With 4,000 women among ERA Singapore’s 8,605 Trusted Advisers, Ong saw not just numbers, but untapped leadership potential. (Photo: EdgeProp Singapore)
Few leaders embody the vision of ERA EmpowHER more clearly than Doris Ong, Deputy CEO of ERA Singapore.
Her leadership is shaped not only in the boardroom, but also through careful observation of how service professionals, including ERA’s Trusted Advisers, engage clients, manage expectations and uphold trust through action.
“Real estate is fundamentally a people business,” she says. “It’s built on relationships, trust and service.”
Market knowledge matters. So do transactions and data. But for Ong, long-term success comes down to understanding people’s aspirations, anxieties and life transitions.
As the first woman to enter ERA’s C-suite, she understands both the privilege and responsibility of leadership. Today, her mission is clear: to open more doors for women to rise.
After graduating from the National University of Singapore’s real estate degree programme, most of Ong’s peers joined consultancies, developers or government agencies.
She chose ERA.
She chose a path less commonly explored and never looked back. More than three decades later, she remains with the company she joined as a fresh graduate.
“I was fortunate to be given opportunities to learn, experiment and take on new challenges early in my career,” she recalls. “Those experiences shaped who I am today.”
Those early opportunities shaped her leadership philosophy, one grounded in mentorship.
“To me, leadership is about preparing people to lead.”
Sharing session about prjects by deputy CEO Doris Ong (Photo: ERA Singapore)
EmpowHER began as a calling, born from a deep sense of purpose.
Over the years, Ong had noticed a pattern. Many capable women at ERA were delivering strong results, leading teams and building thriving businesses. While opportunities were available, not all stepped forward to take on broader leadership roles.
“We have many capable women across ERA,” she says. “Sometimes what makes the difference is simply being given the platform and the confidence to lead.”
Having benefitted from early opportunities and trusted mentors herself, Ong felt a responsibility to formalise that support system. EmpowHER was created to provide structure to what had long existed informally.
With women making up 4,000 of ERA’s 8,600 Trusted Advisers today, she saw both the need and the opportunity. The aim was not to create exclusivity, but to cultivate influence and ensure more women were equipped, visible and ready to lead.
For Ong, EmpowHER is ultimately about continuity.
“It’s about preparing the next generation,” she says. “Because leadership should never be accidental.”
ESG Initiative — Gift-A-Family Appreciation Lunch (Photo: ERA Singapore)
When ESG by ERA was launched in November 2021, it marked a deliberate commitment to align ERA’s growth with purpose.
As Chairperson of ERA’s Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) movement, Ong has spearheaded its direction, transforming it from an idea into a sustained movement that mobilised ERA’s Trusted Advisers, management and staff to give back collectively.
The scale of participation reflects this commitment. Nearly 2,000 teammates came together to set a Singapore Record for the most online sustainability pledges made in a day.
ESG Initiative — North West CDC ServiceWeek (Photo: ERA Singapore)
Beyond pledges, impact extended directly into the community. Through its partnership with North West Community Development Council, ERA supported Service Weeks that featured a pop-up market set up in the neighbourhood of the selected resident households. Instead of distributing generic care packs to individual homes, counters were set up to offer residents a choice of their household or food items. This approach supports the HDB Public Rental Scheme beneficiaries and those under the North West District’s welfare programmes, ensuring reduced food wastage and respect for individual choices.
A defining milestone was the SADeaf–ERA Walk with a Difference, which brought together over 1,500 participants and raised funds benefitting nearly 6,000 deaf, deafblind and hard-of-hearing individuals nationwide.
For Ong, ESG is about giving back in meaningful ways.
In an industry built on relationships, giving back beyond transactions strengthens communities and reinforces the integrity of the profession.
ESG Initiative — ERA x SAFDEAF Walkathon (Photo: ERA Singapore)
After more than three decades, Ong no longer measures success solely by transactions or market share.
She measures it by the leaders she helps shape.
“If we create an environment where people feel supported and trusted,” she says, “they will go on to do the same for others.”
In a business built on relationships, that may be the most meaningful investment of all.
Read more on ERA EmpowHER and Council Members Tracy Teo, Alicia Yang, Ayu Yanti, Brenda Zee, Jasmine Chan, Nicole Lim, Gina Tng, Joelle Chew, Kelly Yu, Sandy Lim, Jasmine Png, Chloe Zhang, Zann Low and Wendeline Goh.