Challenge Convention, Live With Purpose

Alicia Boler Davis Working to Improve People’s Lives at Alto Pharmacy

As Chief Executive Officer of Alto Pharmacy, Alicia Boler Davis is having more than a second act – she took her nearly 25 years at General Motors to a stint at Amazon before making her third major career change at the startup online pharmacy.

Boler Davis says there are two constants in her life and work history: Her desire to challenge conventional ideas and to live with purpose by supporting and uplifting people.

“One of the reasons I joined Alto was it is a company that sought to fix the antiquated pharmacy industry. All my career, I’ve been afforded the ability to fix, rebuild and change the status quo,” Boler Davis said. “For me, being able to match my skills, experiences, and values to a company is everything. That means never choosing the easy path – that’s not what is rewarding to me. I want to improve people’s lives.”

Alto offers a full-service digital pharmacy with a software platform that streamlines prescription acquisition for patients and doctors. It raised $120 million in additional funding in September 2023, and Alto began working with Mark Cuban’s Cost Plus Drug Company in October 2023 as part of its growth efforts.

Leading the Way From GM to Amazon

Boler Davis started her career at General Motors, where she worked in manufacturing, product development, customer experience, product quality, and as Executive Vice President of Global Manufacturing and Labor Relations.

“The summer before my senior year in high school, GM sponsored me for a six-week program at GMI [now Kettering University],” Boler Davis said. “GM is responsible for getting me my start in engineering, and that’s why I have love and reverence for the company.”

Boler Davis then moved to Amazon, where she led global fulfillment as Senior Vice President of Global Customer Fulfillment and was a member of the company’s senior team. She says Amazon’s employees speak in terms of “peaks,” or the number of seasons they’ve worked through, such as the holidays or the fast-paced pandemic.

“I joined a year before the pandemic hit, and it was intense and fast-paced. Then it went to another level,” Boler Davis said. “I jumped in. It was a scary decision, but I always say it was one of the best I made. I had to get over my fear of taking a chance after so many years. … In the end, it was about people. Amazon sparked that entrepreneurial spirit in me, and that led me to Alto.”

Communicate With Candor

Impact is what Boler Davis says is what speaks to her as a leader and someone who cares deeply about equity and inclusion.

“We have to get back to our shared values, our purpose,” she said. “It’s about finding the things that bring you together, aligning with employees, patients, investors and shareholders. What are we trying to accomplish here? What does success look like? How can we all benefit from this?”

Boler Davis says one of Alto’s company values – communicate with candor – says everything about her work there.

“You have to have an environment where people can be honest about what they’re thinking, feeling and offering in terms of solutions,” Boler Davis said. “If you stifle that, if you avoid debate, you lose trust and you miss opportunities to win.”