Governance, Risk & Compliance (GRC) Search
We place the leaders who build enterprise risk frameworks, design governance structures and stand up compliance programmes for accounting firms and their clients across Singapore, Hong Kong, Sydney, Dubai and London.
Market overview
Governance, risk and compliance has consolidated from a patchwork of point solutions into an integrated, board-level discipline, and in Asia Pacific the regulators set the pace. Boards listed on SGX and HKEX must now review the adequacy and effectiveness of their risk management and internal control systems at least annually [16], while MAS and HKMA expectations on enterprise risk, outsourcing and operational resilience push firms toward connected, board-level GRC programmes. Firms are hiring partners who can sell and deliver the advisory wrapper around that agenda.
Enterprise risk management is the anchor capability. Boards across APAC now expect a connected view of strategic, operational, financial and ESG risk, which has pushed ERM framework design, risk-appetite articulation and combined-assurance modelling to the top of the advisory agenda. Regulatory modernisation across Southeast Asian economies and the deepening of financial sectors in the region are repeatedly cited as primary drivers of this demand [1].
The advisory market behind it is large and growing: the enterprise GRC market was estimated at USD 72.4 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach USD 203.7 billion by 2033, a 13.7 percent compound rate [3], with the underlying GRC platform market compounding at a similar low-teens pace [4]. In Asia the binding driver is regulatory: governance and compliance programme design has become a recurring, multi-year revenue stream rather than a one-off engagement.
The talent that ties this together, a partner fluent in ERM methodology, board governance and compliance operating models who can also originate work, is in genuinely short supply. CharteredPartners maps the GRC leadership market discreetly across the Singapore and Hong Kong hubs and the wider region, assessing both technical authority and commercial pull.
What we cover
- Enterprise risk management (ERM)
- Governance frameworks
- Compliance programme design
Roles we place
Practice Leadership
- Partner, Governance Risk & Compliance
- GRC Practice Leader
- Partner, Enterprise Risk
- Director, Risk Advisory
Enterprise Risk Management
- ERM Framework Lead
- Director, Enterprise Risk Management
- Risk Appetite & Combined Assurance Senior Manager
Governance & Compliance
- Director, Corporate Governance Advisory
- Compliance Programme Design Lead
- Head of Compliance Advisory
- Senior Manager, Policy & Governance
Candidate profile
Chartered accountant or risk professional, frequently holding CIA, CRISC or the ICA / GRCP governance and compliance credentials.
Deep ERM methodology and risk-appetite framework experience (COSO ERM, ISO 31000) plus board-governance fluency under SGX and HKEX corporate-governance codes.
Demonstrated origination of multi-year GRC transformation and compliance-programme mandates within a Big Four or mid-tier practice, able to advise audit committees, boards and CROs.
Regional reach valued across the Singapore and Hong Kong hubs and the Sydney and Gulf corridors, with relevant language depth (Mandarin, Cantonese, Bahasa, Arabic).
Seniority
- Senior Manager
- Director / Principal
- Partner
- Practice Leader / Head of GRC
Sectors served
- Financial services
- Insurance
- Healthcare & life sciences
- Technology
- Energy & resources
- Public sector & sovereign entities
Frequently asked
- What makes a strong GRC partner candidate today?
- The market rewards leaders who pair methodological depth in enterprise risk and governance with genuine origination ability. As GRC spend integrates across technology platforms and ESG, the partners who can sell a connected, board-level programme rather than a point engagement are the scarce ones.
- Is GRC demand cyclical?
- No. In Singapore and Hong Kong it is driven by standing SGX and HKEX board duties to review risk and internal controls and by MAS and HKMA supervisory expectations, with the wider enterprise GRC market forecast to grow at a steady mid-teens rate through 2033. That makes leadership hiring a long-term capability decision rather than a reaction to a single regulation.
- Which regions are hiring most actively?
- Singapore and Hong Kong lead on financial-services GRC, Sydney on enterprise and superannuation risk, and Dubai on the build-out of governance frameworks across the Gulf. We run cross-border mandates across all of these from one coordinated process.