Willie Yao

Observer
DISC Type : ic

Head of Engineering at Clay

New York, New York, United States

Overview

Willie Yao is the Head of Engineering at Clay, building AI-native tools for GTM teams. Previously at Notion, he led the Scale organization, overseeing infrastructure and enterprise engineering to support millions of users. He began his career at Airbnb and holds a Bachelor of Arts from Harvard University.

Willie is passionate about guiding the next generation of tech companies, serving as a Scout for Greylock where he advises early-stage startups. Outside of work, his interests include reading, traveling, hiking, skiing, and mountaineering.

He has spoken publicly about developer experience, sharing insights from scaling teams at hypergrowth companies like Airbnb and Notion on the "Engineering Enablement" podcast.

Personality Overview

Assertive

Example Seeker

Curious

They are likely to ask many questions and look heavily for supporting information.  They can sound friendly and charming but can quickly change gears to become inquisitive and probing. They are generally strong communicators and are not easy to convince.

Topics They Care About

AI in GTM
His current role at Clay is focused on creating AI-native workflows that transform how go-to-market teams operate and connect with customers.
Developer Experience
A recurring topic in his career, he has shared his expertise on podcasts, focusing on building a customer-first mindset for internal engineering teams.
Enterprise Scalability
As Head of Infrastructure at Notion, he was directly responsible for scaling core backend systems to meet the demands of millions of enterprise users.

Media Appearances

Willie has no verified media appearances

Work History

10-2025
Head of Engineering at Clay
6-2023
Scout at Greylock
6-2023 - 10-2025
Engineering, Enterprise + Infrastructure at Notion
1-2022 - 6-2024
Head Of Infrastructure at Notion
9-2021 - 1-2022
Engineering Manager, Infrastructure at Notion

Education

Bachelor of Arts (BA) from Harvard University

More Information

Social Presence :

Prographics :

Exp : 11 Location : New York, New York, United States Job Level : Mid-senior Designation : Head of Engineering at Clay
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Insights For Selling To Willie

During A Call Or A Meeting

DO's

  • Share testimonials from known people and give multiple examples of product value
  • Help them understand the risk aspect fully while inspiring confidence
  • Help them realize that there is no personal risk in making this decision

DONT's

  • Don’t try to rush them into a decision, provide all necessary information first
  • Don’t be too objective but make sure to pad your storytelling with data points
  • Don’t brush off any concerns, take all questions seriously

When Cold Calling

When Writing An Email

While Negotiating & Closing

    The secret to closing fast with Willie is

  • Proven value, strong testimonials are important to them, relationships will have some weightage.
  • Will you ever get a clear answer from Willie

  • They are practical yet friendly, don’t expect a clear no very often.

Insights For Deal Planning

    How fast (or slow) will Willie move?

  • They like to analyze well and then make their decisions.
  • Can Willie take some risk or not?

  • They evaluate their decisions systematically and are less likely to take risks.

You And Willie

Personality Compatibility


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