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Our focus on sustainability as an institution extends from planet to people.

Fostering a Diverse, Inclusive, and Fair Workplace

At Temasek, we believe that diversity, inclusion, and fairness are strategic attributes of our culture. These values form the cornerstone of our innovation and performance. We respect and embrace differences in race, gender, age, religion, sexual orientation, nationality, ethnicity, physical ability, and neurodiversity. We foster an environment where all individuals feel they belong and are empowered to unlock their potential, and drive creativity, adaptability, and excellence across the firm. 

Our commitment to diversity, inclusion, and fairness does not, however, alter our unwavering belief in meritocracy, the principle that aligns rewards with performance and impact. Our ambition is to build an inclusive meritocracy — a diverse and inclusive corporate culture rooted in the principle of meritocracy.

We are intentional in creating opportunities for all employees to contribute to their fullest potential and feel valued and respected regardless of their background. This includes providing access to resources, mentorship, and career development opportunities, ensuring that our team is well equipped to deliver their best to our organisation.

To ensure that meritocracy remains at the heart of our diversity and inclusion efforts, we adopt a holistic development and assessment approach where 360º feedback has become an integral part of our process. We regularly review our policies and practices to identify and eliminate any biases that may hinder equal opportunity.

Recognising that our people have diverse needs and responsibilities, we offer flexible work arrangements that support better work-life integration while maintaining our commitment to delivering on our performance and collaboration. We actively seek feedback through Heartbeat, our employee engagement survey, and other engagement forums, creating space for open dialogue and co-creation of meaningful workplace practices. These platforms help us better understand the evolving needs of our workforce and shape initiatives that strengthen employee well-being, inclusion, and connection. By continuously listening and adapting, we aim to cultivate a dynamic and supportive work environment where every voice matters and everyone can thrive.

So Every Generation Prospers ‒ We aspire to help every generation thrive by promoting the well-being of our people, portfolio companies, partners, and communities.

Our Inclusivity@Temasek initiatives continue to strengthen our inclusivity practices and reinforce our culture of belonging. One such initiative, Temasek Women’s Network (TWN), supports and inspires our staff in their career journeys. Highlights during the year included our annual keynote event, Women Rising, that provided learnings and career advice for professionals; our International Women’s Day celebrations featuring the journeys of women entrepreneurs; a panel discussion with male leaders on how men can actively support equality by being strong allies; and small group sessions featuring top-of-mind topics such as family matters and mentorship. These sessions were open to all staff, with the aim of forging a culture of understanding, where everyone feels respected and empowered. Another initiative was the hiring of two neurodiverse individuals in our procurement function, who bring not only their unique perspectives, but also complementary strengths to the team.

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From left to right: Deborah Ho, Country Head for Singapore and Regional Head for SEA at BlackRock; Png Chin Yee, Chief Financial Officer at Temasek; Jacqueline Poh, CEO-Designate of JTC Corporation; and Chiong Suet Chee, Managing Director of Decarbonization Partners, at an International Women’s Day panel discussion jointly organised by Temasek and BlackRock where they shared insights on career growth and challenges they faced as leaders in their respective fields.

Today, our staff encompass 32 nationalities with a gender mix of 53% male and 47% female. Our senior management is 74% male and 26% female. We continue to embrace and work towards diversity while ensuring a fair, meritocratic, and inclusive workplace. 

Developing a Culture of Sustainability

We curate initiatives that engage and empower our employees to adopt sustainable mindsets and behaviours. For the year ended 31 March 2025, our colleagues participated in more than 15 sustainability-focused activities.

Project GO! (Green Office) is an internal staff awareness series designed to enhance sustainability knowledge and encourage employees to volunteer their time to contribute to environmental objectives. In support of National Parks Board’s OneMillionTrees movement, we contributed to enhancing Singapore’s green spaces by planting 100 trees. Other initiatives included an immersive trip to Sembcorp Tengeh Floating Solar Farm, where employees learned about Singapore’s innovative efforts to achieve its solar energy goals.

We also hosted educational workshops to further raise environmental awareness and empower participants to take actionable steps towards a more sustainable future. 

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Participants observing the innovative infrastructure at the Sembcorp Tengeh Floating Solar Farm, the largest inland floating solar farm attempted in Singapore.

One example was the screening of the documentary Wasted, which gave participants a deeper understanding of the harsh realities of waste, and its connection to human health and the climate crisis, highlighting the urgent need for change. 

Staff participating in a clean-up activity at the scenic Marina Reservoir.

Another example was the Biodiversity Collage Workshop, where participants gained valuable insights into natural ecosystems and the impact of human activities on their delicate balance. This learning experience was delivered in a collaborative and accessible manner, making complex topics more engaging and understandable.

