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Jean-Benoît Houde
Directeur, Relations publiques chez Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ)
Professional Background
Jean-Benoît Houde is a highly accomplished communications professional with extensive experience in public relations and corporate communications. Currently serving as the Director of Communications at la Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), he brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise in strategic communication and public engagement. His career is marked by a series of progressive roles within CDPQ, including Director of Public Relations, Director of Strategic Communications, and Senior Advisor for Strategic Communications. In addition to his pivotal role in shaping communication strategies at CDPQ, he has also served as the main spokesperson for the organization, ensuring clear and effective messaging to multiple stakeholders.
Throughout his career, Jean-Benoît has honed his skills in communication strategy, public relations, and media relations, making him a go-to professional in the field. His dedication to fostering effective communication has greatly contributed to CDPQ's strong brand presence and public engagement initiatives. Beyond his primary responsibilities during the day, Jean-Benoît has cultivated diverse interests in photography, gastronomy, and exploring major metropolitan areas.
Education and Achievements
Jean-Benoît's educational background is a solid foundation for his successful career in communications. He achieved his Baccalauréat in Public Communication from Université Laval, specializing in public relations, advertising, and applied communication. This comprehensive training equipped him with the necessary skills to effectively navigate the complexities of corporate communications. Furthermore, he pursued a Certificat de spécialisation in English language and literature at McGill University, enriching his proficiency in communication and enhancing his ability to engage with a wider audience.
Jean-Benoît's impressive educational background, combined with his extensive experience, positions him as a leading figure in the field of communications. His contributions to CDPQ and the public sector reflect a commitment to excellence and innovation in communication practices.
Notable Achievements
- Leadership at CDPQ: Jean-Benoît has played an instrumental role in guiding CDPQ’s communication strategy to align with its mission and values, significantly enhancing its visibility and reputation.
- Diverse Media Experience: His previous roles as Spokesperson and Communications Director have equipped him with a diverse skill set in managing media relations, crisis communications, and public engagement, greatly contributing to the organization's responsiveness and adaptability in the media landscape.
- Expertise in Public Relations: Having worked extensively with the Liberal Party of Canada as a Press Attaché, Jean-Benoît's background in political communications further emphasizes his versatility and understanding of the public affairs environment.
- Passion Projects: Outside of his professional endeavors, Jean-Benoît has cultivated a passion for photography, sharing his experiences through social media and indulging in the culinary delights of the cities he explores. His personal interests complement his professional life, showcasing a well-rounded individual who thrives on creativity and cultural engagement.
Conclusion
Jean-Benoît Houde is a dynamic communications leader with a rich background in public relations and media strategy. His work at la CDPQ demonstrates a commitment to excellence and innovation, making significant strides in the field of corporate communication. With a strong educational foundation, diverse professional experiences, and a genuine passion for photography and culinary exploration, Jean-Benoît embodies the qualities of a modern communications professional making a difference in today's complex world. His ability to weave personal interests into his professional narrative not only enriches his life but also positions him as a relatable and dynamic figure in the communications landscape.
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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 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'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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