One of my favorite moments from our Pacvue + Helium 10 Company Kick-Off came dur
By Melissa Burdick · February 13, 2026 · Curated by George's Blog
One of my favorite moments from our Pacvue + Helium 10 Company Kick-Off came during my fireside chat with Ali Miller.
She shared something that will sound painfully familiar to many women in tech and commerce:
“Early in my career, those dreaded words showed up in my reviews, year after year:
Be more assertive.”
But instead of forcing herself into a leadership style that didn’t feel authentic, Ali did something far more powerful.
She reframed what assertiveness could look like:
“I had to work through how to drive more confident, clear decision-making in a way that felt true to me. And what I realized was that I could do it by leaning into the things that came naturally to me, like listening, empathy, and helping people with other viewpoints feel heard.”
That shift changed everything – not because decisions became easier, but because they became, as Ali put it, “more durable.”
When people feel heard, they commit. When they commit, teams move faster and more cohesively.
I’ve seen this play out again and again, in more industries than just tech. For women building careers in retail media and commerce, take Ali’s model to heart: You don’t have to become someone else to be an effective leader.
Would love to hear from other women: How have you developed your leadership style over time?