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Brett Macleod
Executive Director at JPMorgan Chase
Professional Background
Brett Macleod is a seasoned finance professional specializing in community development finance and real estate private equity. With a career dedicated to urban revitalization and serving underserved neighborhoods, Brett has held significant leadership roles across prestigious organizations. Currently serving as the Executive Director at JPMorgan Chase, he leverages his extensive expertise in real estate finance and municipal securities to lead impactful projects that promote affordable housing and community development.
Before taking on his role at JPMorgan Chase, Brett served as a Vice President at Citigroup, specifically in Citi Community Capital. In this capacity, he was instrumental in advancing the bank's commitment to urban revitalization efforts and developing financing solutions for low-income housing projects. His tenure at Citigroup allowed him to deepen his understanding of how effective capital deployment can result in sustainable economic development within communities.
Brett's passion for community-focused finance began early in his career when he joined the Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH) as an Acquisition Associate. Here, he honed his skills in identifying and securing funding for projects that aimed to expand affordable housing options in various urban settings. This role cemented his commitment to the mission of ensuring equitable access to housing for all.
In addition to his direct contributions to finance, Brett has a rich background in education and technology. He has served as the Director of Technology Education at Citizen Schools, where he utilized his leadership skills to enhance educational opportunities for students in underserved communities. Prior to that, he worked as a Classroom Teacher and Lead Instructor at Thompson Island Outward Bound, furthering his dedication to community development through education.
Education and Achievements
Brett Macleod's educational background has equipped him with a unique blend of analytical and philosophical perspectives that fuel his approach to community finance. He studied Finance and Real Estate as part of his MBA at the Babson F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business, where he developed a solid foundation in financial principles and real estate expertise. This rigorous academic experience laid the groundwork for his future endeavors in urban planning and community support.
His undergraduate pursuits at Williams College resulted in dual B.A.s in Geology and Philosophy, enabling him to cultivate a diverse thought process that draws from scientific inquiry as well as ethical considerations in community development. Further enriching his educational experience, Brett completed a Certificate in Russian Language and Culture at the School for International Training, reflecting his commitment to cross-cultural communication and understanding, which is vital in a globally interconnected economy.
Throughout his career, Brett has managed to intertwine his educational background with his professional journey, leading to a respected presence in the fields of urban revitalization, affordable housing, and community development finance. His expertise in Low Income Housing Tax Credits and New Markets Tax Credits showcases his commitment to utilizing all available resources to enhance the livability and sustainability of urban settings.
Achievements
Brett Macleod's contributions to the fields of real estate finance and community development are noteworthy and extensive. As the Executive Director at JPMorgan Chase, Brett has led strategic initiatives that have significantly impacted urban neighborhoods through effective financial strategies and innovative solutions aimed at revitalization. His leadership has not only supported the physical development of communities but has also empowered residents by creating financial pathways to sustainable living.
While at Citigroup, he played a crucial role in advancing financing that addressed critical gaps in affordable housing. His unique approach incorporates a comprehensive analysis of community needs, ensuring that projects are not just about construction, but rather about building inclusive communities where all residents can thrive.
Brett's tenure at POAH contributed to a portfolio of successful projects aimed at affordable housing development, earning recognition in the industry for his prudent investments and strategic acquisitions. His ability to foster relationships with various stakeholders, including government entities, nonprofit organizations, and community members, has been key to the success of these initiatives.
In his educational roles, particularly at Citizen Schools and Thompson Island Outward Bound, Brett has influenced hundreds of students, instilling in them the value of education and the importance of community engagement. His efforts in teaching and mentoring resonate throughout his career, showcasing his belief in building capacity within communities to drive their development.
Overall, Brett Macleod exemplifies a dedicated professional whose commitment to urban and community development finance reinforces the essential role of inclusive economic strategies in creating thriving neighborhoods. His extensive expertise, leadership experience, and academic background position him as a thought leader and advocate for underserved communities around the nation.
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Clay is a relationship management platform that serves as a personal CRM, helping you organize and deepen both personal and professional relationships. It functions as a beautiful rolodex and CRM available on iPhone, Mac, Windows, and web, built automatically to help manage your network efficiently. Unlike traditional address books, Clay centralizes all your contacts in one place while enriching them with additional context and features to help you stay thoughtful and connected.
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.
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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.
Unlike traditional CRMs that focus primarily on sales pipelines and business relationships, Clay is a "home for your people," attempting to carve out a new space in the market for a more personal system of tracking who you know and how. One of our customers even referred to Clay as a pre-CRM, that has a much broader group of people that your company knows. Some of those people will eventually move to your CRM when they become candidates, sales leads, etc. Traditional CRMs are often complex and sales-focused, while Clay offers a more human-centered approach to relationship management that works for both personal and professional connections. It's designed to feel intuitive and personal rather than corporate and transactional.
Clay takes privacy seriously. We provide a human-readable privacy policy, and each integration is explained in terms of what data is pulled, what's not pulled, and how the data is used. Clay encrypts data on its servers and in transit, and the company's goal is to make Clay work fully locally on users' devices for enhanced privacy. Clay is also SOC 2 Type 2 certified.
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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 is uniquely designed to bridge both professional and personal relationship management. Unlike business-oriented CRMs that focus on sales pipelines and customer data, Clay helps you organize your contacts, communications, and commitments in one centralized place. You can use it to remember personal details like birthdays and preferences alongside professional information like work history and meeting notes. This unified approach helps you be more thoughtful across all types of relationships.
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.
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