Welcome to a special Shoptalk 2023 Bonus episode of the Remarkable Retail podcast, presented by MarketDial, recorded live beachside in the Wizeline podcasting studio at Mandalay Bay Beach, Las Vegas. In this episode, we meet with Amena Ali, Chief Executive Officer at Optoro. Optoro is a leading provider of returns technology for retail brands, using data science and real-time decision-making automation to make returns better for customers, retailers, and the planet.
Welcome to a special Shoptalk 2023 Bonus episode of the Remarkable Retail podcast, presented by MarketDial, recorded live beachside in the Wizeline podcasting studio at Mandalay Bay Beach, Las Vegas.
In this episode, we meet with Amena Ali, Chief Executive Officer at Optoro. Optoro is a leading provider of returns technology for retail brands, using data science and real-time decision-making automation to make returns better for customers, retailers, and the planet. We wanted to explore their innovations in and around product returns. Amena is new to the business and the retail industry, so with a fresh perspective, Steve and I were curious about what Amena and Optoro were up to.
About Amena
Amena Ali is a proven leader with more than 20 years experience in delivering value for customers and successfully growing software businesses.
Amena has an exceptional track record of scaling high-growth technology businesses in SaaS and enterprise software, including at her two recent CEO roles. She has led successful revenue generation at startups, middle market, and public companies.
Amena most recently served as CEO of Airside Mobile, a leader in digital identity verification technology. Previously, Ali was CEO of database monitoring company VividCortex, where she led the company to grow ARR by 80% in 17 months. She has held several senior leadership positions, including at Earth Networks, Softek Storage Solutions (acquired by IBM) and Legato Systems (acquired by EMC). She serves on the board of database DevOps company Liquibase. Amena started her career as a management consultant at Bain & Company. She holds an MBA from the Yale School of Management and a Bachelor’s Degree from Wesleyan University.
Outside of work, Amena enjoys traveling, her family, yoga, and “a good walk spoiled”, aka chasing a small white ball with a long stick on rolling greens.
About Us
Steve Dennis is an advisor, keynote speaker and author on strategic growth and business innovation. You can learn more about Steve on his website. The expanded and revised edition of his bestselling book Remarkable Retail: How To Win & Keep Customers in the Age of Disruption is now available at Amazon or just about anywhere else books are sold. Steve regularly shares his insights in his role as a Forbes senior contributor and on Twitter and LinkedIn. You can also check out his speaker "sizzle" reel here.
Michael LeBlanc is the Founder & President of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc and a Senior Advisor to Retail Council of Canada as part of his advisory and consulting practice. He brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience, and has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career. Michael is the producer and host of a network of leading podcasts including Canada’s top retail industry podcast, The Voice of Retail, plus Global eCommerce Leaders podcast, and The Food Professor with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois. You can learn more about Michael here or on LinkedIn.
Be sure and check out Michael's latest venture for fun and influencer riches - Last Request Barbecue, his YouTube BBQ cooking channel!