Beyond these efforts, some employees have stepped up to organise and lead self-driven sustainability activities as Sustainability Champions. These efforts included park and river clean-ups, as well as clothing and book donation drives held across our offices in Singapore, London, San Francisco, and New York. Participants in these events not only contributed to environmental stewardship but also fostered community building.

Supporting Our People

Our Make-A-Difference (MAD) programme has been an integral part of our life in Temasek since 2008. MAD promotes a culture of personal ownership and responsibility. Individual and company-wide MAD targets extend beyond financial targets to cover self-development, institution, community, and sustainability goals. 

At Temasek, we value the well-being of our employees and offer a comprehensive range of benefits that support our staff in achieving their desired work-life blend. 

These benefits are designed to provide a core level of medical and insurance coverage for our staff. We strive to foster a pro-family environment, encourage community contributions, and adopt a proactive approach towards employee health and wellness.

We offer a broad range of parental and family planning benefits, such as maternity leave of at least 26 weeks and paternity and adoption leave of at least 20 weeks, as well as fertility and family planning subsidies. Our flexible leave provisions allow staff to take time off for childcare, eldercare, or for their own well-being. Additionally, rejuvenation leave is offered to help staff recharge at specific career milestones. We also encourage our staff to support and contribute to the community through volunteer leave provisions.

Our hybrid work model and flexible work arrangement options empower our staff to balance their professional and personal responsibilities effectively.

Our Temasek Heartbeat survey, which is conducted regularly, helps us understand what our employees feel is important to make Temasek a better place to work. This survey provides us with valuable insights into employee sentiments in areas where we are excelling, and areas where we can further improve on. 

CEO Challenge

Building on the foundation laid by last year’s self-paced sustainability learning programme, this year’s CEO Challenge reinforces our ongoing commitment to sustainability. The initiative was designed to inspire all employees to innovate and develop solutions that can support our firm’s sustainability goals. 

This year’s CEO Challenge consisted of two phases — a Foundation phase where participants explored climate change science and ideated solutions for key sustainability challenges; and the Future-Forward Phase, focusing on refining, implementing, and scaling proposed solutions.

A total of 769 participants took part in CEO Challenge, presenting an array of innovative proposals. These ranged from strategies to promote sustainable personal behaviours to leveraging Generative AI to optimise our investment portfolio for sustainability.

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The three winning teams of CEO Challenge.

Growing Our Talent

Our employees are critical to advancing a more sustainable organisation. We continuously upskill and equip them with diverse skill sets and competencies to navigate an increasingly complex world and to remain relevant for the future. 

Our forward-looking approach to talent development is anchored on the 4Es of Experience, Exposure, Education, and Enrichment. The inherent commitment within these 4Es to supporting the growth of our people contributes to attracting external talent. This, combined with our efforts to evolve our training curriculum to ensure current employees are continuously building future-focused skills in areas such as Environmental, Social, and Governance, Cybersecurity, and Artificial Intelligence (AI), ensures a strong pipeline of talent.

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Employees participating in a workshop to find their purpose and meaning at work during Employee Development Week.

We have dedicated flagship workshops, conferences, and seminars for our senior leaders and respective management levels to support their growth as a leader. The themes of the programmes range from strategic thinking and change management to self-leadership, ensuring that our leaders are well-equipped to drive the organisation forward. Developed in collaboration with leading educational institutions, our training programmes are designed to educate and upskill our employees on current and future-focused topics. We also bring in leading subject matter experts to deliver masterclasses on select topics including leadership, global trends, and team performance.

To empower our people to excel in their respective roles, we have implemented function-specific trainings and teach-ins. Learning roadmaps tailored to different staff grades are provided to our employees to support their development. In addition to training on business conduct, we have expanded our learning programmes to include topics such as our approach to sustainability, as well as inclusivity.

We also provide support for employees who wish to pursue degrees and certifications through our course sponsorship programme, which allows employees to deepen and complement their skills within and beyond Temasek. 

For the year ended 31 March 2025, each employee underwent an average of 31 hours of training, including mandatory training as well as our course sponsorship programme.

Our annual performance management process applies to all employees. It enables recognition of our people’s achievements and takes into consideration alignment with our MERITT values. This is supplemented by 360º feedback, including a real-time feedback mechanism and the use of AI to summarise feedback, which supports ongoing review of performance and development.

Health & Safety

Our Because You Matter initiative provides resources and programmes that focus on caring for the emotional, social, and physical well-being of our staff. 

This includes a Well-Being Resource Hub to help our colleagues improve and maintain their health and well-being. It includes onsite health screening, mental resilience and mindfulness workshops, and fitness activities organised by staff volunteers. 

Our Employee Assistance Programme provides staff and their family members with access to practical advice and counselling.

Finally, we are committed to creating a safe and conducive physical workplace. We do so by ensuring compliance with local safety regulations as well as our workplace health and safety policies.

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