CEOs mostly confident about Singapore's sustained relevance: BT-StanChart survey

BUSINESS leaders are generally confident about Singapore's ability to stay relevant to the world economy, according to findings from The Business Times-Standard Chartered Leaders' Survey 2016.

Even so, CEOs blame short-term pressures as the biggest impediment to firms' ability to innovate.

Of the 112 CEOs polled over April 26 to May 14, more than three-quarters said that they are confident about Singapore's continued relevance, with 25 per cent saying they are "absolutely confident", and 53 per cent stating they are "pretty confident".

The remaining respondents were "undecided" (12 per cent) or "only slightly confident" (10 per cent), with just one respondent choosing the "not at all confident" view.

When asked what most stands in the way of their company's ability to innovate and be future-ready, 36 per cent of leaders said that they were too busy firefighting issues of today.

Still, a sizeable fraction (28 per cent) put the blame on a corporate culture that is not open to new ideas, while 21 per cent cited the quality of leadership as the most significant impediment.

A total of 112 responses were gathered, representing the views of a diverse range of companies of varying sizes and from different sectors.