Malaysia Hits Record High for Women in Senior Management
Kuala Lumpur, 9 March 2026: Malaysia has recorded its highest-ever proportion of women in senior management, underscoring how gender equality is increasingly shaping talent decisions, investor scrutiny and business performance.
According to Grant Thornton’s Women in Business 2026 report, 41.9% of senior leadership roles in Malaysia are now held by women, up from 36.2% in 2025 and well above the global average of 32.9%.
At the same time, the number of Malaysian businesses with no women in senior management has more than halved, falling to 4.5% in 2026 from 9.3% in 2025.
In Malaysia, women continue to hold a strong presence in key functional leadership roles. 57.3% of women hold positions in Human Resources (up from 48.3% in 2025) and 48.3% of women hold Chief Finance Officer roles (up from 47.2% in 2025). Notably, 32.6% of women hold Chief Commercial Officer roles, an increase from 25.8% from the previous year.
Talent attraction and retention
Gender equality is increasingly influencing recruitment decisions. 89.9% of business leaders in Malaysia factor a company's gender equality initiatives into their decision when applying for a new role, with 57.3% calling it a priority.
If leaders demand this in their own job searches, candidates at every level increasingly expect the same transparency.
20.2% (up from 10.5% in 2025) of businesses report potential hires are now asking about the gender balance of a company’s senior management team or its commitment to improving gender diversity, an increase of 9.7pp from last year.
Just over two-thirds of recent female senior hires in mid-market businesses were internal appointments, highlighting the importance of retention and progression paths.
Investors are paying attention
Having gender-balanced leadership is also essential for attracting investment. Potential new investors are the most likely external source to ask about the gender balance of a company’s senior management team or a commitment to improving gender diversity. 29.2% of businesses say they received a request from this source to see this in the last twelve months.
Commitment remains strong
Despite global headwinds, 85.4% of businesses in Malaysia have DE&I initiatives in place. Data shows that businesses regularly look at the strategies that work for them, with 66.3% reviewing their DE&I initiatives in 2025. 55.9% reviewed this as part of a structured annual process — a sign of strong governance and a mature DE&I approach. Others were motivated by government policy (50.8%) and the global changing conversation around DE&I (42.4%).
78.9% of businesses say they are committed to their gender equality initiatives, while notably, 32.9% even plan to introduce new measures in the coming year.
Ms Lui Lee Ping, Partner of Audit & Assurance in Grant Thornton Malaysia said “Gender equality has moved from a ‘nice to have’ to a core business requirement. In Malaysia’s competitive talent market, leadership visibility and credible action are now critical to attracting both people and capital.”
“Visibility matters. When women see leaders who look like them, they believe advancement is possible. When future talent sees gender equality embedded in strategy, they choose to join and stay,” added Lee Ping.
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