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Giselle Leung
Managing Director at The Global Impact Investing Network
Professional Background
Giselle Leung is an accomplished leader in the field of impact investing, known for her dedication to fostering social and economic equity through innovative financial strategies. Currently serving as the Managing Director at The Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN), Giselle has built a remarkable career focused on integrating social good with capital investment. Her role at GIIN highlights her expertise in strategic engagement and investment practice, making substantial strides in the global impact investing landscape.
Before her current position, Giselle held several key roles at GIIN that allowed her to shape the organization's strategic direction. As a Director and a Senior Manager of Strategic Engagement, she played a critical role in spearheading initiatives that connect impact investors with opportunities that foster sustainable development. Her leadership as the Founding Manager of the Investors' Council further underscores her influential position within the impact investing community.
Giselle's commitment to creating solutions that address poverty is evident from her previous roles, including her tenure as Manager at Enterprise Solutions to Poverty (ESP). At ESP, she was instrumental in developing frameworks that empower underserved communities through innovative financial mechanisms.
Giselle's early experiences also laid a solid foundation for her career. Her stint as a Farber Intern in Venture Philanthropy at REDF and her time as a Summer Associate at Citigroup’s Public Sector Group enriched her knowledge of finance. Additionally, her intern experience with the House International Relations Committee - Western Hemisphere Subcommittee provided valuable insights into policy-making processes that affect economic development.
Through her diverse experiences, Giselle has cultivated an expansive network and substantial expertise in impact investing, positioning her as a trusted authority in her field. Her international experiences, including her volunteer service as a Microenterprise Development Specialist with the Peace Corps in Panama, have deepened her understanding of global economic challenges and reinforced her commitment to social impact.
Education and Achievements
Giselle Leung's educational background is distinguished and tailored to equip her with the skills necessary for a successful career in impact investing and economic policy. She studied for her Bachelor's degree in Psychology at the prestigious Harvard University, an institution known for its rigorous academic environment and intellectual resources. Her time at Harvard provided her with critical insights into human behavior and societal influences, which she leverages in her current work to better understand stakeholder motivations and drive engagement in impact investing.
To further enhance her capabilities in management and social enterprise, Giselle pursued an MBA in Management and Social Enterprise from Columbia University - Columbia Business School. This program bolstered her leadership skills, allowing her to navigate complex business challenges while maintaining a focus on social responsibility.
In addition to her MBA, Giselle earned a Master of International Affairs in International Economic Policy from Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA). This advanced degree equipped her with a comprehensive understanding of global economic frameworks, policy implications, and strategic economic decision-making, all of which are instrumental in her work at the GIIN and beyond.
Giselle's educational journey, full of exceptional learning opportunities at two of the world's leading universities, has played a pivotal role in shaping her professional trajectory. Her relentless quest for knowledge and improvement has ultimately made her a formidable leader in the impact investing sector.
Notable Achievements
Throughout her impressive career, Giselle Leung has achieved numerous accolades and milestones that underscore her impact in the world of finance and social good. One of her most notable achievements is her instrumental role in expanding the reach and effectiveness of the Global Impact Investing Network. Under her leadership, GIIN has become an essential organization for investors looking to create social and environmental value alongside financial returns.
Moreover, her strategic initiatives at GIIN have led to enhanced frameworks for measuring impact, an essential aspect for investors seeking to understand the outcomes of their investments. Through innovative programs and partnerships, Giselle has significantly raised awareness about the importance of impact investing and its role in addressing global challenges such as poverty, climate change, and social injustice.
In addition to her work at GIIN, Giselle has contributed to scholarly discussions on impact investing, sharing her insights and experiences at various industry conferences and seminars. Her thought leadership continues to inspire a new generation of investors committed to principled investing.
Giselle's commitment to fostering inclusivity in the finance sector is evident from her public engagement and efforts to mentor young professionals interested in impact investing and social entrepreneurship. She is a respected figure in her community and beyond, championing initiatives that empower underrepresented voices in finance and investment.
Overall, Giselle Leung’s professional journey embodies resilience, innovation, and a steadfast commitment to making the world a better place through investing. With her extensive background and expertise, she stands as a leader not only in impact investing but also in the broader mission of creating sustainable economic opportunities for all.
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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.
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.
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.
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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 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.