According to Accenture’s Marta Lajmi, Talent Reinvention Partner Lead, South-East Asia, Western AI adoption strategies may fall short in Southeast Asia because employees look to senior leaders for permission and direction, not just tool deployment. Accenture’s research in Singapore found that 47% of employees cite a lack of leadership support as the single biggest barrier to upskilling with AI. Lajmi argues a top-down mandate is non-negotiable, requiring a bi-directional approach of leadership commitment and bottom-up team redesign. The region is distinct due to proactive government roles, such as Singapore’s National AI Strategy 2.0, Malaysia’s ambition to become an “AI Nation” by 2030, and Indonesia’s National AI Strategy. In Singapore, 79% of young employees prioritise skills development over job titles, 85% expect to continuously renew skills, 81% are willing to be reskilled if roles become automated, and two-thirds already use AI tools weekly. However, 46% of technology leaders have not begun redesigning job roles, and only 23% of employees trust their employer to act in their best interest when introducing AI. Without deliberate work redesign and visible leadership commitment, the region risks a “pro