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Stephen Gilman
Former Director, Boston Main Streets at City of Boston
Professional Background
Stephen Gilman has carved a remarkable career dedicated to the development and revitalization of small businesses within the Greater Boston area. As the Program Director for Boston Main Streets (BMS) in the Mayor's Office of Economic Development (OED), Stephen oversees the inspiring initiatives that aim to preserve and promote the unique character of Boston's neighborhoods. A standout effort since its establishment in 1995 in partnership with the National Trust for Historic Preservation, BMS represents the first multi-district urban Main Street program in the United States. Under Stephen's leadership, the program has empowered numerous small businesses across Boston, helping them thrive and adapt in a constantly changing economic landscape.
In his role, Stephen oversees 20 distinct Main Street organizations, coordinating their efforts with a talented team of Neighborhood Business Managers. The primary goal of BMS and OED is to enhance neighborhood vitality, ensuring that Boston's diverse small businesses not only survive but flourish, creating vibrant spaces that residents love to shop and live in. Through his dedication and vision, Stephen has fostered a supportive environment that allows businesses to grow, thereby strengthening community ties and contributing to a more sustainable local economy.
Education and Achievements
Stephen's educational background complements his professional endeavors. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Audiology from the University of Northern Colorado, where he cultivated a keen understanding of communication and people's needs. Furthering his academic journey, he obtained a Master of Arts in Counseling, specializing in Vocational Rehabilitation from Western Oregon University. This educational foundation equips Stephen with both the knowledge and insight necessary for effective engagement with diverse populations and understanding the economic challenges faced by small business owners.
Stephen's involvement with Main Streets began in 1997 when he and a devoted group of local neighbors took the initiative to apply for Main Street designation for their commercial corridor. This grassroots effort culminated in the founding of the Washington Gateway Main Street in Boston’s vibrant South End, marking the beginning of Stephen's long-term commitment to community development. His passion for small business advocacy led him to join the City of Boston in 1999, where he applied his entrepreneurial spirit as he worked to enhance small business development initiatives.
In 2000, Stephen took on the role of Neighborhood Business Manager for Boston Main Streets, where he honed his skills in providing targeted support to individual businesses. His natural leadership capabilities shone through, and in 2008, he was promoted to Program Director. This pivotal role solidified his status as a vital figure in the realm of urban economic development, further driving the successes of the Boston Main Streets program for over a decade.
Achievements
Throughout his impressive career, Stephen Gilman has achieved numerous milestones that highlight his unwavering commitment to small business development and community enhancement. His strategic initiatives have resulted in the creation and retention of countless jobs, supporting not only the businesses themselves but also the local economy. Under his direction, Boston Main Streets has continued to secure critical funding and resources for both established and emerging businesses, ensuring that they have the necessary tools to adapt and thrive.
Stephen's collaborative approach has garnered recognition and support from various stakeholders within the city, including city officials, community organizations, and local business owners. His ability to bridge gaps between different sectors has been instrumental in promoting a comprehensive understanding of the dynamics of urban small businesses.
As a small business owner himself, Stephen possesses a unique perspective that enriches his work. He understands the challenges faced by entrepreneurs and actively advocates for policies and programs that benefit small businesses. His expertise is further underscored by his ability to communicate effectively and facilitate connections among various community members.
In conclusion, Stephen Gilman continues to champion the cause of small business development through his role as Program Director at the Mayor's Office of Economic Development and Boston Main Streets. His extensive background, educational qualifications, and firsthand experience as a small business owner provide him with invaluable insight into the complexities of urban economic development. Through his dedication and strategic leadership, he plays a vital role in making Boston's neighborhoods not only economically resilient but also vibrant places that residents take pride in.
Stephen Gilman's impactful journey showcases his commitment to fostering community and economic growth within Boston, making him a significant asset to the city’s landscape of small businesses.
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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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- 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 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.
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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.