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Chief Guest
- Smt. Droupadi Murmu Hon'ble President of India
In The August Presence Of
- Shri Mohan Charan Majhi Chief Minister Odisha
- Dr Mukesh Mahaling Minister, Health and Family welfare, Parliamentary Affairs, Electronics & Information Technology Odisha
- Shri Suryabanshi Suraj Minister, Higher Education, Sports & Youth Services, Odia Language Literature & Culture Odisha
James Boey
Chief Executive Officer Asia & Co-Chief Executive Officer Forums
Global Finance & Technology Network (GFTN)
James Boey currently is the CEO for China, India, ASEAN and Central Asian regions at GFTN. Besides that, he also is the Co-CEO for GFTN’s Forums pillar.
As the CEO of China, India, ASEAN and Central Asia, James heads business strategy for entry into those markets. He also serves as the Co-Head of GFTN Forums, where he brings his wealth of experience in business operations, strategic partnerships, and ecosystem development to shape global dialogues at the intersection of finance, technology, and public-private collaboration.
James has held senior leadership roles across both public and private sectors. Prior to GFTN, he was Senior Vice President at Constellar and Director of Business Events & Corporate Development at SingEx Exhibitions. His career also includes a role as Senior Assistant Director at Singapore’s Ministry of Trade and Industry, where he contributed to national-level industry development. He has led the design and execution of major B2B events in Singapore and the broader APAC region, covering diverse sectors such as FinTech, Advanced Manufacturing, Trade, Build Environment, and Process Engineering.
Speaking at
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1:45–2:45pmThu 5 FebBlack Swan DebatesCentral HallPremiumModerator
Next-Gen Global Capability Centre
Assessing Odisha’s GCC ecosystem: In the age of automation and AI, should we adopt technology-led or talent-led growth strategy to future-proof the GCC ecosystem more effectively?
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Makoto ShibataHead of FINOLAB, Chief Community OfficerFINOLAB Inc.
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Kimihiro SakaguchiCo-Chief Executive OfficerSMBC Global Services
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Jinya SuzukiChief Executive OfficerMUFG Global Service
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Yanan WuChairman & Chief Executive OfficerSurfin Meta Digital Technology Pte. Ltd
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Kulathumani KarthikeyenVice President, States Facilitation & Special ProjectsInvest India
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Manas PandaDirectorSTPI Bhubaneswar
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James BoeyChief Executive Officer Asia & Co-Chief Executive Officer ForumsGlobal Finance & Technology Network (GFTN)Moderator
About this session
As AI and automation reshape the Global Capability Centre (GCC) landscape, Odisha faces a critical strategic choice: should it build its competitive advantage around cutting-edge technology infrastructure and AI capabilities, or invest primarily in developing specialized talent pools that can adapt as technology evolves?
The Technology-Led Case: GCCs will gravitate toward locations with superior digital infrastructure, AI/ML platforms, data centers, and automation-ready facilities. Odisha should become the testbed for next-generation GCC operations focused on analytics and innovation rather than routine tasks.
The Talent-Led Case: Technology commoditizes quickly. What differentiates sustainable GCC ecosystems is specialized talent, particularly in regulated domains (finance, insurance), multilingual capabilities for ASEAN/Japanese markets, and the human judgment and creativity that AI cannot replicate. Odisha should invest in academia-industry partnerships and niche expertise that builds irreplaceable human capital.
This debate brings together GCC leaders, technology providers, policymakers, and talent strategists to examine Odisha's optimal path forward, identifying critical success factors for each strategy, deal-breakers that make either approach unviable, and whether a precisely sequenced hybrid model offers the most realistic route to making Odisha a competitive, future-proofed GCC destination by 2030. -
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1:00–1:10pmFri 6 FebSummit Stage DialoguesCentral HallOpen
