Behind every bold pivot, seamless scale-up, and efficient transformation lies one strategic powerhouse: the Chief Operating Officer. In 2025, the COO is no longer just second in command — they’re often the unsung architect behind Asia’s most innovative companies.
From orchestrating AI-powered operations to leading complex regional expansions, these COOs are redefining what it means to execute at speed and scale.
This year’s list spotlights ten standout operational leaders who are turning strategy into success and execution into an art form. If you want to understand how the best in Asia get things done, these are the COOs you should be following.
Highlights
Vachan Singh
Vachan Singh is a seasoned real‑estate operations leader currently serving as COO (Projects) at Max Estates Ltd. — building on previous leadership roles at top firms such as Adani Realty, Oberoi Realty, Tata Housing, L&T, and DLF.
He has driven the delivery of approximately 15,000 apartments and 26 million sqft across 16 projects — achieving them on time and within budget. Singh is known for strong skills in project management, value engineering, vendor development, procurement optimization, and quality control — all backed by a BE (Hons.) Civil Engineering and MS from BITS Pilani.
Under his stewardship, Max Estates is expected to set new benchmarks in execution excellence within India’s real estate sector.
Mariam Juma BuAlShawarib AlFalasi
Mariam AlFalasi leads as COO at Dubai Holding Real Estate — overseeing operations across development, project management, human resources, IT, procurement, and community services.
Her prior experience as Chief Human Resources Officer, combined with exposure to venture capital and private equity, gives her a holistic view of organizational health, talent strategy, and operational efficiency.
She holds a master’s in Jurisprudence from Michigan State University and a degree in Human Resource Management from a British university — equipping her with both legal and people-management credentials.
Outside corporate responsibilities, she is engaging in Life Coaching & Leadership Training certification, reflecting her commitment to human‑centred leadership and long-term capacity building.
Haojun See
Haojun believes that technology’s highest purpose is to serve people — and he’s spent the past two years proving it. Juggling leadership roles at SG Assist (a social enterprise focused on caregiving and seniors) and On The Ground (providing strategic advisory and AI automation solutions for SMEs), he’s focused on turning complexity into clarity by integrating generative AI and automation into everyday operations.
At SG Assist, he’s led the digitalization of internal processes — from community communication systems to managing a growing database of volunteers and community members — while training the operations team to make automation the norm.
The shift in thinking is simple: tackle tasks with AI first, rather than spending hours manually solving problems that technology can handle in minutes. This operational transformation has helped position the organization to scale its impact more effectively.
Through On The Ground, he’s taken this approach beyond the care and ageing sector — working with law firms, a logistics company, an HR firm, a government agency, and educators to bring simple, practical solutions to complex operational challenges.
Using tools like ChatGPT, Claude, Google Gemini Pro, Lovable, Base44, and Make.com, he helps organizations move from idea to prototype to adoption, often within days. His work demonstrates how modern leaders can bridge technical execution with human-centric systems, making AI-driven transformation accessible across industries.
Pradeep Saini
Pradeep Saini is a global technology and business transformation leader with almost 3 decades of international experience building scalable digital ecosystems, modernizing enterprises, and guiding organizations through high-growth and turnaround phases across India, Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and Asia-Pacific.
He has held senior leadership roles with industry leaders such as Wipro, IBM, Hewlett-Packard, Siemens, EDS, and HCL, and is known for shaping strategy, strengthening operational governance, and driving enterprise-wide shifts to cloud, data, and AI-led models.
Pradeep previously served as COO & CTO at Inlaks, Africa’s leading BFSI systems integrator, where he led organization-wide modernization, drove digital adoption across Nigeria, Ghana, and Kenya, and introduced operational structures that improved delivery, customer experience, and profitability.
Earlier, as Vice President at Wipro, he led the US$500M Cloud & Infrastructure business across APMEA, managing 12,000+ professionals, building high-performance delivery engines, improving margins, and establishing resilient technology estates for global BFSI, telecom, and large enterprise clients.
Today, he serves as a mentor and strategic advisor to startups in India across PropTech, SaaS, and AI-driven platforms, helping founders define GTM strategy, refine business architecture, build investor-ready operating models, and accelerate revenue growth. With India’s real estate market expanding from US$550B toward US$1 trillion by 2030, Pradeep plays an active role in guiding PropTech companies to design scalable, compliant, data-driven digital ecosystems.
His advisory strengths include:
- Strategic clarity & GTM acceleration
- Cloud, data, AI, and modern architecture
- Operational governance & enterprise scaling
- Product-market fit & monetization models
- Risk, compliance, and board-level oversight
Recognized for his balanced leadership and global perspective, Pradeep brings a rare combination of technology depth, commercial acumen, and transformation experience, making him a valuable advisor to organizations seeking sustainable growth, digital reinvention, and strong execution discipline.
Chitra Shinde
Chitra Shinde is a veteran operations leader with nearly two decades of regional experience across Singapore, New Zealand, Australia, and India. She currently serves as Vice President of Operations at DHL Express Singapore, operating in over 220 countries and territories.
