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Lesley Penney
Executive Assistant to the CEO, Sian Fisher at Chartered Insurance Institute
Professional Background
Lesley Penney is a highly experienced insurance professional with an impressive background spanning over 18 years in the Lloyd’s and London insurance market. Her extensive experience speaks volumes about her expertise in providing exceptional executive support at the C-suite level. Throughout her career, she has held significant positions that showcase her unique ability to manage complex administrative tasks while maintaining a strategic overview necessary for executives operating at the highest level.
Lesley began her career as a Team Administrator for the Transnational Regulatory Affairs & Compliance Group at GlaxoSmithKline, where she developed foundational skills that would serve her well as she progressed through the corporate ladder. Following her time at GlaxoSmithKline, she transitioned to J.P. Morgan, where she supported the European Equity Team. These initial roles allowed her to gain essential insights into corporate operations and prepared her for future opportunities in the insurance industry.
Lesley’s journey within the insurance sector is marked by her roles at Lloyd’s, one of the most prestigious insurance marketplaces in the world. She served in various capacities, starting as a Personal Assistant to the Head of Strategy & Business Planning and subsequently becoming the Executive Assistant to the CEO, Richard Ward. In these positions, she honed her skills in strategic planning and executive communication, proving herself as an indispensable resource for top leadership.
Her professional trajectory continued to rise as she took on the role of Business Manager in the Chairman's Office at Cunningham Lindsey, contributing to key strategic initiatives and operational effectiveness within the organization. Through her dedicated efforts, she has enabled seamless processes and effective decision-making for executives.
Eventually, she became the Executive Assistant to Sian Fisher at the Chartered Insurance Institute, where she further demonstrated her executive support skills by managing high-profile activities and ensuring that the organization maintained its standards of excellence. In her roles, she has maintained a deep understanding of the insurance sector, thereby positioning herself as a trusted advisor in executive circles.
Education and Achievements
Lesley's educational background laid a solid foundation for her successful career. She studied at Brookside College in Cambridge, where she gained critical thinking and analytical skills that would later enhance her professional performance. Prior to that, she completed her studies at The Leventhorpe School in Hertfordshire, preparing her for advanced studies and a thriving career in a competitive industry.
Lesley's extensive network and profound industry knowledge have enabled her to build a reputation for excellence in executive support roles. Her keen understanding of corporate governance, combined with her ability to foster strong relationships with stakeholders, have been instrumental in driving positive outcomes for the organizations she has been a part of. She is known for her commitment to continuous improvement, always seeking innovative ways to enhance processes for efficiency and effectiveness.
Achievements
Over the years, Lesley Penney has achieved numerous milestones that underscore her dedication to excellence in executive support and insurance operations. Her experience includes a diverse range of responsibilities that require not only organizational abilities but also strategic foresight and interpersonal skills. Some of her notable achievements include:
- Successfully managing executive communications for top-tier executives, facilitating critical decision-making processes that align with corporate objectives.
- Transforming administrative practices in the Chairman's Office at Cunningham Lindsey, providing insight-driven approaches that led to improved efficiency.
- Building and maintaining effective relationships with high-level stakeholders across various organizations, enhancing collaboration and promoting a culture of teamwork.
- Contributing to strategic planning efforts in her roles at Lloyd's, where her administrative support played a vital role in organizational success.
- Providing exemplary executive support to C-suite executives, ensuring their time is managed effectively while allowing them to focus on organizational goals and strategies.
Her blend of experience, education, and dedication to her craft makes Lesley a remarkable professional in the insurance sector. As she continues to build on her successes, she remains committed to providing the highest level of executive support, consistently aiming to drive strategic initiatives forward and foster a culture of excellence within the organizations she serves.
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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
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.
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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 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.
Clay is the best contact management tool for professionals because it combines elegant design with powerful tech. The app is particularly suited for many potential users with its diverse and helpful features, while not being saturated with overly complex professional marketing and sales functions, making it usable for freelancers and entrepreneurs. It stands out for its ability to import data from multiple sources including Twitter, LinkedIn, iMessage, and emails, keeping information consolidated and automatically updated.
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.
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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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