Vietnam outpaces global average in female leadership though CEO representation falls

Vietnam’s share of women in senior leadership rose to 37.4% in 2025, up from 33.4% a year earlier, according to the Women in Business 2025 report by Grant Thornton.

The figure places Vietnam above the global average of 34% and ahead of several major economic regions, including South America, Africa, Europe and North America.

The United States and Canada also trail behind, with female representation at senior management levels standing at 34% and 34.7%, respectively.

Vietnam’s progress is particularly notable within the Asia-Pacific region. The country’s 37.4% rate exceeds the regional average of 32.9% and significantly surpasses levels in Japan and South Korea, where women hold just 18.4% and 21.7% of senior management roles. It also edges past China at 35.3% and Singapore and Indonesia, both at 36.3%.

The improvement marks a reversal from last year, when Vietnam’s share of women in senior leadership stood at 33.4%, only slightly above China’s 32.6% and below the U.S. level of 34.8%.

The survey also examined the roles women occupy within mid-sized companies in Vietnam. Female executives are most commonly found in positions such as chief financial officer, chief marketing officer and human resources director. Among companies reporting female leadership, women account for 68.2% of CFO roles, 48.9% of CMO roles, and 46.6% of HRO positions.

Representation has also increased significantly in the role of chief operating officer, with the share of firms reporting female COOs rising from 10.8% to 27.3%.

However, the proportion of companies led by female chief executive officers declined sharply. The share of firms with female CEOs in Vietnam dropped from 22.5% to 12.5%.

Globally, the trend has been different. The share of companies with female CEOs worldwide increased by 2.6 percentage points from 2024 to 21.7%. While women’s representation in CFO and CMO roles also rose globally, the pace of improvement has been slower than in Vietnam.

The contrasting trends highlight Vietnam’s rapid progress in certain leadership roles while underscoring persistent barriers for women seeking the most senior strategic positions.

According to Grant Thornton, external pressure is the primary driver pushing mid-market companies to improve gender balance in leadership, as investors, clients and business partners increasingly expect stronger commitments to diversity.

Globally, potential investors are the most influential force, prompting action at more than one-third of mid-market companies, or 35.2%. The pattern is even more pronounced in Asia-Pacific, ASEAN and especially Vietnam, where nearly half of companies (47.7%) say potential investors are the main driver of gender diversity initiatives.

Other important sources of pressure include prospective customers, cited by 31.1% of firms globally, and business partners at 26.8%. Similar trends are observed across Asia-Pacific, ASEAN, and Vietnam.

In contrast, regulators and governments appear to have less influence in pushing companies to improve female representation in senior management, suggesting compliance pressure remains limited. As a result, many firms approach gender equality as a voluntary initiative rather than a mandatory priority.

Beyond external pressure, some companies are also creating internal momentum by setting measurable targets and implementing structured diversity strategies.

Globally, just 0.2% of companies report having no gender equality strategy. In Vietnam, however, 9.1% of firms say they have no such plan, significantly higher than the global average and above levels in Asia-Pacific at 0.4% and ASEAN at 3.4%.

This gap suggests external pressure in Vietnam remains relatively weak, limiting leadership commitment to gender diversity.

Still, companies that do implement gender equality strategies in Vietnam tend to prioritize pay equity and promotion opportunities within senior management.

Another notable finding is that mid-sized companies, including those in Vietnam, are paying relatively little attention to women’s career development. Few firms set formal targets for networking or mentorship programs aimed at supporting female professionals.

Expanding such initiatives will be critical for developing women’s leadership skills and ensuring they not only reach senior roles but are also able to sustain and advance their positions over time.