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Katie Mihell
Chief Operating Officer - Westpac's Digital 'Banking as a Service' Business
Professional Background
Katie Mihell is a seasoned professional with over 20 years of extensive experience in the financial services and telecommunications industries. Her career journey began in Silicon Valley, where she started as a computer programmer, gaining a deep understanding of the full software development lifecycle. This foundational experience equipped her with the necessary skills to drive technology-led innovation across various sectors.
After relocating to the United Kingdom, Katie seized new opportunities presented by significant advancements in telecommunications infrastructure and technologies. During her tenure at Unisys, she played a crucial role in defining groundbreaking solutions, such as 'telco in a box' and Voice Over IP (VOIP) billing systems, at a time when IP technologies were transforming business models. This initial foray into the telecommunications landscape paved the way for her role as one of the first employees at an Application Service Provider (ASP) startup, where she further honed her expertise in tech-driven business strategies.
Katie's most notable contributions came during her impressive 10-year career at Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CommBank). Here, she joined several innovative teams with a mandate to rethink existing practices and implement transformative changes. Her roles spanned various sectors within the bank, including internal advisory teams focused on cross-functional service reviews, as well as Global Asset Management and Strategy initiatives specifically within the Institutional & Business Bank segments. Through her efforts, she contributed to the bank's strategic objectives and financial performance, continuously seeking improved customer engagement and operational efficiency.
In addition to her corporate roles, Katie made a significant impact as the co-founder and leader of the Women in Focus community at CommBank. This initiative was designed to empower women—especially those in business leadership roles, such as entrepreneurs and CEOs—by challenging existing norms and delivering innovative customer experience models. Her dedication to fostering financial independence among Indigenous Australians through micro-finance solutions exemplifies her commitment to community empowerment and social equity. Under her leadership, the Women in Focus community thrived, creating valuable connections and experiential learning opportunities for thousands of women.
Education and Achievements
Katie Mihell boasts an impressive educational background, which has equipped her with a robust foundation in business management and finance. She studied for her Graduate qualification at the prestigious Australian Institute of Company Directors, where she gained insights into corporate governance and leadership. Additionally, she pursued a Graduate Diploma in Applied Finance and Investment at the Securities Institute of Australia, further expanding her expertise in financial management.
Katie holds an MBA from the renowned Australian Graduate School of Management, which sharpened her strategic thinking and operational skills. Her academic journey began with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Management, with a strong focus on Marketing and Accounting, from Queensland University of Technology. This diverse educational background has not only nurtured her analytical skills but has also fostered a strategic mindset that has significantly contributed to her roles in various organizations.
Notable Achievements
Throughout her career, Katie has held several esteemed positions that reflect her leadership and strategic acumen. Most recently, she served as the Chief Operating Officer for Westpac's Digital 'Banking-as-a-Service,' where she was instrumental in driving the bank's digital transformation initiatives. Prior to this, she was the Head of Growth Partnerships in Corporate & Business Development at Westpac Group, where she cultivated key partnerships integral to the bank's growth strategy.
Before transitioning to Westpac, Katie enjoyed a successful tenure at Commonwealth Bank of Australia, where she held various senior executive positions. As the Executive Manager for Strategy across Business & Private Banking and Institutional Banking & Markets, she played a pivotal role in shaping the bank's strategic direction. Her experience as Executive Manager of Finance & Operations for Global Asset Management at Colonial First State showcases her multifaceted skill set across finance operations.
Furthermore, Katie's impressive career includes significant consulting roles at leading firms. She began her consulting journey at Accenture, where she worked as a Senior Consultant, advising clients on effective business strategies. Her prior experience as a Senior Pre Sales Consultant at Unisys and Senior Consultant at Copernicus Global Billing Systems demonstrates her ability to support organizations through technological innovations and billing solutions.
Conclusion
Katie Mihell is a trailblazer in the financial services and telecommunications sectors, leveraging over two decades of experience to drive transformative change. Her commitment to empowering women, promoting technological innovation, and enhancing customer experiences positions her as a leading figure in her field. As she continues to break barriers and challenge the status quo, Katie remains dedicated to shaping the future of banking and community empowerment, inspiring others along the way.
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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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- 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
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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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