Legalisation of same-sex marriage will inevitably spread across Asia-Pacific, say nearly half of respondents in new Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) survey

Strategy & Leadership

Legalisation of same-sex marriage will inevitably spread across Asia-Pacific, say nearly half of respondents in new Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) survey

May 29, 2019

Asia

  • 45% of respondents agree that Asia-Pacific will eventually embrace marriage equality, versus 31% who disagree
  • Three in four respondents believe the overall climate for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) rights in Asia-Pacific is more open now than three years ago
  • Yet companies need to do more to protect LGBT staff in countries lagging behind on LGBT rights, executives say

With Taiwan becoming the first Asian jurisdiction to legalise same-sex marriage this month, new research by The EIU shows that the march of LGBT equality is likely to continue. The report, , supported by Barclays, is based on a survey of 1,901 people around the world, including 339 from 21 Asian countries or territories. It includes sentiment surrounding LGBT rights in both broader society and the business community.

While progress in Asian companies may not be as rapid as in the Western world, positive changes are occurring. Compared with results from similar surveys conducted in 2015 and 2016, the share of Asia-Pacific executives who believe there are prominent LGBT advocates in their companies increased by six percentage points. Those who believe there is a return on investment (ROI) to LGBT-progress-raising measures grew by ten percentage points. And those who would like their firms to increase funding for LGBT diversity and inclusion shot up by 11 percentage points.

To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement? There are prominent LGBT advocates in my company.

(Respondents selecting “strongly agree” or “somewhat agree”, %)

Considering your country’s current business climate, do you think there is a potential ROI/business opportunity in enacting LGBT-friendly workplace policies and practices?

(% agreeing)

To what extent would you like to see your company investing more or less in advancing progress in sexual orientation and gender identity diversity in the workplace?

(Respondents answering “much more” or “somewhat more”, %)

In broader society, the potential of same-sex marriage taking hold in Asia-Pacific is growing alongside deeper acceptance of LGBT people. Among those who believe the overall climate for LGBT rights in their country over the past three years has become more open, the top reason cited was change in policies and laws relating to LGBT people (38%), followed by coverage of LGBT issues in mainstream media (36%). Yet significant hurdles remain: the top reason cited by those who believe the climate for LGBT people in Asia-Pacific has become less open over the past three years was anti-LGBT advocacy by religious institutions, highlighting the need for greater appreciation of individual civil liberties among Asian social institutions.

Michael Gold, editor of the research, said: “These findings reinforce Asia’s forward momentum on LGBT rights in light of Taiwan’s historic legalisation of marriage equality. More action needs to be taken to move the needle for LGBT people in countries across the continent. Businesses have a crucial role to play, alongside governments, courts, civil society and the general public.”

Press enquiries

Briony Lin, assistant marketing manager, content solutions, Asia

+852 2585 3843

Michael Gold, senior editor, Thought Leadership, The Economist Intelligence Unit

 

About the research

is based on the fourth year of a global survey of attitudes surrounding LGBT rights. The panel consists of regular Economist readers who agree to participate in research panels; non-executives were included in order to present a broader swath of views. Only full-time employees answered questions relating to corporate diversity; all respondents answered questions relating to LGBT rights in broader society. Visit the for the full report and join the discussion at .

 

About The Economist Intelligence Unit

The EIU is the thought leadership, research and analysis division of The Economist Group and the world leader in global business intelligence for executives. We uncover novel and forward-looking perspectives with access to over 650 expert analysts and editors across 200 countries worldwide. More information can be found on . Follow us on , and .

 

About Barclays

Barclays is a transatlantic consumer and wholesale bank offering products and services across personal, corporate and investment banking, credit cards and wealth management, with a strong presence in our two home markets of the UK and the US.

With over 325 years of history and expertise in banking, Barclays operates in over 40 countries and employs approximately 83,500 people. Barclays moves, lends, invests and protects money for customers and clients worldwide.

