Nabeela Ixtabalan

Early life

Nabeela Ixtabalan is a first-generation American of Lebanese descent. In her early life, she grew up with a dual cultural identity, which led her to become an advocate for diversity and inclusion. Her family moved to Canada for a better life.

Ixtabalan pursued education in America, graduating from Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business with a dual degree in Marketing and Supply Chain Management & Distribution. Curious about the psychological drivers of the workplace, she later obtained a Master’s degree in Industrial and Organizational Behavior and Design from the University of Texas.

Career

Nabeela Ixtabalan’s professional path began at Starbucks. In 2000, she started as a barista and progressed over eight years into leadership and talent acquisition roles. She then joined IKEA (Ingka Group) in 2008, marking the start of a 12-year tenure spanning multiple countries. After some time working as an HR Manager/Store Manager, she was promoted to Country People & Culture Manager (CHRO) for IKEA U.S., managing the people agenda for over 15,000 co-workers. Her success led to her promotion to VP of IKEA Canada and, eventually, to Global Head of Digital Transformation in Sweden, where she established the Retail Transformation Office and led the digital evolution across 41 countries.

In 2020, Ixtabalan became Walmart Canada’s Executive VP of People and Corporate Affairs. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she was a pivotal voice for mental health, famously introducing herself to her team as a “recovering workaholic” to advocate for work-life balance. In 2022, she was promoted to COO, where she managed the performance of 400+ stores serving 1.5 million customers daily.

As the current founder of NE Consulting, Ixtabalan provides fractional C-suite support, board advisory, and executive coaching to global organizations navigating the tension between scale and culture. Her impact extends into non-profit and education through her role on the Board of Directors for the Miracle Foundation, a charity that supports children without parents. She is also an Executive Coach with the Marshall Goldsmith Group, where she leverages her ICF ACC certification to empower C-suite leaders and mid-level professionals to achieve success. In addition, Ixtabalan is an Advisory Board Member for DMZ, a Board Advisor for the Future Skills Center of Canada, and a faculty member at Competent Boards.

Ixtabalan is also an author. Her book, “Breaking Burnout,” is set to be released in October 2026. She also contributes to the Re-Imagine Success newsletter, Forbes, and Thrive Global. As a prominent member of the Marshall Goldsmith 100 Coaches community, she shares her talent playbooks and advocacy for human sustainability with a global network of elite leadership thinkers.

Net Worth

Nabeela Ixtabalan’s net worth is not publicly disclosed.