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Chadd Lafond
Business Unit & Channel Manager, Construction North America at Saint-Gobain Abrasives
Professional Background
Chadd Lafond has an impressive career in the construction and industrial sectors, showcasing his prowess across multiple roles at Saint-Gobain Abrasives, a global leader in materials and industrial solutions. His journey at Saint-Gobain began as a Sales Representative for Welding Construction Markets, where he utilized his exceptional verbal and communication skills to connect with customers and understand their needs. Chadd’s ability to work independently and as part of a dynamic team soon led to various promotions, reflecting his outstanding organizational skills and thorough knowledge of sales principles and techniques.
As a Construction Products Product Manager for North America, Chadd managed product lines, strategically aligning them with market needs, and driving sales growth. His keen understanding of channel management earned him the position of Channel Manager for Construction Distribution North America, where he effectively coordinated with partners to ensure the seamless distribution of products.
Currently, he serves as the Business Unit & Channel Manager for Construction North America at Saint-Gobain Abrasives. In this capacity, he demonstrates his remarkable aptitude for leadership and strategic management, further solidifying his reputation within the industry. Chadd is recognized as a champion in SAP Sales on Demand CRM, showcasing his commitment to leveraging technology in improving sales processes and customer relationships.
Education and Achievements
Chadd Lafond holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from the University of New Hampshire. His educational background laid the foundation for his technical knowledge in the construction industry, enabling him to better understand the products he manages and their applications in real-world scenarios. Chadd's engineering expertise complements his strong sales acumen, helping him to bridge the gap between technical specifications and customer-oriented solutions.
Throughout his career, Chadd has displayed a unique ability to perform arithmetic calculations with ease, further enhancing his skills in sales forecasting and financial analysis. His computer proficiency, particularly with Microsoft Office software, enables him to manage data effectively, create insightful reports, and present strategic plans that resonate with stakeholders.
Notable Achievements
Chadd’s career has been marked by various notable achievements, particularly in his transformative impact on sales operations and market strategy at Saint-Gobain Abrasives. His promotion to Business Unit & Channel Manager is a testament to his ability to drive performance, inspire teams, and foster collaboration among diverse groups. Under his leadership, Saint-Gobain has been able to not only maintain but also enhance its competitive edge in the market.
Chadd’s successful tenure at Saint-Gobain Abrasives, spanning multiple roles, underscores his flexibility and adaptability in navigating the evolving demands of the construction and industrial sectors. Whether in management or operational roles, Chadd remains a dedicated professional committed to excellence and continuous improvement. His strong interpersonal skills enable him to effectively engage with teams, clients, and partners, paving the way for robust business relationships and successful project outcomes.
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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 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.
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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.
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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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