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Tamara Bock
Director Of Development at CITRIS and the Banatao Institute
Professional Background
Tamara Bock is an esteemed alumna of the University of California, Berkeley, where she earned her Bachelor of Arts in German Language and Literature. She also holds a Master’s degree in Humanities from San Francisco State University and has had the invaluable experience of studying at the University of Vienna, Austria. These academic credentials underscore her commitment to knowledge and cultural understanding, which inform her professional endeavors.
Tamara is currently the Director of Development at the Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society (CITRIS) and the Banatao Institute. In this role, she has harnessed her passion for public mission work to divert attention towards technological advancements that benefit society. Her multifaceted experience spans over fifteen years in fundraising, where she actively engages a broad spectrum of donors ranging from individual supporters to large philanthropic organizations, successfully securing gifts between $100 to $1 million and beyond.
Having raised an impressive annual total of over $3.5 million across her portfolio of approximately 200 supporters, Tamara's dedication to fostering deep connections reflects her highly collaborative work ethic.
Prior to her role at CITRIS, Tamara contributed significantly to UC Berkeley's advancement efforts as the Assistant Director of Milestone Philanthropy. She played a pivotal role in increasing donor engagement and ensuring the mission of UC Berkeley was communicated effectively to supporters. Her expertise in the field of development is further underscored by her previous positions, including Development Manager at the San Francisco Community Music Center, Development Director at the Walden Center and School, Corporate Liaison at the San Francisco Jazz, and Development Associate at San Francisco Performances. These diverse experiences have provided Tamara with a well-rounded understanding of the philanthropic landscape and the importance of nurturing donor relationships.
In addition to her professional roles, Tamara volunteers her time as Vice-Chair of UC Berkeley's 500+ member Berkeley Advancement community. This leadership position allows her to collaborate with other advancement professionals, advocating for better philanthropic strategies that benefit the institution she truly cares about.
Education and Achievements
Tamara Bock's educational trajectory laid a strong foundation for her career in fundraising and development. Her undergraduate studies in German Language and Literature not only provided her with linguistic skills but also enabled her to appreciate diverse cultures and perspectives. Following this, her graduate studies at San Francisco State University propelled her into the humanities, fostering critical thinking and analysis, which ultimately serves her well in her professional interactions and initiatives. The opportunity to study at the University of Vienna, Austria, allowed Tamara to experience a rich blend of cultural and educational influences, enhancing her ability to navigate international conversations in her career.
Throughout her 15-year career, Tamara has accumulated a variety of achievements within the nonprofit sector, specifically in fundraising and development roles. Her capacity to connect with donors and stakeholders alike ensures that their philanthropic objectives align seamlessly with her organization's mission. Her talent for storytelling aids in crafting compelling narratives that benefit the causes she represents.
Tamara's commitment to inclusivity and the pursuit of excellence has been a hallmark of her work. She strongly believes in the power of education and innovation to effect positive changes in society. Under her stewardship, organizations have seen substantial growth in donor contributions, which has led to enhanced scholarship, leadership opportunities, and innovative projects.
Achievements
- Successfully raised over $3.5 million annually through diverse donor engagement strategies at CITRIS and the Banatao Institute.
- Strengthened UC Berkeley’s fundraising initiatives as the Assistant Director of Milestone Philanthropy, leading major donor engagement efforts.
- Held multiple key development roles across various prestigious organizations such as the San Francisco Community Music Center, where she was instrumental in their growth and outreach programs.
- Contributed significantly to several successful fundraising campaigns that have facilitated public mission projects across the community.
- Recognized for her collaborative leadership style and her ability to cultivate long-lasting relationships with donors.
- As Vice-Chair of Berkeley Advancement, actively supports policy and strategic discussions around engaging more diverse donors, enhancing fundraising effectiveness across platforms.
Tamara welcomes connections through LinkedIn and seeks collaborative opportunities project that align
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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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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 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. Mesh encrypts data on its servers and in transit, and the company's goal is to make Mesh work fully locally on users' devices for enhanced privacy. Mesh is also SOC 2 Type 2 certified.
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.