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Ccsp Craig Eidelman
Helping customers solve their security and compliance challenges
Professional Background
Craig Eidelman, a dedicated member of Microsoft’s Health and Life Sciences team, brings a wealth of expertise in digital transformation and IT security. His career spans over 10 years, during which he has consistently demonstrated his commitment to empowering organizations in harnessing technology for a secure and effective enterprise environment. At Microsoft, Craig plays a pivotal role in engaging with senior executives and technical teams to help them recognize the immense business value of implementing robust security strategies. His holistic approach encompasses securing identities, devices, applications, and data, which is critical in today's fast-paced digital landscape.
Prior to his influential role at Microsoft, Craig served as a Consultant at C/D/H Technology Consultants, a Microsoft Gold partner, where he was instrumental in implementing a range of modern technologies, including Microsoft and VMware solutions. His career trajectory also includes significant experience as the Systems Technical Lead at POH Medical Center in Pontiac, Michigan, where he managed the IT infrastructure across various sectors, including hospital campuses, MRI centers, nursing homes, physician practices, and home health care services. This diverse background gives Craig a comprehensive understanding of the healthcare IT landscape, enabling him to tailor security solutions to meet unique business needs.
Education and Achievements
Craig's educational journey laid a strong foundation for his successful career in technology and management. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Business with a focus on Information Systems from the prestigious Kelley School of Business at Indiana University Bloomington. Furthering his academic pursuits, Craig earned a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Management from Wayne State University in Detroit. His educational credentials are complemented by several professional certifications, including the Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) and Microsoft Certified System Engineer (MCSE), which underscore his expertise in cybersecurity and IT management.
Craig has continually sought to expand his knowledge and skills, keeping pace with the latest developments in technology and security practices. His dedication to professional growth not only enhances his value as a leader but also benefits the organizations he works with, as he brings to the table innovative solutions and strategies that drive business success.
Notable Roles and Contributions
Throughout his career, Craig has held various roles that showcase his versatility and depth of knowledge in technology. At Microsoft, he has undertaken multiple influential positions within the Health and Life Sciences team, including:
- Senior Technology Strategist: Leading projects that align technology solutions with business objectives to enhance security and compliance in health care.
- Security and Compliance Specialist: Focusing on ensuring Microsoft’s health customers maintain strict compliance with regulations while maximizing the security of their systems.
- Modern Workplace Security Specialist: Streamlining security measures for organizations transitioning to cloud-based environments and modern work solutions.
- Mobility Specialist: Helping organizations adapt to the growing demands of mobile technology and secure their data across devices.
- Account Technology Strategist: Building strategic plans that leverage Microsoft's latest technologies to improve health care IT solutions.
- Cloud and Datacenter Technology Specialist: Enhancing the infrastructure capabilities for health care organizations in the cloud.
Before joining Microsoft, Craig made significant contributions while working as a consultant at C/D/H, BlueRock Technologies, and KPMG LLP. In these roles, he provided expert advice and solutions that helped organizations optimize their IT environments and security postures. His ability to analyze complex systems and implement effective solutions has made him a trusted advisor in the technology consulting landscape.
In addition to his technical expertise, Craig's passion for fostering collaboration among teams and driving organizational change sets him apart as a leader. His work not only focuses on technology implementation but also emphasizes change management and strategic alignment with business goals, ensuring successful digital transformation.
Achievements
Craig Eidelman's career has been marked by numerous achievements that reflect his dedication and expertise:
- Pioneering Health Care Security Solutions: At Microsoft, Craig has been at the forefront of developing security strategies tailored to the health care sector, contributing to safer, more efficient patient care environments.
- Transformational Leadership: His ability to engage with senior level executives and influence strategic decisions has led to successful digital transformations across various organizations in the health sector.
- Mentoring Future Leaders: Craig is committed to mentoring aspiring professionals in the technology field, sharing his insights and experiences to cultivate the next generation of IT leaders.
- Health Care Initiatives: He has played a significant role in initiatives that leverage technology to improve patient outcomes and streamline operations within health care settings, underscoring his commitment to improving health care through innovation.
- Continuous Learning and Development: Craig stays updated with industry trends and advancements in technology, ensuring his knowledge remains relevant and applicable to contemporary challenges in the field.
In conclusion, Craig Eidelman is a notable figure in the realms of technology and cybersecurity, particularly within health and life sciences. His extensive experience, combined with an academic background in business and information systems, positions him as a thought leader and innovator in the industry. As he continues to drive meaningful change and secure digital environments for organizations, Craig exemplifies dedication to excellence and a passion for enhancing business outcomes through effective technology solutions.
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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 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.
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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.
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.