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Report by The American Chamber of Commerce in Singapore (AmChamSG), Accenture and WEConnect International show that supplier diversity drives revenue growth, but women entrepreneurs continue to face structural barriers in procurement
SINGAPORE, Oct. 11, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Chamber of Commerce in Singapore (AmChamSG), in collaboration with Accenture and WEConnect International, launched 'The Diversity Dividend: Why it Pays to Engage Women Owned Businesses in Southeast Asia' at the 2025 AmChamSG SME ACCelerate Forum with Ms. Yeo Wan Ling, Assistant Secretary-General, National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) and Member of Parliament, Punggol GRC.
The report includes analysis of the supplier diversity of 631 companies in Singapore, Vietnam and Indonesia, and found that corporate revenue growth increases by 2.2% when suppliers increase women representation in leadership by 5%.
At the forum, Anoop Sagoo, Chief Executive Officer, Southeast Asia at Accenture, highlighted findings from the report, noting that "companies embracing supplier diversity experience tangible benefits, including enhanced performance and revenue growth. By implementing the recommendations in this report, stakeholders can unlock the full potential of women-owned businesses, fostering a more inclusive and resilient business ecosystem."
Based on a survey of 121 women entrepreneurs in Singapore, Vietnam and Indonesia, structural barriers in the procurement environment like overly complicated processes and long payment terms continue to limit access for women entrepreneurs.
- Only 23% of women-owned businesses in Singapore supply large buyers, compared to 34% in Vietnam and 58% in Indonesia.
- In Singapore, long payment terms or delayed payments and meeting complex procurement requirements or certifications are the biggest obstacles for women-owned businesses (70%).
- Lack of transparency in the selection process and lack of mentorship or support navigating corporate procurement processes are the biggest obstacles for women-owned businesses in Indonesia and Vietnam.
- Women-owned businesses in Singapore cited visibility and recognition in the business ecosystem as the area where they need the most support (79%).
- In Indonesia and Vietnam, training in finance, operations or marketing were highlighted as the most requested forms of support (84-86%).
"Anytime a company selects a new vendor in search of innovation, there is a risk. However, it is also a risk to hire the same vendor year over year that may or may not offer the best total value over time," noted Elizabeth Vazquez, CEO and co-founder of WEConnect International.
Dr. Hsien-Hsien Lei, Chief Executive Officer of AmChamSG said, "Business networks can bridge the gap between MNCs, SMEs, investors and policymakers. Through platforms like the SME ACCelerate Forum, AmChamSG provides opportunities for valuable connections that are vital for opening doors for SMEs to participate in large-scale supply chains.
Supplier diversity is not just about inclusion – it is business advantage."
Download the full report 'The Diversity Dividend: Why it Pays to Engage Women Owned Businesses in Southeast Asia' here: https://amcham.com.sg/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/The-Diversity-Dividend-Final-Version-Website.pdf
About AmCham Singapore
Established in 1973, the American Chamber of Commerce in Singapore (AmChamSG) is the largest and the most active international business association in Singapore and Southeast Asia, with nearly 700 American and other global companies with significant U.S. business interests. AmChamSG is an independent, non-partisan business organization with the goal of offering insights and facilitating access and connections that provide members with a comprehensive understanding of the local, regional, and global operating environments. Our mission - to create value for our members by providing advocacy, community, and thought leadership. Visit: www.amcham.com.sg
About WEConnect International
WEConnect International is the leading global non-profit dedicated to driving money into the hands of women business owners by connecting them with large corporate, multilateral and government buyers around the world. Its 180+ member buyers represent more than $4 trillion in annual purchasing power and are committed to sourcing more from women-owned businesses in over 135 countries. WEConnect International identifies, educates, registers and certifies businesses that are at least 51% womenowned, managed and controlled, providing Women's Business Enterprise Certification in over 60 countries. With a global network of 20,000+ women-owned businesses, WEConnect International is committed to unleashing the full economic potential of women-owned businesses worldwide. Visit: www.weconnectinternational.org
Report by The American Chamber of Commerce in Singapore (AmChamSG), Accenture and WEConnect International show that supplier diversity drives revenue growth, but women entrepreneurs continue to face structural barriers in procurement
SINGAPORE, Oct. 11, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Chamber of Commerce in Singapore (AmChamSG), in collaboration with Accenture and WEConnect International, launched 'The Diversity Dividend: Why it Pays to Engage Women Owned Businesses in Southeast Asia' at the 2025 AmChamSG SME ACCelerate Forum with Ms. Yeo Wan Ling, Assistant Secretary-General, National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) and Member of Parliament, Punggol GRC.
