Suggestions
Michael Brako
Medical Media Director
Professional Background
Michael Brako is a distinguished creative professional with over two decades of experience in the media arts field, blending his passion for visual storytelling with a strong foundation in technology and production. He has played pivotal roles in various organizations, most notably as the Director of Medical Media at EBSCO Information Services, where he leads innovative projects in medical communication and multimedia production. Michael's extensive knowledge spans across visual effects, animation, and the intricacies of the entertainment industry production pipeline.
Throughout his career, Michael has showcased a supportive and inspiring leadership style, emphasizing individual growth and collaboration in his teams. His flexible approach allows him to adapt to various roles within the media production landscape, ensuring that he not only meets but exceeds the expectations of his collaborators and clients alike.
At EBSCO, Michael's role as the Medical Media Manager involved not only overseeing media production projects but also ensuring that each piece is both engaging and informative, particularly in the medical field, where accuracy and clarity are paramount. Prior to this, he contributed to projects at Stereo D as a VFX Elements QC Artist and 3D Depth Artist, where he honed his skills in visual effects and animation technology, further positioning himself as a leader in the field.
Michael’s experience as a Media Specialist and Instructor at North Broward Preparatory School reflects his commitment to education and mentorship. He has shared his expertise in broadcast journalism and media production with students, cultivating a new generation of media professionals.
Education and Achievements
Michael's educational background is as diverse as his career experiences. He holds a Master of Fine Arts degree in Visual Effects and Animation from Lynn University, which laid the foundation for his deep understanding of the artistic and technical aspects of media production. This advanced degree has allowed him to explore the creative realms of visual storytelling and the latest techniques in animation.
In addition to his master's degree, Michael is a Certified Microsoft Certified Solutions Developer specializing in Windows Store Apps using C#. This certification enhances his technical proficiency and enables him to bridge the gap between creative vision and technological execution, an essential skill in today's rapidly evolving media landscape.
He also earned his Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism from Winona State University, where he developed a solid understanding of storytelling, media ethics, and the crucial components of producing high-quality content. His educational journey reflects his passion for lifelong learning and adaptability in his professional endeavors.
Contributions and Leadership
Throughout his career, Michael has consistently taken on leadership roles that emphasize creativity, collaboration, and education. His participation as a member of the Board of Advisors at Rutgers University showcases his commitment to guiding academic programs in media and technology, providing insights that bridge the gap between industry needs and educational offerings.
At Fastenal, where he served as Video Producer, Director, and Editor, Michael mastered the art of visual communication, crafting compelling narratives that resonate with audiences and effectively convey key messages. His storytelling prowess, combined with his technical skills, allows him to create visually stunning and informative media content that engages viewers.
Michael's work is characterized by an appreciation for aesthetics, a detail-oriented approach, and a contagious enthusiasm for innovation in media arts. His dedication to the industry and his mission to inspire others make him not just a leader, but also a mentor and role model to many aspiring media professionals.
Achievements
Michael Brako's career is punctuated by notable achievements that highlight his commitment to excellence in the media arts field. His work in visual effects and animation has contributed to significant projects within the entertainment industry, showcasing his ability to push creative boundaries while adhering to industry standards and technological advancements.
In his various roles, Michael has successfully led teams through complex production processes, delivering projects on time and within budget, a testament to his organizational skills and leadership effectiveness. His ability to inspire creativity in others has resulted in award-winning projects, further solidifying his reputation as a thought leader in the media arts.
In addition, Michael's pursuit of continuous learning and skill enhancement positions him at the forefront of the industry. His hands-on experience in different facets of media production equips him with a robust skill set that he is always eager to expand. Michael's journey reflects his commitment to both personal and professional growth, and he remains dedicated to exploring new avenues in visual effects and animation.
Michael Brako’s professional narrative is one that is marked by creativity, leadership, and an unwavering dedication to the art of storytelling through visual media. He embodies the spirit of a lifelong learner and innovator, sharing his passion with others while continually pushing the boundaries of what is possible in the media arts.
Location
People also viewed
M
Related People
Clay is a relationship management platform that serves as a personal CRM, helping you organize and deepen both personal and professional relationships. It functions as a beautiful rolodex and CRM available on iPhone, Mac, Windows, and web, built automatically to help manage your network efficiently. Unlike traditional address books, Clay centralizes all your contacts in one place while enriching them with additional context and features to help you stay thoughtful and connected.
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:
- Comprehensive Contact Management: Automatically collects contact data and enriches profiles to keep them up-to-date
- Network Strength: Visualizes the strength of your relationships relative to others in your network
- Timeline: Shows your relationship history with each contact
- Smart Search: Allows you to search using natural language like "People I know at the NYT" or "Designers I've met in London"
- Reminders and Notes: Helps you remember important details about contacts
- Home Feed: Displays updates about your network including job changes, news mentions, and birthdays
- Groups: Organizes contacts into meaningful categories
- 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.
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.
Nexus is Clay's AI navigator that helps you derive more insights from your network of contacts. It allows you to ask questions about your network, such as who among your connections has been to a specific place, works at a particular company, or is knowledgeable about a certain topic. Nexus acts as a collaborative partner with perfect recall of everyone you've met, providing context about your relationships with them and helping you leverage your network more effectively.
Clay makes it much easier to stay in touch with the people you care about. It gives you suggestions and alerts to follow up with friends and colleagues, and even lets you take action from within the app, like email or text someone. Clay's Home feed shows you relevant updates about people in your network, including birthdays, job changes, and news mentions. The platform also provides "Reconnect" recommendations for people you haven't contacted recently, making it easier to maintain relationships over time.
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.
Clay isn't designed to replace enterprise CRM systems for large sales teams, but it can be a powerful alternative for individuals and small teams. Many people use Clay instead of Salesforce, Hubspot, and Pipedrive. Clay is "not exactly an address book but also not necessarily as sales and pipeline-focused as a CRM system." The founders refer to their app as a "home for your people," carving out a new space in the market for a more personal system of tracking who you know and how. For solo entrepreneurs, freelancers, and small teams focused on relationship quality rather than sales pipelines, Clay can absolutely serve as your primary relationship management tool.
Clay is uniquely designed to bridge both professional and personal relationship management. Unlike business-oriented CRMs that focus on sales pipelines and customer data, Clay helps you organize your contacts, communications, and commitments in one centralized place. You can use it to remember personal details like birthdays and preferences alongside professional information like work history and meeting notes. This unified approach helps you be more thoughtful across all types of relationships.
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.