Singapore Polytechnic (SP) has launched the Human Capital Collaboratory (HCC) at HR Learning Fest (HRLF) 2026, a new platform to help companies redesign work, strengthen human capability and translate workforce transformation into sustained business value.
HCC positions human capital as a business transformation framework, one that is beyond HR and interfaced with operations, technology or growth. It follows a four-step pathway: business challenge, work redesign, human capability, and sustained value.
HCC will support companies through job and workflow redesign, AI-enabled solutions, CET pathways, leadership development and fair workplace practices through SP staff consultancy, student projects, and industry pilots.
The launch comes as AI reshapes tasks, roles and the question of industry relevance become more apparent. HRLF 2026 moves from conversations to action, showing how organisations can redesign roles and teams to harness AI as an enabler, strengthen AI agility, and build career resilience as both an enterprise and national priority.
New report highlights the capability application gap
HRLF 2026 also marked the release of The Capability Advantage – Redesign to Reskill for Competitive Edge, the fourth edition of the Job Skills Insight (JSI) series by the Institute for Human Resource Professionals (IHRP). Released to mark IHRP’s 10th anniversary and SP School of Business’s 40th anniversary (SB40 × IHRP10), the report draws on the perspectives of 335 HR professionals, business leaders and workforce members across more than 40 sectors.
It examines why workforce competitiveness can no longer be achieved through manpower growth, static roles or training programmes alone. As AI, automation and cross-functional demands reshape work, organisations need to move from fragmented skills initiatives towards intentional job redesign, skills mobility and workforce systems that enable continuous learning and performance.
Its central diagnosis is that Singapore’s persistent capability gap is not a skills deficit, but an application deficit: skills are being built faster than work is being redesigned to deploy them, creating “capability debt” – the cost of work evolving faster than the systems organising it.
Three priorities highlighted in the report are:
- People managers: They need stronger support, clearer mandates and better tools to translate learning into everyday practice.
- A shared view of progress: Leadership and HR need a common understanding of transformation progress, anchored in operational reality.
- From endorsement to execution: Organisations must close the gap through stronger governance, ownership and job redesign.
Together, the report and HCC connect diagnosis with action; helping organisations identify where capability is constrained and move towards work redesign, capability-building and sustained value.
“AI transformation is not only about adopting technology; it is about redesigning work so people can use it well. A capability advantage is created when skills can be applied in daily work, supported by managers, clear ownership and the right systems,” said Mr Lucas Tok, Director, School of Business, Singapore Polytechnic.
“Through HCC, SP will bring education, industry and partners together to turn transformation intent into practical action and sustained business value.”
HRLF 2026 also brings together the wider workforce ecosystem through keynotes, clinics, learning journeys and an industry showcase spanning career resilience, professional development, workforce transformation, fair workplaces, AI adoption, HR technology and business transformation.