Like rojak, a diverse board of directors might comprise all the “right” pieces, but without the balance that brings their contrasting strengths into harmony, a board doesn’t realise its fullest potential.
With Singapore boards demonstrating commendable progress on assembling diverse slates of directors, it is this next stage where we must now grow our capabilities.
The numbers suggest that Singapore-listed companies are making steady progress in improving board diversity. Women held 25.8% of board seats in the 100 largest Singapore-listed companies as at end-2025, an increase of more than 18 percentage points since the Council for Board Diversity (CBD) and its predecessors began tracking the metric in 2013. Between 2021 and 2025, more than 1,200 first-time directors were appointed to the boards of Singapore-listed companies.
With gender diversity leading the way, boards now also appoint directors from a wider range of backgrounds and skills. Encouragingly, board renewal is taking place more often and more regularly.
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However, diversity is meaningless to a business if it cannot be translated into innovation, resilience and better governance. Here lies the crucial next step where more work is needed.
A recent joint study between the CBD and Egon Zehnder found that Singapore directors are less convinced than their global peers about the link between diverse perspectives and performance. Some 89% of Singapore directors believed diversity brings more insightful and informed decisions, on par with the 90% global average. The difference emerges in the strength of that conviction: 40% of Singapore directors strongly agreed that increased diversity of perspectives brought more insightful discussions, compared to 67% worldwide.
Some of the differences could be due to Asians being more measured on rating scales — as one prominent director shared, “Given a choice between ‘agree’ and ‘strongly agree’, I will choose ‘agree’.” Yet, even accounting for such reasons, the signs point to an opportunity for deeper inclusivity. The same study found that Singapore directors were less convinced than their global peers that board discussions are inclusive, open and candid. They are also less certain that members feel comfortable challenging one another.
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Just as a dish will not assemble itself, a diverse and inclusive board must be purposefully built. Boards must have a structured process for assessing skill and background gaps, and wide-reaching recruitment channels that stretch the pool of candidates beyond personal networks and local communities. Discipline on board renewal keeps a board’s pooled expertise up-to-date and protects against the entrenchment of blind spots and complacency.
Furthermore, active intent must exist within the appropriate positive culture. As a society, Singapore may have a cultural inclination towards minimising conflict, as well as deference to experience and seniority. These values support efficient and harmonious organisations, but when taken too far, they can hinder innovation and resilience, as good ideas and valuable insights may not be surfaced.
As part of the journey towards better corporate governance, boards must learn to correct for these biases and foster a culture where constructive challenge and debate are the norm.
Board chairs have an especially important role to play, because they set the tone and expectations for board matters. Chairpersons must encourage and draw out honest viewpoints, and actively invite diverse perspectives and constructive feedback. There is a delicate balance between reaching a quick consensus and reaching a rigorously debated one — a tension that board chairs are undoubtedly familiar with. However, the Egon Zehnder poll suggests that for many boards, there is room to tilt towards more debate and less conformity, especially for major decisions involving significant risk/reward considerations.
The issue is particularly important in companies with major shareholders or executive chairs. It might seem that stakeholders who typically get their way have little incentive to seek differing opinions, but the opposite is true. When a stakeholder’s vote is decisive, it becomes even more critical that the decision is the right one. Systematically ensuring a diversity of perspectives on the board and ensuring that those viewpoints are surfaced and considered are indispensable to arriving at well-judged outcomes.
Directors who have been fortunate to serve on diverse boards with a culture of openness need little convincing of the value diversity brings to the boardroom. In my own experience, each time I learn something new or gain a new perspective from a fellow director during a board discussion, I am reminded that this is diversity in action and how it adds value.
Diversity in action is ultimately what inclusion is about. Good ingredients on their own are not enough. They need to be brought together with a deft hand to create great rojak.
While Singapore boards continue to make progress in improving diversity, inclusion’s emergence as a focus area is a sign that our diversity journey is evolving beyond simply assembling the right ingredients. We must now build on the progress made in diversity and place greater emphasis on strengthening inclusion for better outcomes.
Gan Seow Kee is Co-Chair of the Council for Board Diversity and Chairman of Singapore LNG Corporation
