Shaping a Sustainable Future with Micromobility
For years, the National Women’s History Alliance has celebrated the impact of women in leading long-term change, from 2024’s celebration of women leading inclusion efforts, to 2025’s celebration of community resilience & financial sustainability, to this year’s celebration: Women Shaping a Sustainable Future. As the environment is a key factor in a sustainable future, micromobility plays an important role in how some cities have reduced their carbon emissions recently – some to “remarkable” levels.
To celebrate Women’s History Month, Motivate’s employee resource group, Women Who Motivate, asked several female operational leaders about their experiences working in the micromobility industry and what advice they would give to anyone considering a similar career path. Their insights reveal common threads of solutions-focused leadership relying on cooperation, flexibility, and success.
The Respondents
Allison Abbott, Vice President of Market Operations
Jessica Theriault, General Manager, Boston Operations
Maryam Behmanesh, Assistant Operations Manager, Service Delivery – Bay Area
Mariama Maynard, Assistant Operations Manager, Service Delivery – New York
What is the best career advice you have ever received?
Allison: “Your career path won’t always be linear—and that’s okay. Embrace change and challenges and stay open to pivoting. Some of the best opportunities come from moving in a new direction…Careers are full of ups and downs, so don’t put too much pressure on yourself. To sustain the long haul, sometimes you need to pause and reengage when you’re able.”
Jessica: “Focus on solving problems, not just pointing them out. Operations moves fast and things don’t always go perfectly, so the people who make the biggest impact are the ones who step up, take ownership, and help move solutions forward.”
Maryam: “The best career advice I’ve received is to never judge people based on the first interaction you have with them. Sometimes the temptation is there to form an opinion right away, but people are often dealing with things you can’t see. Giving people time and a second chance to show who they really are can change how you work together and build much stronger relationships.”
