This Women’s Month, Jack Hammer CEO Debbie Goodman sat down with Aliyah Allie, Executive Head at X, bigly labs (an innovation hub within Dis-Chem), for a candid conversation about careers, leadership, identity and what it means to lead boldly in 2025.
Aliyah’s journey, from her early days as a research associate at Jack Hammer, to global consulting with McKinsey, to now spearheading innovation in healthcare, is anything but linear. Yet it’s precisely this unconventional path that has shaped her approach to bold, values-driven leadership.
If you missed the live session, you can watch the full recording here:
In the meantime, here are some powerful takeaways from their discussion:
Non-linear Careers Are Strengths, Not Setbacks
Both Debbie and Aliyah shared how their career paths zigzagged across industries and roles – from dance to law to executive search for Debbie, and from consulting to education, NGOs, and healthcare for Aliyah. The lesson? A “messy” CV can be your superpower. Each pivot builds range, resilience, and unique insight.
Bold Leadership Begins with Self-Awareness
Aliyah reflected on how leadership isn’t separate from who you are as a person. The same curiosity, experimentation, and willingness to confront personal blind spots that shape you as an individual also shape the leader you become. For both women, leadership growth meant unlearning old patterns, raising empathy, and consciously choosing “what not to do.”
High Performance ≠ Burnout
Both leaders challenged the outdated belief that excellence requires sacrifice at all costs. True boldness lies in creating conditions for people to thrive: good rest, wellbeing, autonomy, and space to fail. The real revolution in leadership is proving that performance and wellbeing can co-exist – and must, if teams are to solve complex problems.
Navigating Gender and Power with Strategy
While acknowledging the very real structural barriers women face, Aliyah emphasized the importance of understanding “the rules of the game” – and then playing them smartly. From negotiating salaries to claiming space in male-dominated rooms, effectiveness often means framing conversations differently, while still pushing the boundaries of inclusion.
Juggling Ambition and Parenthood is Imperfect but Possible
As a single mother leading a large, high-stakes team, Aliyah shared candidly about guilt, rituals, and creating structural support for her daughter. Debbie echoed the messy but meaningful ways in which careers and parenting intersect. The takeaway? Bold leadership doesn’t mean doing it all perfectly – it means designing rhythms, rituals, and communities that make it possible to do both.
Final Thought
Bold leadership is not about having a flawless plan. It’s about experimentation, self-awareness, and the courage to lead in a way that feels authentic, even when the path is unconventional.