SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Hearsay Systems, the trusted leader in compliant digital communications and workflow solutions for the financial services industry, today announced that the company’s founder and CEO Clara Shih was recognized as Fintech Woman of the Year by Finovate. This award is given to a woman whose achievements and work in fintech-related areas of financial services have helped enhance the sector or raise its profile as a career for women - through education, leadership, mentoring, coaching or acting as a role model. 2019 marks the inaugural year for the Finovate Awards program.
“Finovate has always aspired to highlight the accomplishments of the people and companies driving fintech forward. Our inaugural awards program takes this a step further by celebrating our industry’s brightest stars,” said Greg Palmer, VP of Finovate. “Clara Shih has led the charge of women in fintech since she burst onto the scene. Now she is helping to develop the next generation of leaders. We are delighted to honor her as a true role model.”
Shih has been known as a trailblazer throughout her career. After graduating #1 in the computer science program at Stanford University, she also received an M.S. in computer science and was named a Marshall Scholar. Shih then went on to develop the first social business application in 2007 before penning the New York Times-featured best-seller, The Facebook Era. After founding Hearsay to provide innovative, compliant fintech solutions for advisors and agents, she authored a sequel, The Social Business Imperative. Shih also became the youngest person invited to join Starbucks board of directors -- a position she’s held since 2011.
To help inspire other women, Shih has consistently prioritized mentoring others. She actively engages with female professionals both formally and informally, embracing the power of connecting, celebrating their successes, navigating through challenges, and counseling through failures to help turn them into valuable learning experiences. At Hearsay specifically, Shih encourages her teams to empower one another through activities such as monthly Ladies of Product meetups.
Shih has also emphasized making STEM programs appealing and accessible to girls. From working with Maria Klawe, president of Harvey Mudd College, on the school’s STEM program, which now graduates among the highest number of female engineers in the country, to her involvement with Girls Inc, a national organization that inspires all girls to be strong, smart, and bold, Shih is a strong proponent of education and a role model to women and girls at all stages of their journey.
“I am deeply honored and humbled to receive this award from Finovate-- an organization for which I have tremendous respect as its events have moved fintech forward,” said Shih. “I’m proud to see the industry evolving thanks to the contributions of many amazing women. By supporting one another in big and small ways, we can achieve great things and prove to be an example for others, making fintech stronger in the process.”
With more than 10 years of pioneering financial and banking technology, Finovate created the inaugural Finovate Awards to bring together the best-of-the-best in the financial services industry, recognizing credit unions, banks, fintech firms, and individuals with unique and innovative solutions. The Finovate Awards were developed with a diverse group of judges and 19 categories aimed to highlight innovative financial institutions, products and people from across the industry.
To view all of the Finovate Award winners, please visit https://finovate.com/drumroll-finovate-awards-winners-announced/.
About Hearsay Systems
Hearsay Systems is reinventing the client experience in wealth management, property and casualty, and life insurance with compliant digital communications and workflow solutions. Over 150,000 advisors and agents at the world’s largest financial services and insurance firms leverage Hearsay to engage with customers and build stronger relationships to grow their business.
With Hearsay Cloud for financial services, advisors and agents provide real-time, personalized and seamless client experiences across the right channel – social, texting, and mobile – at the right moment. Automated, pre-built industry workflows for insurance and wealth management provide one-click actionable suggestions for targeted engagement. Built for the enterprise, Hearsay Systems connects data and every client interaction to corporate CRM systems and digital marketing programs – all on a secure, compliant enterprise-ready platform.
Hearsay is headquartered in Silicon Valley with locations throughout North America, Europe, and Asia. Connect on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and the Hearsay blog.
