HCLTech, a leading global technology company, in partnership with the Government of Tamil Nadu and the University of Western Australia (UWA), convened senior leaders from government, academia and industry at the Capability Summit 2026, hosted at its Sholinganallur campus in Chennai.
The summit, themed “From Complexity to Capability – A Leadership Imperative,” focused on how sustainable competitive advantage for nations and enterprises will increasingly depend not just on technology adoption, but on building scalable, resilient talent and leadership architectures to support long term digital growth.
The leadership exchange brought together Dr. Palanivel Thiaga Rajan, Hon’ble Minister for Information Technology, Government of Tamil Nadu (virtual address), Dr Ian Martinus, Investment and Trade Commissioner for India-Gulf, Invest and Trade Western Australia, Professor Amit Chakma, Vice-Chancellor of UWA, Srimathi Shivashankar, Corporate Vice President and Global Head, EdTech Business at HCLTech, and Swapan Johri, President, Growth Markets at HCLTech.
The collaboration between HCLTech and the University of Western Australia brings together industry and academia to advance future‑ready leadership and digital capabilities through joint dialogue, research, executive education and innovation exchange. It reflects UWA’s expanding presence in India, including its forthcoming Chennai campus, and HCLTech’s commitment to building sustainable talent ecosystems that strengthen leadership pipelines, embed continuous learning and align workforce development with evolving global digital priorities.
Addressing the gathering, Dr. Palanivel Thiaga Rajan, Hon’ble Minister for Information Technology said, “We are at a clear inflection point, where change is happening across multiple dimensions. Preparing for the future requires a fundamental rethink of talent development and education. As technology reshapes work in healthcare, government and society at large, our focus must be on responsible automation that strengthens human judgment, supported by unbiased, accurate and verifiable data. This is how we secure long-term trust and progress.”
Professor Amit Chakma, Vice-Chancellor of UWA,said, “In an era defined by rapid technological transformation, long-term success will depend on our ability to design leadership systems that are adaptive, globally connected and innovation-driven. Our partnership with HCLTech reflects a shared commitment to building talent ecosystems that prepare individuals and institutions for complexity, not just change.”
Srimathi Shivashankar, Corporate Vice President and Global Head, EdTech Business at HCLTech,said, “Sustainable advantage is built through vision and intentional investment, not reactive responses. As talent models evolve, learnability must be embedded alongside strong data, decision frameworks and a culture of curiosity. Our collaboration with the University of Western Australia reflects HCLTech’s commitment to building future‑ready leadership through industry–academia partnerships.”
Swapan Johri, added, “As AI reshapes industries, the true differentiator will be the leadership and talent architectures built to leverage it effectively. Today’s dialogue reinforces our belief that capability must be designed intentionally to create lasting impact.”
