Singapore Polytechnic (SP) has launched the Human Capital Collaboratory (HCC) at HR Learning Fest (HRLF) 2026, a new platform designed to help companies redesign work, strengthen human capability and translate workforce transformation into sustained business value. The event, themed “Career Rewired: Resilience, Relevance and Reinvention in the AI Era,” was graced by Mr Shawn Huang, Senior Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Manpower, as Guest-of-Honour.

Built on SP’s industry engagements with close to 1,000 organisations over the past three years, HCC follows a four-step pathway: business challenge, work redesign, human capability, and sustained value. It supports companies through job and workflow redesign, AI-enabled solutions, continuing education and training (CET) pathways, leadership development and fair workplace practices, delivered through SP staff consultancy, student projects and industry pilots.

A capability gap, not a skills 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 series by the Institute for Human Resource Professionals (IHRP). Drawing on the perspectives of 335 HR professionals, business leaders and workforce members across more than 40 sectors, the report’s 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 what the report calls “capability debt.”

The report highlights three priorities: giving people managers stronger support and clearer mandates to translate learning into daily practice; building a shared view of transformation progress between leadership and HR; and moving organisations from endorsement to execution through stronger governance and job redesign.

“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. Through HCC, SP will bring education, industry and partners together to turn transformation intent into practical action and sustained business value,” said Mr Lucas Tok, Director, School of Business, Singapore Polytechnic.

Five new industry partnerships

As part of HRLF 2026, SP signed memoranda of understanding with five partners to expand workforce transformation and applied industry collaboration: the Singapore Human Resources Institute, the Singapore Business Federation, Omni HR, Workato and Pacific Integrated Logistics. The partnerships span HR technology, automation curriculum, skills-first certification, and logistics-sector job redesign.

Together, SP frames the report and HCC as connecting diagnosis with action, helping organisations identify where capability is constrained and move towards work redesign, capability-building and sustained value as AI reshapes tasks, roles and the question of industry relevance.