The report includes analysis of the supplier diversity of 631 companies in Singapore, Vietnam and Indonesia, and found that corporate revenue growth increases by 2.2% when suppliers increase women representation in leadership by 5%.
At the forum, Anoop Sagoo, Chief Executive Officer, Southeast Asia at Accenture, highlighted findings from the report, noting that "companies embracing supplier diversity experience tangible benefits, including enhanced performance and revenue growth. By implementing the recommendations in this report, stakeholders can unlock the full potential of women-owned businesses, fostering a more inclusive and resilient business ecosystem."
Based on a survey of 121 women entrepreneurs in Singapore, Vietnam and Indonesia, structural barriers in the procurement environment like overly complicated processes and long payment terms continue to limit access for women entrepreneurs.
- Only 23% of women-owned businesses in Singapore supply large buyers, compared to 34% in Vietnam and 58% in Indonesia.
- In Singapore, long payment terms or delayed payments and meeting complex procurement requirements or certifications are the biggest obstacles for women-owned businesses (70%).
- Lack of transparency in the selection process and lack of mentorship or support navigating corporate procurement processes are the biggest obstacles for women-owned businesses in Indonesia and Vietnam.
- Women-owned businesses in Singapore cited visibility and recognition in the business ecosystem as the area where they need the most support (79%).
- In Indonesia and Vietnam, training in finance, operations or marketing were highlighted as the most requested forms of support (84-86%).
"Anytime a company selects a new vendor in search of innovation, there is a risk. However, it is also a risk to hire the same vendor year over year that may or may not offer the best total value over time," noted Elizabeth Vazquez, CEO and co-founder of WEConnect International.
Dr. Hsien-Hsien Lei, Chief Executive Officer of AmChamSG said, "Business networks can bridge the gap between MNCs, SMEs, investors and policymakers. Through platforms like the SME ACCelerate Forum, AmChamSG provides opportunities for valuable connections that are vital for opening doors for SMEs to participate in large-scale supply chains.
Supplier diversity is not just about inclusion – it is business advantage."
Download the full report 'The Diversity Dividend: Why it Pays to Engage Women Owned Businesses in Southeast Asia' here: https://amcham.com.sg/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/The-Diversity-Dividend-Final-Version-Website.pdf
About AmCham Singapore
Established in 1973, the American Chamber of Commerce in Singapore (AmChamSG) is the largest and the most active international business association in Singapore and Southeast Asia, with nearly 700 American and other global companies with significant U.S. business interests. AmChamSG is an independent, non-partisan business organization with the goal of offering insights and facilitating access and connections that provide members with a comprehensive understanding of the local, regional, and global operating environments. Our mission - to create value for our members by providing advocacy, community, and thought leadership. Visit: www.amcham.com.sg
About WEConnect International
WEConnect International is the leading global non-profit dedicated to driving money into the hands of women business owners by connecting them with large corporate, multilateral and government buyers around the world. Its 180+ member buyers represent more than $4 trillion in annual purchasing power and are committed to sourcing more from women-owned businesses in over 135 countries. WEConnect International identifies, educates, registers and certifies businesses that are at least 51% womenowned, managed and controlled, providing Women's Business Enterprise Certification in over 60 countries. With a global network of 20,000+ women-owned businesses, WEConnect International is committed to unleashing the full economic potential of women-owned businesses worldwide. Visit: www.weconnectinternational.org
** The press release content is from PR Newswire. Bastille Post is not involved in its creation. **
Women-owned Suppliers Boost Corporate Revenue by 2.2% in Southeast Asia
- New framework brings together Aon's Risk Capital and Human Capital data with public sentiment analysis from Gallup to create a portfolio view of risk
- Creates further clarity into how risks compound across four megatrends, how resilience is built and activated and where targeted actions can most effectively influence performance
DUBLIN, Jan. 16, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Aon plc (NYSE: AON), a leading global professional services firm, announced today that it is releasing insights from a new, data-driven tool to help organizations build sustainable resilience and unlock growth: Aon's Resilience Quotient.
