SINGAPORE: Singapore news kicks off International Women’s Month by recognising Singapore has one of the world’s highest numbers of women Chief Executive Officers.
Indeed, the Asia-Pacific region (APAC), consisting of East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Oceania, has the highest number of top-level management opportunities for women, a study called 2023 Route to the Top from US-based executive search and management consulting firm Heidrick & Struggles says.
However, this is not to say that women have gained full equality in the corporate world, but that women living in the APAC region, including Singapore, have better opportunities.
There were 225 CEO appointments in the APAC region between 2022 and 2023, 12 per cent of which went to women.
The global average of CEO appointments is 8 per cent. As small as this number is, it’s still one percentage point higher than in 2022.
The figure in Australia and New Zealand nearly doubled to 15 per cent. Sweden comes at 14 per cent, followed by Singapore, Denmark, and Norway at 13 per cent.
On the other end of the scale are Canada, Switzerland, and Mexico, where only 2 per cent of CEOs are women. And perhaps unsurprisingly, in Saudi Arabia, there are none.
Across the globe, the sectors with the highest numbers of women CEOs are telecommunications (14 per cent), pharmaceuticals (14 per cent), and travel and hospitality (13 per cent).
Meanwhile, technology (3 per cent), automotive (3 per cent), and aerospace and manufacturing (2 per cent) are the sectors that have the lowest number of female CEOs.
Additionally, Singapore has the highest ratio of CEOs with ross-sector expertise and regional exposure in APAC, 47 per cent, which is significantly higher than the average around the globe, 34 per cent.
Additionally, Singapore has the highest percentage of internal appointments, 77 per cent, compared to the 65 per cent average across APAC and 63 per cent around the globe.
CEOs in Singapore are also the oldest in APAC, with an average of 57.2 years old.
“Organisations are strategically identifying experienced leaders with diverse backgrounds and cross-border experience, recognising their ability to navigate complexities across multiple geographies and drive innovation across various business lines.
The cross-border experience is increasingly important as Singapore companies look to expand beyond their home market,” says Wu Jiat Hui, Partner-in-charge at Heidrick & Struggles Singapore. /TISG
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