In Singapore, DHL Express has been ranked the No. 1 Great Place to Work in Singapore from 2020 for five consecutive years. In 2025, DHL Express joined DHL Global Forwarding and DHL Supply Chain as one DHL Group for the first time, emerging #2 on the list.
Before her role in Singapore, Shinde led high-performing operations teams across New Zealand and Australia, overseeing gateway operations, continuous improvement, service innovation, and large-scale logistics network investments enabling international trade.
Before joining DHL, she held senior leadership roles in India, including COO positions at Gati and GATI-KWE, where she drove revenue growth, operational discipline, technology adoption, and a JV with KWE. Known for her commitment to operational excellence, she initiated customer-focused programs like “360”, operational simplification, and standardisation called “Singularity.”
Shinde is also deeply passionate about education as a catalyst for social mobility, as well as sustainability — she reduced 90% of plastic use in her daily life. She epitomises simple living.
Her blend of cross-border experience, transformative operations leadership, and people-centered values continues to shape the future of logistics and last-mile innovation across Asia.
Dr. Danang Cahyono
Dr. Danang Cahyono brings over 25+ years of cross‑industry leadership — from FMCG and telecom to retail, e‑commerce, and distribution — into his role as COO at SIRCLO. As a senior executive with P&L responsibility, he’s spearheaded omnichannel growth, strategic agility, and e‑commerce transformation.
He combines deep operational insight with a hands‑on approach to business planning, deployment, and execution — often across B2B, B2C, and hybrid channels. Danang’s broad expertise and strategic mindset make him a standout example of a COO who can navigate complexity while driving scalable growth in digital commerce.
Ts. Zehan Teoh
Zehan Teoh serves as COO of Intrinsic SEA — a role through which he shapes cross‑border innovation, regional ecosystem development, and Asia Pacific wide expansion strategies. He brings deep expertise in Asia Pacific tech markets, policy environments, capital trends, and corporate‑government collaboration frameworks.
As Vice Chair at the ASEAN Technology Cooperation and Development Summit, he helps bridge government, academia, investors, and corporates — facilitating innovation, funding, and cooperation across Southeast Asia.
Zehan’s ability to translate policy and investment dynamics into actionable growth strategies makes him an important voice for anyone tracking ASEAN’s tech and venture ecosystem.
Simmi Dhamija
Simmi Dhamija represents a new generation of COOs who combine entrepreneurial business-building with world-class operational excellence.
As COO of AIonOS, an AI-native enterprise, she built the company’s CX business line from ground zero with complete P&L accountability, leading customer acquisition, revenue generation, pricing strategy, and profitability management while rapidly scaling the organization.
Her 25-year track record spans massive scale: leading enterprise-wide transformation at Tech Mahindra across a $6 billion organization with a global workforce, and managing multi-country operations at Wipro spanning 15+ countries across Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Africa.
Board-certified (EY-ISB), Simmi exemplifies the future of operational leadership: strategic, commercially savvy, and results-driven, a leader worth following in the AI era.
Danny Hoh
Danny Hoh currently serves as COO of Watsons Malaysia — combining retail operations, marketing, customer growth, digital, CRM, and sustainability oversight under one senior leadership role.
An award-winning professional recognized as Malaysia CMO of the Year (Retail, 2023), he brings deep expertise in retail strategy, customer experience, store planning, marketing communications, and business expansion.
His background across multiple retail and consumer brands — both in Southeast Asia and the Middle East — gives him a nuanced understanding of retail dynamics, omnichannel growth, and customer-centric operations.
Under his stewardship, Watsons Malaysia continues to evolve as a digitally aware, customer-first retail business, illustrating how modern COOs must blend marketing insight, operational discipline, and sustainability orientation.
Alex Szomora
Alex Szomora combines entrepreneurial leadership with strategic investment acumen — currently serving as COO at EON Protocol while investing in fintech, health‑tech, web3, and longevity startups across Southeast Asia and beyond.
With a background as a cloud‑consulting MD and venture partner, she focuses on building interoperable fintech ecosystems that drive financial inclusion and support underrepresented founders.
Her work spans business development, product/project management, deal sourcing, and ecosystem-building — reflecting a hybrid role as operator, investor, and strategic enabler.
By bridging startup operations with investment ecosystems, Alex offers a forward-looking model of what it means to be a COO in the age of fintech, web3, and venture‑backed innovation.
Final Thoughts: Where Execution Meets Influence
As companies across Asia push into new markets, embrace AI, and reinvent their business models, the COOs on this list are already several steps ahead. Their impact goes far beyond operations — they shape company culture, spearhead innovation, and often drive transformation from behind the scenes.
By following these ten, you’re not just tracking high-level managers — you’re learning from the operators setting tomorrow’s standards. In a business world hungry for reliable execution and bold change, these COOs aren’t just relevant — they’re indispensable.
Highlights
Read the Chinese article here.