Developed in collaboration with Gallup, Aon's Resilience Quotient responds to a critical insight: in a time of increasing populism and fragmented sources of information, quantitative data alone is not enough to make long-term decisions. Combining public sentiment on global issues with risk and people data and analytics enables greater clarity and confidence to invest and grow amidst uncertainty and volatility.
By integrating Aon's proprietary Risk Capital and Human Capital analytics with the results of Gallup's World Poll covering 140 countries for more than 20 years, the firm's Resilience Quotient captures both objective conditions and subjective sentiment, revealing where sentiment signals hidden risks and potential opportunities to achieve greater resilience. This system-level view enables leaders to spot emerging risks sooner, prioritize resilience investments and move from reactive risk management to proactive decision-making.
"When making decisions around investment, workforce or managing geopolitical risk, a portfolio view is far superior to a siloed perspective," said Greg Case, president and CEO of Aon. "Understanding sentiment can be an opportunity signal or an early warning. Leaders who are limited to only some of the relevant metrics risk missing the signals that matter most. Aon's Resilience Quotient delivers an integrated view to help organizations act decisively, strengthen resilience and unlock sustainable growth."
Four interconnected megatrends – Trade, Technology, Weather and Workforce – are reshaping the global operating environment in ways that traditional models struggle to anticipate. Aon's Resilience Quotient provides a clearer view of the tradeoffs within these interactions: how trade volatility can amplify technology risk, how climate pressures influence workforce mobility and how sentiment can either reinforce resilience or heighten operational risk, even when the fundamentals appear strong.
To illustrate the insights from its Resilience Quotient, the firm published three case studies addressing some of the most relevant and urgent issues facing the 2026 global economy:
- Realizing the Opportunity of AI: Securing Data Center Growth
Data centers are the backbone of the digital economy and with nearly $1.3 trillion projected to be invested globally in data centers by 2030, their rapid expansion brings unprecedented risks. Aon's Resilience Quotient shows that resilience varies sharply at the sub-national level, often more than underlying risk. Within the U.S., Iowa emerges as the most resilient destination for data center development, combining very low overall risk with exceptionally strong trade and weather resilience. "Aon's Resilience Quotient shows that Iowa's resilience–risk balance is roughly twice the national median, demonstrating how governance quality, institutional confidence and preparedness materially shape long-term infrastructure outcomes," said Joe Peiser, CEO of Commercial Risk Solutions at Aon. "This underscores the opportunity for leaders who understand the combined effect of low risk, resilient trade and weather systems and a strong foundation of public trust — factors that ultimately determine where AI infrastructure can grow at scale."
DUBLIN, Jan. 16, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Aon plc (NYSE: AON), a leading global professional services firm, announced today that it is releasing insights from a new, data-driven tool to help organizations build sustainable resilience and unlock growth: Aon's Resilience Quotient.
Developed in collaboration with Gallup, Aon's Resilience Quotient responds to a critical insight: in a time of increasing populism and fragmented sources of information, quantitative data alone is not enough to make long-term decisions. Combining public sentiment on global issues with risk and people data and analytics enables greater clarity and confidence to invest and grow amidst uncertainty and volatility.
By integrating Aon's proprietary Risk Capital and Human Capital analytics with the results of Gallup's World Poll covering 140 countries for more than 20 years, the firm's Resilience Quotient captures both objective conditions and subjective sentiment, revealing where sentiment signals hidden risks and potential opportunities to achieve greater resilience. This system-level view enables leaders to spot emerging risks sooner, prioritize resilience investments and move from reactive risk management to proactive decision-making.
"When making decisions around investment, workforce or managing geopolitical risk, a portfolio view is far superior to a siloed perspective," said Greg Case, president and CEO of Aon. "Understanding sentiment can be an opportunity signal or an early warning. Leaders who are limited to only some of the relevant metrics risk missing the signals that matter most. Aon's Resilience Quotient delivers an integrated view to help organizations act decisively, strengthen resilience and unlock sustainable growth."
Four interconnected megatrends – Trade, Technology, Weather and Workforce – are reshaping the global operating environment in ways that traditional models struggle to anticipate. Aon's Resilience Quotient provides a clearer view of the tradeoffs within these interactions: how trade volatility can amplify technology risk, how climate pressures influence workforce mobility and how sentiment can either reinforce resilience or heighten operational risk, even when the fundamentals appear strong.
