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8 Best Executive Search Firms in Singapore (2026)

Compare 8 executive search firms in Singapore for retained C-suite, board and senior leadership hires, with what each says it offers and how to choose.

By: Amir Wahab
Edited by: Amir Wahab
Published: 13 Oct 2026
Reading time: 6 min read

Executive Search Firms: a customer and a provider in a bright, modern setting

Executive search is a different job from general recruitment. Instead of advertising a role and sifting applicants, a retained search firm is engaged to approach and assess senior candidates for a specific leadership seat, often a CEO, a functional head or a board director. This page compares eight firms that run executive search from Singapore, described only through what each says on its own website. LocalRank has not ranked them or tested their results. Use the list to shortlist two or three firms whose stated sectors and role levels match your vacancy, then ask each how it runs a search and who would handle yours. For broader hiring, see our recruitment agencies guide.

1. Heidrick & Struggles

Heidrick & Struggles lists a Singapore office on its own site, and the page sets out executive search by leadership function, including technology and AI officers, CEO and board roles, finance, HR, legal and risk, marketing and communications, and supply chain and operations. Beyond search, the firm describes leadership services such as executive assessment, coaching, CEO succession planning and board effectiveness, plus an on-demand talent offer covering interim executives and project leaders. That breadth could suit a company that wants a search partner able to advise on succession or team design as well as fill a seat. The Singapore page points visitors to a consultant directory, and the firm's contact page offers enquiry routes by service type.

Suntec City
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2. Spencer Stuart

Spencer Stuart's Singapore page describes consultants who work across industries and functions to help organisations find and develop leaders, improve the effectiveness of top teams and support strategic or cultural change. The firm's main site lists executive search alongside board and CEO advisory, CEO succession planning, executive assessment and leadership consulting. The Singapore page also carries recent insight pieces on topics such as board and C-suite adoption of AI and CEO selection in volatile conditions, which give a sense of how the firm frames leadership questions in the region. It also warns readers about fake job-offer messages using its name. Employers can reach the office through its published contact details or the firm's contact page and should ask who would lead a search.

Raffles Place
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3. Russell Reynolds Associates

Russell Reynolds Associates says its Singapore office opened in 1984 and describes work with local, global and family-owned businesses on leadership questions. Its Singapore page lists executive search, CEO and C-suite succession, leadership development and transition, and advice to boards and executive teams on performance. The office says it has depth across consumer, financial services, healthcare, industrial and technology sectors, and the page names a country manager and lists its consultants. The firm's main site also describes board and CEO advisory as a separate offer. Someone replacing a chief executive or building a succession plan may find this mix relevant. Enquiries go through the firm's contact form, so ask early how a mandate would be staffed and which sector team would handle it.

Central Business District
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4. Egon Zehnder

Egon Zehnder publishes a dedicated page titled Executive Search in Singapore on its site, so the firm presents the city as a base for its search work. On its main site the firm describes executive and board search, succession planning, board advisory and reviews, leadership development and coaching, and transformation programmes. It organises its offer by function, such as CEO, CFO and HR roles, and by industry, which helps a buyer see whether a sector team exists for their vacancy. The site does not print a general email or phone number in the pages we read, directing visitors to an enquiry form where they choose an inquiry type. Treat that form as the first step, then ask which Singapore-based partner would own your search.

Singapore
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5. Boyden

Boyden's Singapore page says the team offers executive search, assessment, coaching and talent advisory across Asia Pacific, with stated expertise in consumer and retail, healthcare and life sciences, financial services and industrial sectors. It describes search for C-suite, senior management and board-level roles, leadership consulting that covers assessment, development and succession, and search for family-owned and privately held organisations as well as multinationals. A separate offer covers human resources leadership. The page names the managing partners and other team members and prints an employment agency licence number as the firm's own statement, which a buyer can verify with the issuing body. Boyden also lists interim management on its main site. Contact details are on the Singapore page.

Marina Bay
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6. Amrop Singapore

Amrop's Singapore and Malaysia page calls the office a trusted leadership advisory boutique focused on ASEAN and Asia Pacific, serving selective mid-to-large enterprises and family-owned businesses headquartered in the two countries, including multinationals and Chinese companies expanding into Southeast Asia. Alongside executive search, it lists board and senior team design, market mapping and leadership intelligence, tailored assessments and pre-due-diligence work, and executive onboarding programmes. The positioning may appeal to family businesses that want leadership advice and not only a candidate shortlist. The page publishes a general talent email address and an office phone number, which makes a first enquiry simple. Ask the office how its mapping stage works and which sectors its team has covered.

Raffles Place
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7. Stanton Chase Singapore

Stanton Chase describes its Singapore office as a hub for Southeast Asia that places CEOs, COOs, CFOs, CTOs and board directors for multinational, regional and local businesses across ASEAN. The page also says the office is connected to the firm's wider network of more than 70 offices in 45 countries, which could matter if a hire spans several markets. Its listed services are executive search, executive assessment, board services, succession planning and executive onboarding. The Singapore page publishes a general office email and phone number, so a first conversation about scope is straightforward. Ask which partner would run your search, how the firm approaches candidates in other ASEAN markets, and how it handles confidentiality for sensitive replacements.

Marina Centre
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8. Odgers Berndtson

Odgers Berndtson runs a dedicated Singapore section on its site, under the firm's Odgers brand. Its main site describes the firm as an executive search and leadership advisory partner that identifies, attracts, assesses and develops leaders, and lists executive search, interim management and leadership advisory as its core offers. It states that it belongs to the Association of Executive Search and Leadership Consultants. The firm gives global figures for partners, offices and completed searches, but these are worldwide, not Singapore numbers, so do not read them as local results. The Singapore section links to a contact page and an office locator for the nearest team. Ask the Singapore office which sectors it covers and whether interim cover is available while a permanent hire is found.

Singapore
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How to choose

Start with the seat, not the brand. Write down the role, seniority, reporting line and whether the search must stay confidential, then see which firms describe that level of work on their own pages. A firm focused on board directors and CEOs may not be the right fit for a mid-level functional head.
Ask how the engagement works. Executive search is usually retained, meaning the firm is engaged to run the process, rather than paid only when someone is placed. Ask for the process in writing, including stages, who on the team does the approaching, and how often you will receive updates.
Check sector and regional depth. Several firms here publish industry teams or ASEAN coverage, but those are their own statements. Ask which searches in your sector the Singapore team has handled recently, without asking them to breach confidentiality, and who would personally lead your mandate from start to finish.
Understand the conflict rules. A firm that recently placed someone from a competitor may be limited in approaching that company's staff. Ask how it manages these off-limits arrangements, how long they last, and whether they would restrict candidates you want approached. Get the answer in your engagement terms.
Verify credentials yourself. Where a firm prints a licence number, membership or accreditation, treat it as the firm's own statement. Ask for registration details, and check them with the issuing body. Also ask what is included, such as assessment, referencing or onboarding support, so quotes can be compared fairly.

Update history

Published 13 Oct 2026. No changes recorded since.

About the author

Amir Wahab

Founder and Editor

Amir Wahab is the founder and editor of LocalRank, an independent Singapore rankings and local guides publication.

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