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Mary Randers
Dean of Admission at Willamette University
Professional Background
Mary Randers is a highly accomplished professional in the field of admissions and enrollment management. With extensive experience that spans multiple prestigious institutions, she has made a significant impact on student recruitment and admission strategies. Currently serving as the Dean of Admission at Willamette University, Mary utilizes her strategic planning and data-driven decision-making skills to effectively manage the admissions process, ensuring that the university attracts a diverse and talented student body. Her journey in higher education has been marked by a commitment to developing teams and fostering environments where aspirational students can flourish.
Prior to her role at Willamette University, Mary held various key positions, notably as the Director of Admission at Willamette University itself, where she laid the groundwork for innovative admission practices. Her progressive journey in admissions began as the Senior Associate Director of Admission at Whitman College, where she honed her skills in marketing and communications while effectively recruiting students who align with the institution's mission. Her career includes significant roles as the Dean of College Prep & Inspire Counselor at Uplift Education, where she impacted the lives of countless students by guiding them toward successful futures in higher education.
Mary’s foundational experiences include critical roles such as the Associate Director of Admission/Web Recruitment Coordinator at Southwestern University and various positions at Texas Lutheran University, including Assistant Director of Transfer Admissions and Regional Admissions Representative. Through these roles, she developed an intricate understanding of the enrollment challenges faced by educational institutions, further enhancing her ability to drive data-informed strategies that increase enrollment and student diversity.
Education and Achievements
Mary Randers boasts a robust educational background that complements her hands-on experience in admissions. She pursued a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business, Architecture, and Design at Southwestern University, providing her with a strong foundational knowledge of business principles and creative thinking. Currently, she is furthering her education and professional development through a Master of Liberal Arts, focusing on Management at the prestigious Harvard Extension School, demonstrating her commitment to lifelong learning and leadership.
Mary's educational pursuits are not only academic; they include practical applications as she implements theories and principles learned in her studies to real-world challenges in admissions. Additionally, a brief study at Auburn University has contributed to her well-rounded skill set, preparing her to address the multifaceted dynamics of student recruitment.
Skills and Expertise
Mary possesses a diverse skill set that is critical to her success in the admissions landscape. She is an expert in Strategic Planning, employing data-driven decision-making to inform recruitment strategies. Her proficiency in Developing Teams helps her cultivate a high-performance culture within her teams, inspiring them to achieve ambitious enrollment goals. Mary is also highly skilled in Financial Aid Modeling, providing her with the tools necessary to optimize financial resources and support student success.
In a rapidly evolving digital world, Mary has kept pace with emerging technologies in marketing and communications, showcasing her adeptness with Slate CRM (Technolutions), the Adobe Creative Suite, as well as social media and digital marketing strategies. Her talents allow her to craft compelling narratives that resonate with prospective students and their families, creating an inviting image of the institutions she represents.
Achievements
Throughout her career, Mary Randers has celebrated numerous achievements that underscore her impact on the institutions she has served. As a leader, her strategic initiatives have contributed to significant increases in student enrollment and retention rates. At Willamette University, her forward-thinking approach to admissions has helped establish strong community ties and increased awareness of the university's offerings.
Mary's collaborative efforts with faculty and staff have resulted in innovative recruitment events that generate interest in higher education among diverse populations. She has been instrumental in developing partnerships with high schools and community organizations to create programs that demystify the college admissions process for underserved students.
In addition to her roles in admission, Mary has fostered the growth of digital marketing efforts within the institutions she has worked for, effectively leveraging technology to reach prospective students more efficiently. Her knack for storytelling and visual design has amplified community engagement through social media channels, facilitating interactions that resonate well with the target audience.
Looking Ahead
As she continues to advance her education and professional practice, Mary Randers embodies the qualities of a lifelong learner and a dedicated leader in the higher education sector. Her vision for creating supportive environments for students from all backgrounds positions her as a promising figure in the future of admissions and enrollment management. With a commitment to driving innovative practices and fostering inclusion, Mary is well-prepared to tackle the evolving challenges of student recruitment in an increasingly competitive 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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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.
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.
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.