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Matthew Panas
Executive Team Lead (Food) at Target
Professional Background
Matthew Panas has cultivated an impressive career in retail management, showcasing his ability to lead teams and drive operational excellence in some of the most reputable grocery chains across the Midwest. He currently serves as the Executive Team Lead (Grocery) at Target, where he leverages his extensive experience and knowledge in grocery operations to optimize store performance and enhance team productivity. Matthew's career journey reflects a deep commitment to not only delivering exceptional customer service but also nurturing talent within his teams.
Prior to his current role at Target, Matthew held several significant positions at Roundy's Supermarkets, Inc., where he was instrumental in overseeing store operations, managing staff, and implementing procedures that fostered efficiency and customer satisfaction. His journey at Roundy's began as an Operations Management Trainee and quickly escalated to roles such as Grocery Operations Manager and Store Director. His ability to navigate the complexities of grocery retailing enabled him to effectively lead diverse teams while enhancing the overall shopping experience for customers across the stores he managed.
In addition to his roles within various supermarkets, Matthew's extensive background also includes time spent as an Assistant Manager at Metro Market and as a Grocery Operations Manager, where he honed his skills in inventory management, staffing, and strategic planning. His leadership style is characterized by his inclusive approach and extensive knowledge of store operations which has allowed him to succeed in dynamic retail environments.
Education and Achievements
Matthew Panas began his academic journey at Madison Area Technical College, where he studied General Studies, laying a solid foundation of knowledge and skills that would serve him well in his professional endeavors. He further advanced his education by earning a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Business Administration and Management from Edgewood College. This educational background provided Matthew with the strategic thinking and management skills essential for navigating the challenges of the competitive retail sector.
With his blend of academic preparation and hands-on experience, Matthew has developed a robust understanding of business operations, team dynamics, and customer relationship management, making him a sought-after leader and mentor in the industry.
Notable Achievements
Matthew's professional journey is marked by several notable achievements that reflect his dedication and drive. His strategic initiatives at Roundy's Supermarkets not only improved sales performance but also greatly enhanced team engagement, demonstrating his capability to inspire and empower his colleagues.
Recognized for his impactful leadership, Matthew has consistently fostered an environment of collaboration, ensuring that team members are not only well-trained but also motivated to deliver their best. His commitment to excellence was evident during his tenure as Interim Store Director at Roundy's Supermarkets, where he successfully led the team through transitional periods with ease, ensuring that operational standards remained high and customer satisfaction was prioritized.
Furthermore, his diverse work experiences, ranging from a bartender at State Street Brats to a driver and merchandiser at PepsiCo, illustrate his versatility and ability to adapt to various roles. This adaptability is a testament to his comprehensive understanding of the retail landscape and its customer base.
Involvement in community engagements, such as his role as a Special Events Intern at the Madison Children's Museum, has also highlighted his commitment to contributing positively to his local community. Through various internships and volunteer roles, Matthew has consistently sought to impact the community positively, emphasizing the importance of corporate social responsibility in his career.
Matthew Panas epitomizes the spirit of leadership and community involvement, and he continues to be a prominent figure in the retail industry, demonstrating how dedication, strategic thinking, and a customer-first approach can lead to both personal and professional success.
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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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- Timeline: Shows your relationship history with each contact
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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.
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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 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.