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Chris Guimarin
Product Design Lead at Blizzard Entertainment
Professional Background
Chris Guimarin is an accomplished product design leader with extensive experience in both design and management across various prestigious organizations. He has taken the helm at Blizzard Entertainment as a Product Design Lead/Manager, where his visionary approach and innovative spirit have helped shape memorable user experiences. With an impressive career trajectory, Chris has also held significant roles, including the Director of Product Design at ASCAP, where he contributed to the intersection of creativity and technology in designing products that resonate with users.
His time at General Assembly as a Distinguished Faculty member and as a Visual Design Product Advisory Board member exemplifies his commitment to educating and mentoring the next generation of designers. Prior to these roles, he served as Lead Product Designer and Lead Instructor at General Assembly, further solidifying his impact in the field of product design.
Chris's extensive experience spans various sectors, from educational institutions to high-profile companies, demonstrating his ability to adapt and excel in different environments. His early career included positions at McCann HumanCare where he started as a Junior Art Director and grew to become an Art Director, shaping impactful visual campaigns. His contributions to Jerk Magazine as Design Director highlight his creative leadership, while his role as a Design Intern at Casserole Labs allowed him to cultivate his design sensibilities in a hands-on environment.
Education and Achievements
Chris's educational journey laid a strong foundation for his career in design. He earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communications Design, graduating Cum Laude from Syracuse University, which equipped him with the crucial skills and knowledge to thrive in the competitive world of design. His high school years at Bellarmine College Preparatory equipped him with a strong academic background and leadership skills. Continuing his professional development, Chris also pursued further studies at UCLA Extension in the Technical Management Program, enhancing his understanding of the interplay between design and business strategy.
Throughout his career, Chris has remained dedicated to improving user experiences by deepening his understanding of user needs and effectively balancing them with business goals. His proficiency in design tools like Sketch, Adobe InDesign, and Photoshop, along with his working knowledge of HTML and CSS, allow him to create compelling designs that meet strategic objectives.
Skills and Proficiencies
Chris's skill set is vast and varied, featuring a strong command of numerous industry-standard design programs. Whether it’s utilizing Sketch, Abstract, or Invision, Chris expertly navigates the design process to deliver results that not only please users but also align with overarching business goals. He also shows a significant aptitude for collaboration and communication tools such as Slack, JIRA, and Confluence, which highlights his adaptable working style and ability to thrive in team environments.
His design philosophy marries storytelling with technology, resulting in products and user experiences that are not only functional but also emotionally engaging. With an eye for detail—from the overarching scope of a project down to the individual pixel—Chris’s approach to product design is both holistic and meticulous. This ensures that every facet of the user experience is crafted to perfection, seamlessly integrating user needs with business objectives.
Community Involvement
Beyond his professional roles, Chris has made significant contributions to various educational and community initiatives. As a member of the Visual Design Product Advisory Board at General Assembly, he provided valuable insights that shaped curriculum development. His commitment to learning and mentorship is evident in his past role as an instructor where he shared his extensive knowledge of visual design with budding designers eager to refine their skills.
Chris co-founded Komolog, a unique venture that showcases his entrepreneurial spirit and passion for creative collaboration. His background as a summer school Latin teacher speaks volumes about his dedication to education and his ability to inspire students in various subjects.
By blending his experiences in both leadership and hands-on design work, Chris Guimarin embodies the modern design leader who not only creates impressive products but also empowers others to do the same. Throughout his career, he has established himself as a pivotal figure in product design, thanks to his innovative mindset, dedication to user-centered design, and effective storytelling abilities.
Achievements
- Product Design Lead at Blizzard Entertainment, enhancing user experience through innovative design practices.
- Directed product design initiatives at ASCAP, significantly impacting creative workflow and product development.
- Played a pivotal role in educational instruction at General Assembly, mentoring future designers and shaping their understanding of visual design.
- Recognized for exceptional contributions as Distinguished Faculty at General Assembly, demonstrating a commitment to quality education in design.
- Developed impactful visual campaigns at McCann HumanCare, showcasing creativity and strong leadership as Art Director.
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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.
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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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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 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.
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