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Peter Leykam
User Experience Researcher at Coinbase - We're Hiring!
Professional Background
Peter Leykam brings a wealth of experience as a design anthropologist, uniquely blending research and design to address user needs effectively. His professional journey spans diverse industries, demonstrating his adaptability and expertise in enhancing user experiences. Currently, Peter serves as a User Experience Researcher at Coinbase, where he leverages his anthropological insights to optimize user interactions in the rapidly evolving field of cryptocurrency.
Before joining Coinbase, Peter honed his skills at ComplyAdvantage as a User Researcher, contributing critical insights that shaped user-friendly compliance solutions. His previous role as a Senior User Researcher at Alibaba.com showcased his ability to navigate complex systems in e-commerce, aligning user expectations with business objectives. Moreover, as the User Research Lead at LifeBEAM, Peter significantly improved product usability and user satisfaction in the health technology sector.
Peter's versatility is underscored by his freelance experience as a UX Designer/Design Anthropologist, where he undertook various projects tailored to client needs. His consulting role at Pinlei Consultants allowed him to further apply his knowledge, advising organizations on best practices in user experience design.
In addition to his corporate roles, Peter’s background includes academic contributions as a Graduate Student Instructor at UC Santa Cruz, where he shared his passion for anthropology with the next generation of learners. His experience as a Program Assistant at the Center for Employment Opportunities demonstrated his commitment to social impact through effective user experience research and implementation strategies. As an editor at Madeforchina.com, he showcased his ability to communicate complex ideas clearly and engagingly, further solidifying his skills in written and digital communication.
Education and Achievements
Peter Leykam’s academic foundation is rooted in a diverse educational background that equips him with a comprehensive understanding of human behavior and cultural dynamics. He is a PhD Candidate (ABD) in Anthropology at the University of California, Santa Cruz. His doctoral studies have enriched his research skills and deepened his insights into the user experience, a vital asset in his professional roles. Previous to this, he earned a Master’s Degree in Anthropology from Hunter College, where he focused on understanding the intricacies of cultural interaction and user-centered design.
Peter’s academic journey began at Guilford College, where he obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Religion/Religious Studies. This unique focus on religious studies provided him with a nuanced perspective on cultural values and beliefs, which he integrates into his approach to design and user research.
Achievements
Throughout his career, Peter has consistently demonstrated an ability to bridge the gap between business goals and user needs. His work across various sectors has helped organizations improve their product offerings and align services with user expectations. Notably, his efforts at Alibaba.com contributed to enhanced e-commerce solutions that catered directly to user preferences while driving business success. At Coinbase, Peter's insights significantly influenced how the company approaches user engagement, establishing best practices in user-centered design in the fintech industry.
Beyond his corporate accomplishments, Peter's active participation in academic environments has allowed him to shape the future of anthropology and design education. As a Graduate Student Instructor, he guided students in understanding how anthropological methods apply to design, fostering a new wave of innovative thinkers in the field. Additionally, his writing and editing contributions at Madeforchina.com have expanded knowledge sharing across communities, particularly concerning intersections of culture and technology.
Peter Leykam is truly a multifaceted professional who combines a profound understanding of human behavior with practical design skills. His passion for user-centered approaches continues to influence both his professional and academic endeavors, making him a prominent figure in the field of design anthropology.
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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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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 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.
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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.
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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.
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.