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The Asian Century of Corporate Power

Why the rules of the game have changed, and what Chairs must do differently

A CHAIRS Global Intelligence Paper

Preamble

The centre of corporate gravity has shifted. Most Western Boards have not.

Asia now accounts for roughly half of the world's largest companies, and the capital structures, competitive models, and governance architectures reshaping global industry are no longer predominantly Western in origin. The change has arrived gradually enough that most boards have yet to name it, yet consequentially enough that the core assumptions of most Western governance frameworks are proving insufficient on their own as a guide to decision-making. Competition is no longer broadly symmetrical across markets. Capital moves with strategic and political purpose as often as commercial return. Good governance diverges rather than converges across markets. Responding to this new environment demands decisions that sit squarely with the Chair, on board composition, CEO succession, strategic time horizon, and governance…