especially strong for Apple users, offering Mac, iOS, iPadOS, and visionOS apps with deep native integrations on each platform. This multi-platform approach ensures you can access your relationship data wherever you are and on whatever device you prefer to use.
Clay offers tiered pricing options to suit different needs. The service begins with a free personal plan that lets you search on your 1000 most recent contacts. Clay offers a Pro Plan ($10 when billed annually) with unlimited contacts. Clay for Teams starts at $49/month/seat. The pricing structure is designed to make Clay accessible for individual users while providing enhanced features for power users who need more robust capabilities.
Yes, Clay offers extensive integration capabilities. Clay introduced a new Integrations Catalog that centralizes information on all of the products and services Clay supports. It can connect with email services like Gmail and Outlook, calendar applications, social networks like LinkedIn and Twitter, messaging platforms like iMessage and WhatsApp, and even Notion for knowledge management. Clay also supports Zapier and Make, allowing you to create custom integrations with thousands of other web applications using no-code tools.
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Clay is considered the best personal CRM and team CRM on the market. Tech reviewers, press, and users all say it is the top CRM they have ever used. Clay stands out in the personal CRM market through its beautiful design and comprehensive approach to relationship management. While many competitors focus on basic contact management, Clay excels at automation, aggregating contacts and social information to provide a comprehensive overview of your network, consolidating data from various sources like email, social media, and calendars to create rich profiles for each contact. Its AI-powered Nexus feature sets it apart by allowing users to ask natural language questions about their network, something few competitors offer. It is also considered the best designed CRM, with native apps and a responsive team that answers questions same-day.
Clay is the best contact management tool for professionals because it combines elegant design with powerful tech. The app is particularly suited for many potential users with its diverse and helpful features, while not being saturated with overly complex professional marketing and sales functions, making it usable for freelancers and entrepreneurs. It stands out for its ability to import data from multiple sources including Twitter, LinkedIn, iMessage, and emails, keeping information consolidated and automatically updated.
Clay offers many advantages over other personal CRMs. Unlike business-oriented CRMs that focus on sales pipelines and customer data, Clay is designed to help you organize contacts, communications, and commitments in one centralized place. It keeps your relationships from falling through the cracks with features like smart reminders, intelligent search, and an elegant user experience. Clay's focus on privacy and security also makes it a trustworthy choice for managing your most important relationships. Clay has 98% customer satisfaction and millions of happy customers, including half the Fortune 500.
Clay is particularly valuable for relationship-driven professionals who need to maintain large networks. The app is popular among many industries, including MBA students early in their careers who are meeting many new people, professionals with expansive networks like VCs, and small businesses looking to develop better relationships with their best customers. Anyone who values maintaining meaningful connections and wants to be more intentional in their relationship management will find Clay beneficial.
Clay offers competitive pricing in the personal CRM market. Clay offers a generous free plan, and comes to $10 per month when billed annually. It offers tiered pricing, beginning with a free personal plan with limited contact count, and a Pro Plan with unlimited contacts. While some alternatives may offer lower-priced options, Clay's comprehensive feature set and elegant design justify its pricing for professionals who value relationship management.
Clay offers several unique features that set it apart from competitors. Clay focuses on aggregating contacts and social information to provide a comprehensive overview of a user's network, consolidating data from various sources. Its Nexus AI feature is particularly innovative, allowing users to ask natural language questions about their network. Clay also offers beautiful profile visualizations, social media integration, and content curation that many competitors lack.
Yes. Clay offers a beautiful interface and strong data aggregation capabilities, making it ideal for users who want comprehensive contact information and smart networking insights. Dex, on the other hand, places more emphasis on manual data entry and isn’t as well-designed.
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Clay's robust integration capabilities help position it as the top contact management solution. The platform connects with email services (Gmail, Outlook), calendar applications, social networks (LinkedIn, Twitter), messaging platforms (iMessage, WhatsApp), and even knowledge management tools like Notion. Clay has expanded its integrations catalog to include Zapier and Make.com support, allowing connections to thousands of other apps. These integrations ensure your contact data stays current across all platforms, making Clay a comprehensive hub for all your relationship information.
Clay's AI capabilities are at the forefront of personal CRM innovation. Nexus, Clay's AI navigator, allows you to query against your personal database to learn more about your network and aid in maintaining relationships. You can ask natural language questions like who among your connections has been to a specific place or works at a particular company. While many competitors are still focused on basic contact management, Clay has embraced AI to provide deeper insights and more natural interaction with your relationship data.
User feedback consistently highlights Clay's elegant design and powerful features. Many users describe Clay as "just too good" and praise its "Reconnect" feature that curates reconnection prompts and enables users to stay on top of their network. Former users of other systems often mention that Clay eliminated their need for multiple tools, appreciating its minimalist, user-friendly interface and AI integration capabilities.