To illustrate the insights from its Resilience Quotient, the firm published three case studies addressing some of the most relevant and urgent issues facing the 2026 global economy:
"Aon's Resilience Quotient shows that Iowa's resilience–risk balance is roughly twice the national median, demonstrating how governance quality, institutional confidence and preparedness materially shape long-term infrastructure outcomes," said Joe Peiser, CEO of Commercial Risk Solutions at Aon. "This underscores the opportunity for leaders who understand the combined effect of low risk, resilient trade and weather systems and a strong foundation of public trust — factors that ultimately determine where AI infrastructure can grow at scale."
- Workforce Transformation: AI Adoption and the Next Generation Workforce
The acceleration of AI adoption is transforming the workforce, but most organizations face a critical gap between the demand for AI skills and their readiness to adapt. The Resilience Quotient highlights how workforce engagement, trust and institutional preparedness are essential to harnessing AI's potential, making resilience the key differentiator between organizations that thrive through change and those that risk falling behind. "Aon's Resilience Quotient equips leaders to navigate rapid AI change with confidence," said Lisa Stevens, chief administrative officer at Aon. "These insights help create the conditions for early‑career employees to build the skills and confidence they need — so instead of losing a generation of talent, we cultivate one that is more capable and resilient than ever."
"Aon's Resilience Quotient equips leaders to navigate rapid AI change with confidence," said Lisa Stevens, chief administrative officer at Aon. "These insights help create the conditions for early‑career employees to build the skills and confidence they need — so instead of losing a generation of talent, we cultivate one that is more capable and resilient than ever."
- Rethinking Humanitarian Finance: A New Approach to Forced Migration
Over 120 million people are currently displaced by conflict, climate and systemic crises, reshaping societies and economies worldwide. Aon's Resilience Quotient highlights Venezuela and Colombia to illustrate the tradeoffs between investing resources at the source of migration — supporting those facing institutional erosion, food insecurity and economic collapse — or directing investment to more stable countries like Colombia that are absorbing people fleeing unlivable conditions. "Forced displacement results from extreme weather and man-made disasters like conflict and economic failure," said Bridget Gainer, chief public affairs officer at Aon. "If we could leverage the forecasting and financial capability of insurance to better predict and more quickly mitigate the impact of this volatility, we could help create conditions that allow populations to remain and rebuild in their home countries."
"Forced displacement results from extreme weather and man-made disasters like conflict and economic failure," said Bridget Gainer, chief public affairs officer at Aon. "If we could leverage the forecasting and financial capability of insurance to better predict and more quickly mitigate the impact of this volatility, we could help create conditions that allow populations to remain and rebuild in their home countries."
"Resilience is not a single blueprint, it's the way systems mitigate, adapt and transform under pressure. Aon's Resilience Quotient functions as a pressure gauge, surfacing the trade‑offs and early signals that help leaders strengthen resilience where it matters most," said Joe Daly, managing partner at Gallup. "We're proud to collaborate with Aon to combine Gallup's global sentiment analytics with Aon's Risk Capital and Human Capital data, turning confidence into actionable insight."
New insights from Aon's Resilience Quotient suggest that going forward, resilience priorities will shift from static risk management to dynamic, localized strategies. As disruptions become more complex and frequent, organizations will need to tailor resilience investments to specific geographies, sectors and even sub-regional contexts. Aon's Resilience Quotient is supported with a real-time analytics and AI-enabled insights platform, built by Quantum Rise, providing deeper visibility into evolving risk and resilience signals as conditions change.
Aon and Gallup will join global decision-makers at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting to advance these critical discussions on restoring confidence and unlocking sustainable growth.
Learn more about Aon's Resilience Quotient and explore the case studies here.
About Aon
Aon plc (NYSE: AON) exists to shape decisions for the better — to protect and enrich the lives of people around the world. Through actionable analytic insight, globally integrated Risk Capital and Human Capital expertise, and locally relevant solutions, our colleagues provide clients in over 120 countries with the clarity and confidence to make better risk and people decisions that help protect and grow their businesses.
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** The press release content is from PR Newswire. Bastille Post is not involved in its creation. **
Aon's Resilience Quotient Cuts Through Uncertainty and Volatility to Help Businesses Move from Risk to Resilience and Growth
