Companies across Asia are facing an alarming leadership crisis, one that’s directly impacting their bottom line. With turnover rates climbing and employee disengagement on the rise, businesses that neglect leadership development are losing millions in hidden costs.
Managers are key to aligning employees with the company’s goals, setting expectations, clearing obstacles, and helping teams navigate uncertainty. This role has become even more critical as companies focus more on performance management due to economic pressures and changes in the way we work.
To create more effective, people-focused processes, many organisations are turning to human-centric approaches to help managers give feedback that drives better performance and growth. In Singapore, companies in industries such as banking, financial services, F&B, IT, and FMCG are prioritising coaching in key areas — including Influence (55%), Confidence (45%), External Awareness (38%), Articulating Ambition (32%), Resource Management (31%), and Managing Expectations (31%) — at significantly higher rates than the global average.
Businesses today are navigating constant tension: the need to innovate while executing existing strategies, the push to transform without sacrificing performance, the drive to grow while cutting costs. Success now hinges on managing competing — sometimes paradoxical — demands. Here are the top five business tensions leaders are grappling with:
- Growth vs sustainability
- Global strategy vs local needs
- Innovation vs execution
- Customer needs vs operational capacity
- Differentiation vs cost management
Gallup research shows that 70% of an employee’s engagement is tied to their manager, and disengaged employees cost companies US$8.8 trillion (S$11.755 trillion) in lost productivity globally. In Singapore, seven in ten (67%) of employees are considering changing jobs within the next year, higher than the global average of 60%. The cost of replacing a mid-level employee can be 150% of their salary, with higher costs for leadership roles.
What’s the solution? Digital coaching.
Digital coaching platforms have evolved beyond tools for managing coaching businesses. Today, they harness science-backed methods and data-driven insights to provide highly personalised support, making coaching not only more accessible but also more effective and measureable.
Technology is reshaping coaching and offering a more dynamic and personalised approach to leadership development. Digital platforms now integrate behavioural insights and on-demand learning tools or modules to create a holistic professional development experience.
AI assistants help individuals stay accountable to their goals and practice new skills. This scalable approach allows companies to adapt coaching to specific business needs.
Imagine being able to rate responses, provide feedback, and gather insights in real-time with prompts designed to boost motivation, build capability and change behaviour.
In Singapore, employees have reported uplifts in job performance and satisfaction, along with reductions in retention risk. Managers also observed performance improvements:
- 14% increase in employees reporting high job performance • 13% increase in managers reporting improved performance • 13% increase in employees reporting job satisfaction • 29% reduction in employees reporting retention risk
These results speak for themselves, but coaching goes beyond statistics. It equips individuals with the skills, confidence and resilience to face challenges, grow independently and find their own solutions.
The Untapped Potential
If you’re not using coaching, your competitors likely are. Figures vary, but studies suggest 70–90% of organisations already use it, with the industry more than doubling between 2019 and 2022.
In Asia, the demand for leadership coaching is rising, driven by a strong focus on professional development and growing leadership needs. The global leadership development coaching market is projected to reach US$206.08 billion (S$275.24 billion) by 2032. The Asia Pacific region is predicted to be the fastest-growing market due to rising affluence and corporate expansion.
Companies investing in coaching are seeing productivity and performance gains. Singapore-based employees report similar or higher competency than global averages in managing expectations, emotional intelligence and motivation.
Coaching 2.0 – For Everyone
Historically, coaching was reserved for senior executives. Now, there’s a shift toward making it scalable and accessible to more people. Digital platforms and global coach networks enable coaching for wider teams.
A holistic strategy integrates coaching with learning and development, improving accessibility to on-demand resources and reflection tools.
Where to begin? Start with four key questions:
1. What skills do your people need for the future? In today’s fast-changing world, the gap between current and needed skills is widening. The World Economic Forum notes that by 2027, top skills will include creative thinking, social influence, and resilience. While technical knowledge matters, adaptability and lifelong learning are becoming vital.
According to EZRA coaching data, 67% of organisations prioritise leading change, and 55% focus on emotional intelligence. Yet, only 47% of participants prioritise influence and 38% focus on communication.
2. How do you help people move from knowing to doing? Traditional development can be passive or too general. Coaching addresses the “knowing-doing gap” by engaging motivation and creating accountability. A coach helps individuals translate theory into action and embed habits that last.
Digital coaching enhances this by fitting into daily workflows, allowing for easy scheduling and greater accessibility.
3. Who should prioritise development? Development is valued across the board, but resources are finite. Organisations must balance investment across current leaders and emerging talent. Research shows that positively impacting 25% of a workforce can spark a ripple effect of change.
The key is selecting the right 25% — something EZRA coaches can help with.
4. How do you prove business impact? Development initiatives face intense scrutiny to justify costs. Measuring behavioural change can be difficult, but EZRA uses three levels of assessment:
- Experiential: Session feedback from coaches
- Behavioural: In-house validated assessments
- Business impact: KPIs tracked short and long-term
ROI calculations from coaching engagements have shown:
- US$3.2M (S$4.2M) saved in hiring costs from reduced retention risk • 17.7x return on investment from competency improvements
Science-Led, People-Focused Coaching
To stay competitive, businesses must balance current demands with future readiness. Coaching identifies skill gaps, helps shift mindsets, and builds resilience.
EZRA has delivered more than 350 programmes across over 130 organisations in more than 30 industries in Singapore, with a 94% coach satisfaction rating.
One example: partnering with a top global F&B company to build a diverse community of future leaders. The programme fostered resilience, transformational leadership, and change-readiness.
For The Adecco Group, coaching improved leadership behaviours and retention: 97% of participants stayed with the company vs 83% in a control group. 75% were promoted; 12% earned two promotions.
Conclusion
These results demonstrate the power of science-backed coaching. Leadership development becomes more effective when supported by real data. It helps leaders perform, adapt and thrive.
In Asia’s fast-evolving landscape, coaching isn’t a luxury. It’s a must-have for building resilient, future-ready teams. The flexibility and personalisation of digital coaching make this future more accessible than ever.
About the author
Andrew Calvert is the Solutions Lead Asia at EZRA Coaching. With over 30 years of experience, he specialises in leadership development, change management, and executive coaching. Known as a connector of dots and a storyteller, Andrew helps leaders and teams navigate complexity and drive meaningful transformation.
