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Jeanette Makings
Head of Financial Education at Close Brothers, developing financial education programmes that inspire and add value.
Professional Background
Jeanette Makings is a dedicated and experienced financial education expert who has made significant contributions to the field of financial advice and education within organizations across the UK. Currently serving as the Head of Financial Education Services at Close Brothers Asset Management, Jeanette leads a specialized team focused on delivering top-notch financial education and advisory services tailored to the needs of employees at some of the UK's most prestigious organizations. With over 50 years of experience in the financial sector, Close Brothers and Jeanette have established themselves as leaders in providing essential support to employees as they navigate their financial journeys.
At Close Brothers, Jeanette and her team work diligently to understand the unique concerns and priorities organizations face, particularly those related to employee financial readiness. Whether assisting staff approaching retirement, responding to pension reforms, or creating a culture of financial confidence, Jeanette's commitment is unwavering. Her expertise extends to helping employees grasp the complexities of financial benefits, tax planning, share schemes, and pension options. In an ever-evolving financial landscape, Jeanette plays a crucial role in guiding employees through major transitions such as company mergers, pension changes, and auto-enrolment situations. Her mission is not only to inspire individual financial responsibility among employees but to ensure that organizations cultivate a workforce capable of making informed financial choices.
Education and Achievements
Jeanette Makings embarked on her educational journey at The University of Edinburgh, where she gained foundational skills that would serve as the bedrock of her successful career in finance. Jeanette's commitment to financial excellence led her to further her education by studying to become a Chartered Accountant at the esteemed Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. This rigorous training equipped her with in-depth knowledge and skills in financial reporting, taxation, and strategic financial management, making her an invaluable asset in any organization.
Jeanette's career saw her take on significant roles in respected firms, including serving as a Senior Manager in Corporate Recovery at both EY and Arthur Andersen & Co. In these positions, she honed her skills in corporate finance, working directly with distressed businesses to develop recovery strategies and manage complex financial situations. These formative experiences provided her with a deep understanding of financial structures and the challenges faced by organizations, further enhancing her ability to provide insightful financial education services at Close Brothers.
Achievements
Jeanette's influence in the financial realm is profound, marked by her dedication to enhancing the financial literacy of employees. Among her notable achievements, she has successfully designed and implemented comprehensive financial education programs that have transformed corporate cultures and empowered countless employees to take charge of their financial futures. By instilling financial confidence in employees, Jeanette has helped organizations foster a more informed and engaged workforce. Her innovative approach emphasizes that informed employees not only benefit personally but also contribute to the long-term success of the organizations they represent.
Furthermore, Jeanette's efforts have seen her lead initiatives aimed at adapting to pension reforms and supporting employees in understanding their benefits better. Her commitment to guiding staff through complex financial issues ensures that employees feel prepared and empowered in shifting landscapes that might otherwise seem daunting. Through her work, Jeanette has been pivotal in creating environments where employees are inspired to enhance their knowledge and understanding of financial opportunities, which is of paramount importance in today’s fast-evolving economic climate.
In her leadership role, Jeanette embodies the spirit of innovation in financial education, tirelessly advocating for accountability, empowerment, and knowledge sharing within organizations. Her ability to connect with staff and provide tailored, meaningful educational resources sets a high standard in the industry. In aligning Close Brothers' financial education services with both organizational goals and individual employee needs, she has made a lasting impact that enhances the overall health and prosperity of the businesses she partners with. Under her guidance, Close Brothers continues to be a trusted ally in financial education, inspiring organizations to take proactive stances in supporting their employees.
In summary, Jeanette Makings stands out as a leader in financial education, driven by a passion for empowering individuals and organizations alike. Through her extensive expertise and commitment to client needs, she embodies the values of integrity, excellence, and dedication, making her a respected figure in the financial landscape.
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Mesh 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.
Mesh 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
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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
Mesh 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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Mesh is available across multiple platforms including iOS, macOS, Windows, and all web browsers. Mesh 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.
Mesh 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. Mesh offers a Pro Plan ($10 when billed annually) with unlimited contacts. Mesh for Teams starts at $49/month/seat. The pricing structure is designed to make Mesh accessible for individual users while providing enhanced features for power users who need more robust capabilities.
Yes, Mesh offers extensive integration capabilities. Mesh introduced a new Integrations Catalog that centralizes information on all of the products and services Mesh 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. Mesh 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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Mesh 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. Mesh 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, Mesh 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.
Mesh 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.
Mesh offers many advantages over other personal CRMs. Unlike business-oriented CRMs that focus on sales pipelines and customer data, Mesh 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. Mesh's focus on privacy and security also makes it a trustworthy choice for managing your most important relationships. Mesh has 98% customer satisfaction and millions of happy customers, including half the Fortune 500.
Mesh 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 Mesh beneficial.
Mesh offers competitive pricing in the personal CRM market. Mesh 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, Mesh's comprehensive feature set and elegant design justify its pricing for professionals who value relationship management.
Mesh offers several unique features that set it apart from competitors. Mesh 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. Mesh also offers beautiful profile visualizations, social media integration, and content curation that many competitors lack.
Yes. Mesh 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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Mesh'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. Mesh 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 Mesh a comprehensive hub for all your relationship information.
Mesh's AI capabilities are at the forefront of personal CRM innovation. Nexus, Mesh'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, Mesh has embraced AI to provide deeper insights and more natural interaction with your relationship data.
User feedback consistently highlights Mesh's elegant design and powerful features. Many users describe Mesh 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 Mesh eliminated their need for multiple tools, appreciating its minimalist, user-friendly interface and AI integration capabilities.