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Tom Tresser
Civic Educator at CivicLab Chicago
Professional Background
Tom Tresser is a passionate civic educator and an ardent advocate for social change, renowned for his deep commitment to community engagement and innovative approaches to addressing civic challenges. For over a decade, Tom has dedicated his career to fostering civic education and public engagement in various capacities, particularly focusing on nonprofit policy, advocacy, and community organizing. Since 2008, he has conducted over 200 public presentations and community forums, showcasing his expertise in fostering creativity, leadership, and accountability within communities.
As a co-founder of the CivicLab, America’s only co-working space dedicated to collaboration, education, and innovation for social justice and civic engagement, Tom has been pivotal in driving efforts that accelerate government accountability and civic participation. Located in Chicago's vibrant West Loop, the CivicLab serves as a laboratory for social change, emphasizing the importance of civic involvement in fostering a just society. The organization continues to serve as a 'do tank', where community members can collaborate and innovate to address some of the pressing issues facing their neighborhoods.
In addition to his work at the CivicLab, Tom is recognized for his role as an organizer and editor of the influential publication "Chicago Is Not Broke. Funding the City We Deserve,” which highlights critical urban issues and offers solutions for sustainable urban development. His commitment to transparency and civic education is further exemplified through his involvement in the TIF Illumination Project, a volunteer-driven initiative that aims to shed light on complex public finance issues affecting urban communities.
Education and Achievements
Tom Tresser’s educational background is as diverse as his professional journey, having pursued studies at prestigious institutions that have equipped him with skills and knowledge vital for his work in civic engagement and nonprofit management. He is a studied Fellow at Leadership Greater Chicago, which emphasizes his commitment to developing leadership skills aimed at enhancing community capacity and resilience. Furthermore, he holds a Certificate in Business Management from The University of Chicago Booth School of Business, providing him with essential skills in organizational management that support his advocacy efforts.
Additionally, Tom earned a Master of Science in Urban Development from the Spertus Institute for Jewish Learning and Leadership, a credential that underscores his understanding of urban dynamics and community development. His background in nonprofit management is complemented by a certificate obtained at Roosevelt University, where he honed his skills in leading nonprofit organizations toward fulfilling their missions and serving their communities effectively.
His educational journey includes studies at several other prominent institutions, such as DePaul University, Illinois Institute of Technology, University of Illinois Chicago, and Loyola University Chicago, which can be seen as a testament to his lifelong commitment to learning and personal development.
Notable Contributions and Community Engagement
Throughout his career, Tom has played a significant role in various educational institutions, serving as an adjunct instructor at prestigious universities including National Louis University, Adler University, and Roosevelt University. His teaching consistently emphasizes the importance of civic engagement and social responsibility, ensuring that future leaders are equipped with the knowledge and skills necessary to drive community change. Besides this, he has served as a civics instructor at i.c.stars, guiding young professionals in understanding the intertwining of technology, social entrepreneurship, and civic responsibility.
Tom’s extensive experience extends beyond academia; he has also contributed to various community organizations as a public defender, cultural planning organizer, and managing director. His tenure as the Managing Director at Shirley Mordine & Company Dance Theater and Pegasus Players highlights his ability to integrate arts into community activism, creating platforms that empower marginalized voices through performance and cultural expression.
As a former candidate for Cook County Board President representing the Green Party, Tom has demonstrated his commitment to progressive governance and civic responsibility. His role as an organizer at No Games Chicago, where he was a delegate at the International Olympic Committee, further exemplifies his commitment to ensuring that urban development and major city events prioritize community welfare and sustainability.
Moreover, Tom has worked as a civic engagement consultant at Columbia College Chicago and presented at Imagining America, offering his insights and fostering dialogue around critical civic issues affecting communities across the country. His dedication to building strong community networks has also led him to positions such as Director of Audience Development at Collaboraction Theatre, showcasing his understanding of the intersection of arts and community engagement.
Conclusion
As a seasoned civic educator, public defender, and creativity champion, Tom Tresser continues to inspire and empower individuals to engage actively in their communities, advocating for transparency, accountability, and inclusivity in civic affairs. His extensive experience in teaching, community organizing, and nonprofit management has positioned him as a pivotal figure in Chicago’s social justice landscape. Through his work with the CivicLab and various community engagement initiatives, Tom remains a steadfast advocate for meaningful civic participation, fostering a culture of creativity and collaboration that drives social change forward. With his unwavering commitment to the betterment of urban communities, Tom is undoubtedly an influential leader in the realm of civic engagement and social justice.
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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:
- Comprehensive Contact Management: Automatically collects contact data and enriches profiles to keep them up-to-date
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- 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.