Council for Board Diversity (CBD) Singapore
We honour our fellow member, Swee Chen Goh, on her recent appointment as co-chair of the Council for Board Diversity (CBD) Singapore. Her appointment marks another milestone in an exemplary career dedicated to leadership excellence and organizational transformation. As Chairman of the Nanyang Technological University Board of Trustees and the National Arts Council, along with her board directorships at JTC Corporation and Singapore Airlines, Swee Chen exemplifies the caliber of leadership that defines our IWF community. Her appointment comes at an encouraging moment in Singapore’s journey toward greater board diversity, with women now representing 34.3% of statutory board directors and 31.7% of top IPC board positions. As co-chair of CBD, Swee Chen will play an instrumental role in further advancing diversity and good governance in Singapore’s boardrooms. We congratulate Swee Chen on this significant appointment and look forward to her continued impact in promoting inclusive leadership across Singapore’s corporate landscape. Read the original featured article on LinkedIn here: Linkedin
A Singaporean Success Story
The remarkable journey of Jessica Tan, recently featured on CNA, showcases an extraordinary rise from humble beginnings to becoming the president of Sun Life Canada. Her stellar career trajectory includes leading China’s largest insurance company Ping An Group, where she served as group co-CEO, growing their client base from 80 million to 230 million during her 11-year tenure. This outstanding leadership earned her recognition as one of Fortune Magazine’s World’s 50 Greatest Leaders in 2021. Tan’s academic excellence shone through early, from her days at CHIJ St Nicholas Girls’ School to achieving perfect grades at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where she earned two Bachelor of Science degrees and a master’s in electrical engineering and computer science. Her professional journey began at McKinsey & Company in 2000. Her commitment to excellence led her to Ping An Group in 2013, where she transformed the company by integrating innovative eldercare services into their financial services. At Ping An Group, Tan’s vision for eldercare services resulted in 200,000 families signing up within three years of launch, demonstrating her ability to create substantial social impact while driving business growth. Now at Sun Life Canada, which serves 12 million clients – more than a quarter of Canada’s population – she aims to help Canadians achieve financial security and healthier lives during their retirement years. This move marks what she calls “chapter three” of her professional and personal life, allowing her to explore the North American market. The 48-year-old Singaporean’s success story is particularly noteworthy given the current corporate landscape, where women occupied only 8.2 percent of CEO positions in S&P 500 companies in 2023. Tan’s leadership philosophy emphasizes making a difference beyond profit margins, focusing on creating real impact for clients and communities. Her journey from a humble beginning to leading major financial institutions serves as an inspiring testament to the power of determination, and visionary leadership. Read the original featured article on CNA here: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/today/up-close/global-view-humble-roots-ping-4862376?cid=FBcna&fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR35ziculrSPE8LKa7_sr2aB5fsKMyIzE7-SqEqCTI_LX3WfnNKIa2xNuw8_aem_G-8TR3cxIEdR1IRzVE_1uQ https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessica-tan-077b84b/?originalSubdomain=sg
A Trailblazer in Nanotechnology
The extraordinary journey of Jackie Ying, featured on Forbes 50 Over 50, is a scientist who helped define nanoscience and nanotechnology. She illustrates a remarkable ascent from her academic beginnings to becoming a global pioneer with over 400 research papers and 200 patents to her name. Her distinguished career began with a Ph.D. from Princeton and a professorship at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1992. Her commitment to scientific advancement led her back to Singapore, where she was raised, to lead the Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology in 2003. From there onwards, she has revolutionized the field and under her leadership, the Institute transformed from obscurity into a world-class research center that has generated more than 650 patents and 1,330 research papers. Her exceptional contribution to the field of science has cemented her status as a defining figure in her field, with her journey now continuing as executive director of research and innovation at King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Centre in Riyadh Read the original featured article on Forbes here: https://www.forbes.com/sites/maggiemcgrath/2025/01/23/50-over-50-global-2025/
