Drew named ALB Employer of Choice for the 17th year
16 Apr 2026
Drew has been named an Employer of Choice (EoC) in Singapore by Asian Legal Business (ALB) for the 17th year, based on its annual survey of the region’s best law firms to work for.
Drew has consistently been awarded this accolade, surpassing all other law firms in Singapore since the survey’s launch in 2008.
The EoC survey is open to all employees of law firms, regardless of department or title, and includes non-legal roles. The research team evaluated law firms based on feedback from survey participants on aspects such as job satisfaction, salary level, training and career development opportunities, opportunities for specialised guidance, transparency of promotion to partner track, team collaboration, knowledge management and technical support level, work-life balance, career development prospects, and recommendation rate for their law firms.
In a feature published alongside the EoC results, ALB interviewed Director Adam Maniam on how law firms build a workplace where excellence and fulfillment coexist, especially in an era where artificial intelligence threatens to reshape the legal profession and talent retention has become competitive.
When it comes to retaining talent, relationships and how people are treated matter. Adam shared that in Drew, junior lawyers work exclusively with a single team leader. This approach ensures that team leaders maintain comprehensive oversight of each junior’s “well-being, workload and development”. The proof that this system works is in retention. Adam said, “The fact that the majority of the directors in Drew started in the firm as trainees shows that this approach has worked very well for us and will continue to work well.”
Beyond legal training, Adam said, “In an increasingly competitive legal market, business development is the most critical legal competency for the next generation of partners and arguably for the present generation too.” He also shared that the firm has “significantly expanded its roster of business development and marketing professionals who work directly with lawyers to raise profiles and create new revenue streams.”
In addition, Adam emphasised Drew’s strong commitment to growth through continuous learning. The firm fosters this culture through its Knowledge Management team and frequent internal training sessions. These sessions, often centered on landmark cases, actively include junior lawyers. As Adam described, junior lawyers “feel empowered to play a direct part in increasing the collective expertise across the firm.”
Adam also highlighted the firm’s “truly open-door policy where senior lawyers are always happy to speak to the juniors to hear feedback and discuss and implement changes that will benefit the firm and its employees.” This emphasis on accessibility is reinforced by the formation of sub-committees that address key issues, ensuring individuals from various levels of seniority are included or consulted.
You may read the article on pp. 18-28 of ALB April 2026 issue here, or ALB website here.