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Nina Kleaveland
Co-founder & CEO at Lanyard, A Shared Stay
Professional Background
Nina Kleaveland is an accomplished strategic leader who has made significant contributions to the hospitality industry through her innovative approach and unrelenting passion for achieving excellence. A dynamic force within the hospitality sector, she currently serves as the Co-founder and CEO of Lanyard, A Shared Stay, where she focuses on creating meaningful shared experiences through innovative hospitality solutions.
Throughout her career, Nina has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to driving change and generating outstanding results. Her background includes pivotal roles at esteemed organizations such as Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, American Express, and Starwood Hotels & Resorts. Over her tenure at Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, she advanced through several key positions, culminating in her role as Vice President and Global Head of Strategy, where she played a critical role in shaping corporate strategy while her insight into market dynamics and consumer behavior enabled the identification of untapped opportunities, resulting in enhanced operational performance and market share growth.
Nina’s experience and leadership capabilities have also been enriched by her tenure at American Express, where she served as Senior Manager of Business Development & Strategy for LoyaltyEdge and held pivotal roles focused on partnerships and marketing. Her early career at Starwood Hotels & Resorts provided her with a strong foundation in marketing and strategic partnerships, which has proven invaluable throughout her journey in the hospitality sector. Nina’s ability to seamlessly pivot between the strategic and executional aspects of her role has earned her a reputation for being a results-oriented leader who gets things done.
Education and Achievements
Nina’s academic qualifications are equally impressive. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Biology and French from the prestigious University of Pennsylvania. This interdisciplinary background reflects her diverse interests and commitment to academic excellence. Building on her undergraduate studies, Nina pursued a Master of Business Administration (MBA) with a concentration in Marketing and Management from The Wharton School, also at the University of Pennsylvania. Wharton, known for its rigorous curriculum and strong emphasis on developing business leaders, equipped Nina with the essential tools to navigate and excel in the competitive landscape of the hospitality industry.
In addition to her professional endeavors, Nina is actively involved in supporting future leaders and the community through her participation on the Advisory Council of the Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth and the Advisory Board of the University of Pennsylvania Professional Women’s Alliance. Her dedication to fostering talent and empowering women in business underscores her commitment to mentorship and professional development.
Achievements
Nina has a proven track record of accomplishing significant milestones in her career. As Vice President at Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, she successfully led numerous strategic initiatives that resulted in increased customer engagement and profitability. Her deep understanding of the hospitality market dynamics and customer preferences has enabled her to spearhead innovative programs and services that drive guest satisfaction and loyalty.
At American Express, Nina was instrumental in elevating the LoyaltyEdge program through strategic partnerships, enhancing the organization's ability to connect with customers and deliver value. Her expertise in partnership marketing and acquisition strategies contributed to the expansion of AMEX’s reach in markets such as Hong Kong and Taiwan.
Under her leadership at Lanyard, A Shared Stay, Nina is committed to redefining the way travelers experience hospitality, focusing on collaborative spaces that enhance social connections and community involvement. Her vision to innovate within the hospitality sector aligns with changing consumer trends that favor personalized, shared experiences over traditional accommodations. Through her strategic leadership, Lanyard is positioned to grow and lead in shared stay hospitality, continuing to improve the guest experience across various touchpoints.
Nina Kleaveland’s journey in the hospitality sector exemplifies dedication, strategic thinking, and a commitment to transforming the industry. As a respected leader with considerable expertise, her work continues to inspire those around her and shapes the future of hospitality.
tags([
Hospitality Industry
Leadership
Strategic Planning
Entrepreneurship
Marketing
Data-driven Strategy
Partnerships
Business Development
Women in Business
Professional Mentoring
Community Engagement
Travel Experience
Shared Accommodations
Corporate Strategy
Customer Engagement
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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.
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- Reminders and Notes: Helps you remember important details about contacts
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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.
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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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