Leadership starts before the job title, says Republic Healthcare Group’s chief operating officer Jill Tan

The fourth edition of the Her World Mentorship Programme champions women who are just stepping into leadership. This year, 13 hand-picked mentees will spend six months journeying with accomplished women leaders.

Don’t let her petite frame fool you—Jill Tan is a force to be reckoned with.

She started her career in finance, but quickly found the environment cut-throat, toxic and deeply sexist. The stress caused her to break out, leading her to seek medical help—an encounter that unexpectedly sparked an interest in a new career path.

“[Finance] felt very objectifying as a woman,” she recalls. “It wasn’t somewhere I wanted to stay.”

Jill decided the healthcare industry would be better aligned with her interests, as she wanted to be part of a sector that genuinely uplifted people. After joining Republic Healthcare as a business development manager, she began noticing operational inefficiencies and wasn’t afraid to raise them with management.

“I created a proposal about how to better run the business with statistics, forecasts and proper solutions,” she recalls.

Today, as Chief Operating Officer of Republic Healthcare Holdings, Jill oversees a diverse ecosystem of health-focused brands including DTAP, DTAP Express and S Aesthetics Clinic. The group also has ventures in China and Hong Kong, and recently launched a drug trial in France.

Managing such a broad portfolio requires constant adaptability, but Jill credits compartmentalisation and delegation for helping her stay on top of it all.

“When I’m focused on the agility of DTAP Express, I’m in a different headspace than when I’m looking at the long-term infrastructure of our medical centres,” she explains. “I stay ‘flowing’ by empowering my teams. You cannot micromanage; you have to build a culture of trust so that the ‘balls’ keep moving even when you aren’t the one tossing them.”

Given the male-dominated nature of her industry, Jill makes a conscious effort to remain accessible to the women in her organisation.

“Previously, I found the whole concept of mentorship quite unapproachable,” she admits. “It felt very unstructured and, honestly, a bit awkward. But over time, I realised mentorship isn’t a stiff, scheduled performance. It’s about finding people whose perspective you respect, and asking the right questions in the moment.”

For Jill, mentorship within healthcare comes with an added layer of responsibility.

“We aren’t just passing on business tips; we are passing on the ethics of care. It’s an industry where the stakes are human lives and well-being. Mentorship here is about balancing the ‘cold’ hard data of medical excellence with the ‘warm’ necessity of patient-centric leadership.”

What’s a leadership lesson you’ve had to learn the hard way?

To be smart enough to know you are not that smart.

I used to think that if I just worked harder, I could fix any bottleneck, but I burnt out. I realised that my job as a leader isn’t to be the know-it-all—it’s to build systems that empower others to contribute to the mission.

If the machine breaks when you step away, you haven’t built a business; you’ve built a cage.

How do you handle moments when you feel uncertain or out of your depth as a leader?

I go back to the data. When I feel out of my depth, I strip away the emotion and look at the facts.

I also have a “right-hand woman” whom I can call and say, “I don’t know the answer to this.” Admitting uncertainty isn’t a weakness—it’s the first step towards finding clarity.

How should someone show up at work if they want to be seen as leadership material?

Stop asking for permission to lead. You show up as leadership material when you start taking ownership of outcomes, not just tasks. If you see a gap in the business, don’t just point it out—propose a solution.

Leadership is a mindset of asking, “How can I make this better?” long before it becomes a title on a business card.

Her World Mentorship Programme 2026 is made possible with the support of official beauty partner Cle de Peau Beaute and official network partner Singtel.

ART DIRECTION Adeline Eng
STYLING Donson Chan
HAIR Aung Apichai
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