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Megan Strawford
Senior Grant Management Specialist at Mitacs
Professional Background
Megan Strawford is a distinguished Senior Grant Management Specialist at Mitacs, where she utilizes her extensive knowledge in animal science and applied ethology to manage and optimize grants that fund important research initiatives across Canada. With a remarkable background that spans various roles in research and project management, she has consistently demonstrated her expertise in coordinating projects and funding mechanisms that support animal welfare and ethology research.
Prior to taking on her current role at Mitacs, Megan dedicated several years to gaining valuable experience as a Grant Management Specialist at the same organization, where she honed her skills in grant administration. Her journey in the field of research began at the University of British Columbia (UBC), where she served as a Research Technician in the renowned ICORD department, contributing to groundbreaking research that seeks to improve the lives of individuals suffering from various neurological conditions.
Megan's impressive career also includes a significant tenure at Prairie Swine Centre Inc., where she held various positions, including Manager of Contract Research and Research Coordinator. In these roles, she successfully oversaw multiple research projects focused on swine production and welfare, significantly impacting the industry’s practices and policies. Her expertise in project management and grant acquisition has made her a vital asset to the teams she has been part of.
Moreover, Megan's early career experiences include serving as a Project Coordinator at the University of Saskatchewan, where she focused on Poultry Transport projects, further enriching her understanding of animal welfare from an operational perspective.
Education and Achievements
Megan holds a Master’s degree in Applied Ethology and Animal Welfare from the University of Saskatchewan, where she developed a keen interest in how animal behavior can inform better welfare practices in various agricultural sectors. Her scholarly pursuits have equipped her with theoretical and practical frameworks for addressing challenges in animal care and management.
Additionally, she earned a Bachelor’s degree in Animal Science from the University of Saskatchewan, building a strong foundation in the biological and behavioral sciences related to domesticated animals. This academic background, combined with her professional experiences, positions her as a leading expert in the field of animal welfare and research management.
Achievements
Throughout her career, Megan Strawford has achieved remarkable milestones that underline her commitment to animal welfare and research excellence. At Mitacs, she has played an instrumental role in promoting initiatives that support collaborative research efforts, enhancing the responsible treatment of animals in various settings. Her role in obtaining and managing research grants has not only facilitated vital studies but also fostered relationships between academic institutions and research bodies.
Megan's contributions to the Prairie Swine Centre Inc. led to significant advancements in swine research, influencing better practices that have a lasting impact on animal husbandry. Furthermore, her previous work at the University of Saskatchewan, particularly on poultry welfare, has helped raise awareness about the ethical considerations surrounding animal transport and care.
Through her career, Megan has not only excelled in individual roles but has also paved the way for future research in animal welfare and ethology, making her a respected leader in her field.
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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
- Home Feed: Displays updates about your network including job changes, news mentions, and birthdays
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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 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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