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Tom Kotarac
Senior Vice President at Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago
Professional Background
Tom Kotarac is a seasoned leader with extensive experience in transportation and infrastructure policy, as well as a strong background in legislative affairs. Currently, he serves as the Senior Vice President at the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago, a role in which he plays a pivotal part in shaping strategic initiatives and policy recommendations that improve the quality of life in the Chicago region. With his broad expertise and leadership skills, Tom is committed to addressing key issues and driving impactful change through collaborative efforts with both public and private sector stakeholders.
In his previous role as Vice President of Transportation & Infrastructure at the Civic Committee, Tom successfully advocated for sustainable transportation solutions and infrastructure improvements that benefit the Chicago community. His efforts in this capacity have led to significant advancements in urban planning initiatives and government policy, positioning him as a key voice in the sector.
Tom's extensive career in public service began in Washington, D.C., where he held several influential positions. He served as the Deputy Executive Director for Policy & Programming at the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning, overseeing critical projects that shape the region’s infrastructure landscape. His dedication to effective policy formulation and implementation enabled him to facilitate meaningful collaborations between local, state, and federal entities.
In addition to his roles in local governance, Tom has made substantial contributions at the federal level, beginning with his tenure in the U.S. Senate. As a Senior Policy Advisor, Projects Director, and Legislative Assistant, he worked diligently to develop and implement key legislation related to transportation, infrastructure, and urban development. His skillful navigation of the legislative process enabled him to effectively advocate for and support policies that drive economic growth and enhance public infrastructure.
Tom's deep understanding of the legislative landscape is further highlighted by his previous experiences as a Congressional Aide and Legislative Correspondent for the U.S. House of Representatives. The breadth of his experience in these roles underscored the importance of citizen engagement and informed policymaking, which he actively championed throughout his career. Prior to his service in the government, Tom also worked as the Citizen Outreach Director at the Illinois Public Interest Research Group (PIRG), where he gained vital insights into public advocacy and grassroots movements.
Education and Achievements
Tom Kotarac completed his studies at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he honed the foundational skills and knowledge that would lead him to a successful career in public service and infrastructure policy. His educational background provided him with critical analytical and problem-solving abilities that he has continuously applied throughout his professional journey.
Tom is recognized for his contributions to the field of transportation and urban planning, building a reputation as a leading voice in advocacy efforts for policy development. His ability to engage multiple stakeholders, develop actionable policies, and advocate at various levels of government has garnered him respect and admiration across the sectors. Whether it’s through public speaking engagements, contributions to think tanks, or involvement in advisory committees, Tom consistently seeks to inspire and influence others in the field.
Furthermore, Tom's focus on collaborative endeavors has resulted in numerous successful projects that prioritize community needs, ensuring that infrastructural developments are sustainable and equitable for all citizens. His commitment to transparency and responsible governance aligns perfectly with the values of organizations he is part of, and this has allowed him to lead initiatives that build public trust and accountability.
Achievements
Throughout his career, Tom has not only held prestigious positions but has also made significant strides in infrastructure policy that directly benefit communities. His work at the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago is marked by successful initiatives that bridge the gap between private and public interests, solidifying partnerships that yield measurable results. Tom’s leadership has helped to spearhead projects that enhance community accessibility and improve quality of life in urban environments.
At various points in his career, he has also been instrumental in policy breakthroughs and important legislative measures that address pressing issues in transportation and infrastructure. Tom's contributions have not gone unnoticed, as he has received accolades for his efforts in fostering innovative approaches to urban planning, sustainable transportation, and civic engagement.
Tom Kotarac’s journey reflects a passion for public service, a commitment to improving urban living conditions, and a determination to drive forward-thinking policies that shape the future of transportation and infrastructure.
His wealth of experience makes him an invaluable asset to any organization focused on creating positive change within communities, fostering innovation in infrastructure, and advocating for smart transportation solutions that benefit all citizens.
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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.
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.
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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 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.