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Tom Squire
Co-Founder & Chief Commercial Officer
Professional Background
Tom Squire is a distinguished entrepreneur and business strategist renowned for his significant contributions to the fintech landscape. As the co-founder and Chief Commercial Officer of Shieldpay, he has been instrumental in driving financial technology innovations that streamline payment processes and enhance marketplace solutions. With a dynamic career trajectory spanning various high-impact roles within Shieldpay, including Managing Director, Commercial Director, and Enterprise Director, Tom has cultivated an extensive skill set in commercial strategy, operations, and team leadership. His journey in the fintech sector reflects a unique blend of entrepreneurial spirit and strategic acumen, paired with a commitment to continuous growth and learning.
Before embarking on his entrepreneurial journey, Tom honed his expertise in management and strategy at renowned institutions such as Deloitte UK and Smith & Williamson. As a manager, he developed comprehensive financial strategies that enabled businesses to thrive in competitive markets. His experience as a strategy and finance consultant for a rental management services startup further equipped him with the essential tools to navigate the complexities of business growth and development.
Tom’s passion for understanding different business perspectives led him to leave the corporate world, propelling him to help birth Shieldpay. This leap into entrepreneurship was rooted in a desire to explore the operational nuances of startups, an experience he believes cannot be fully captured through books alone. His practical knowledge, complemented by theoretical frameworks, forms a considerable part of his approach to business.
Education and Achievements
Tom Squire pursued his formal education at Harrow and furthered his academic journey with a Master of Arts in Spanish and International Business from the University of Edinburgh. His educational background equips him with invaluable knowledge across cultural dimensions and commerce, aspects that are increasingly crucial in today’s globalized economy.
Throughout his career, Tom has not only focused on the professional realm but has also committed himself to personal development through reading. He actively engages with literature that promotes a growth mindset and continuous learning. Some of his favorite books include Grit by Angela Duckworth, which emphasizes resilience and perseverance; Black Box Thinking by Matthew Syed, which focuses on learning from failure; Be More Pirate by Sam Conniff Allende, a call to challenge norms; and Team of Teams by General Stanley McChrystal, promoting adaptability in organizational structures. Tom's reading list reflects his philosophy in business: to remain curious, adaptable, and learn from varied experiences.
Key Skills and Expertise
As a generalist, Tom possesses the unique ability to thrive at the intersection of various disciplines. This versatility allows him to liaise effectively with diverse teams, ensuring collaborative success and ultimately guiding Shieldpay towards reaching its long-term goals. Strategic thinking combined with a meticulous eye for detail underscores his daily activities, where he balances immediate operational demands with overarching business strategies. He thrives on finding solutions, addressing challenges, and encouraging team growth, fostering a commercial ecosystem that is both agile and innovative.
Tom's leadership style embodies a proactive approach; he believes in the power of teamwork and the significance of empowering individuals across the organization. This ethos has nurtured a vibrant culture at Shieldpay, where critical thinking and innovation are paramount. His journey illustrates a commitment to fostering a workplace that encourages learning, experimentation, and, importantly, fun in tackling challenges together.
If you are interested in collaborations, insights into the fintech industry, or simply wish to share a good book recommendation, Tom Squire remains open to connecting with like-minded individuals and professionals interested in driving change in the commercial landscape.
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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 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.
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