For further information about Barclays, please visit our website .

Related content

Strategy & Leadership

Steering through collaboration: CFOs driving new priorities for the future

It is well established that the modern CFO has a more strategic role to play in a business, but a clear action plan to achieve this is lacking. A key element of this is helping the business to deal with change. Some changes are planned: launching a new product or service, setting up operations in a new region or acquiring a competitor. Others may be unexpected: a major disruption to supply-chain operations, the emergence of new regulation and legal reporting requirements or the unpredictable impacts of global economic uncertainty.

Either way, when asked about the biggest challenges they face in executing their day-to-day activities, change is a recurring theme, according to a new survey of 800 CFOs and senior finance executives, conducted by The Economist Intelligence Unit. Managing unexpected changes to financial forecasts and adapting finance processes to rapidly evolving business models are top of mind.

Managing unexpected changes to financial forecasts and adapting finance processes to rapidly evolving business models are top challenges finance executives face in executing their day to-day activities.

Finance executives are also concerned with identifying how to align strategic, financial and operational plans towards common objectives and meaningfully analysing data across business units and regions. “All functions are working to meet these challenges and, as a finance head, we have to have visibility across all functions, how they are progressing [towards meeting goals] and ensuring that their direction is in line with overall strategic goals,” says Lalit Malik, CFO of Dabur, an Indian consumer goods manufacturer. It is incumbent upon CFOs therefore to be prepared not only to help their own function navigate uncharted territory, but the rest of the business too. That means breaking down the silos that commonly exist in organisations, in order to collaborate closely across functions, sharing information and data in the pursuit of common objectives.

All functions are working to meet these challenges and, as a finance head, we have to have visibility across all functions, how they are progressing [towards meeting goals] and ensuring that their direction is in line with overall strategic goals - Lalit Malik, CFO of Dabur, an Indian consumer goods manufacturer.

The clear custodian of collaboration

There are a number of reasons why the role of leading cross-company collaboration around steering should fall to the CFO and their team. First, through the activities of budgeting, the finance function is the custodian of the clear, quantitative expression of management expectations and determines how resources such as cash and people will be allocated in order to achieve them. In our survey, 90% of respondents say that finance should facilitate collaborative enterprise planning to ensure that operational plans are aligned with financial and strategic plans.

Second, through performance management, the finance function is the gatekeeper for critical data that illustrate how well—or otherwise—the company is rising to the challenge of change. That includes data relating to sales, supply chain and delivery, which need to be reported back to the business in ways that help drive improved decisionmaking. Our survey reveals that companies in which finance executives feel empowered to drive strategic decisions across business functions are more likely to report a higher financial performance in fiscal year 2016/17 and 2017/18 and anticipate higher growth rates for 2019/20.

 

Download Complete Executive Summary PDF 

 

 

Read more

Strategy & Leadership

Transforming data into action

As businesses generate and manage vast amounts of data, companies have more opportunities to gather data, incorporate insights into business strategy and continuously expand access to data across the organisation. Doing so effectively—leveraging data for strategic objectives—is often easier said than done, however. This report, Transforming data into action: the business outlook for data governance, explores the business contributions of data governance at organisations globally and across industries, the challenges faced in creating useful data governance policies and the opportunities to improve such programmes. Learn more by downloading our whitepaper below. 

Read more

Strategy & Leadership

Rethinking professional services in an age of disruption
With the help of machine learning, some law firms are reinventing themselves as legal services software companies that sell licences rather than advice. Large global accounting and consulting firms are taking some of their services in a similar direction, for instance in the area of regulatory compliance. Some manufacturing firms have expanded into digital services, offering other firms help with supply-chain management, product design and prototyping.
Read more

Enjoy in-depth insights and expert analysis - subscribe to our Perspectives newsletter, delivered every week

Copyright © The Economist Newspaper Limited 2024. All rights reserved.