In today’s digital-first economy, cyber resilience is no longer a technical ambition, but a business imperative. Threats are growing more frequent, more sophisticated and harder to recover from. At the same time, emerging technologies like Generative AI are creating new frontiers for both attackers and defenders.
HCLTech’s Global Cyber Resilience Study 2024–25 confirms the urgency: 81% of enterprise security leaders expect to face a cyberattack within the next 12 months. In this environment, enterprises must move beyond reactive protection and toward a model of total resilience, which adapts to complexity, accelerates response and delivers secure continuity for business operations.
At the heart of this transformation is HCLTech’s cybersecurity strategy, driven by AI, enabled through ecosystem partnerships and delivered via a dynamic cybersecurity services operating model. It’s a strategy built not only to defend, but to help businesses thrive.
Ecosystem partnerships as a strategic enabler
Modern cybersecurity cannot be delivered in isolation. Organizations today require integrated solutions that address real-world business risks and that means working with technology partners who bring deep specialization and shared accountability.
CrowdStrike’s Amanda Adams, VP of Americas Alliances, emphasized this point in a recent conversation with HCLTech’s Prashant Mascarenhas, SVP and Global Solutions Head for Cybersecurity. She noted that, “CrowdStrike has finally invested in a partnership that's leaning into all things security,” highlighting the joint efforts in areas such as endpoint services, managed detection and response and next-gen SIEM. The focus, she explained, has been on solving specific customer challenges. Not only securing environments, but “stopping the breach.”
This kind of outcome-driven partnership reflects a broader shift across the cybersecurity landscape. As Jagadeshwar Gattu, President of Digital Foundation Services at HCLTech, pointed out, “The industry… is moving from best of breed to full stack models.” That shift brings with it a responsibility to choose the right technology alliances, which can integrate effectively and deliver measurable customer value.
“For us,” Gattu added, “we need to be very clear in terms of what suggestions we are giving to the customers, what type of partners we are selecting and working with… so that the customer is realizing the value.”
AI’s expanding role in cybersecurity
Nowhere is the pace of change more apparent than in the rise of AI. Speaking at the RSA Conference, Amit Jain, Global Head of Cybersecurity Services at HCLTech, described the dual impact of AI in the cyber domain. On one hand, it enhances detection, response and automation; on the other, it introduces new risks and attack surfaces.
“AI's expanding role in business is really something that we are all talking about,” said Jain, “not just how it can enable cybersecurity to deliver better outcomes, but also about how we can really protect the enterprise from bad use of AI and drive more Responsible AI adoption.”
HCLTech is responding to this challenge through a focused portfolio of AI-led initiatives. AI Force, AI Foundry and a globally distributed network of AI Labs are central to its strategy, enabling the development of adaptive, intelligent security capabilities that automate response, reduce time-to-containment and simplify complex environments.
But AI is not just a solution, it’s also a new threat vector. “With the AI coming in,” noted Gattu, “it is going to be an opportunity as well as concern…threat actors also can use GenAI to create attacks [that are a] lot harder to secure [and prevent against]. So… you need to carefully adapt everything, but at the same time be on the top of it.”
This understanding is why HCLTech views AI not as an isolated innovation but as a fully integrated layer across the cybersecurity stack; everything from threat detection and SOC operations to identity management and enforcement.
Why resilience matters more than ever
The frequency and complexity of attacks is increasing dramatically. “If I look at the last three years,” said Gattu, “there used to be...one or two cybersecurity issues I used to hear from the customers in a span of six months. But now…I'm seeing almost once in every month.”
HCLTech’s global study echoes this shift, with nearly 60% of surveyed organizations reporting impactful cybersecurity incidents and many expecting more in the future. And while attacks are rising, the ability to recover is declining.
As Jain observed, “The attacks are definitely growing and the concerns around the complexity of it is just adding more fuel to the fire…they are having tough time recovering from attacks versus what they used to have.”
He added that skills shortages and operational complexity are exacerbating the problem, “making it more difficult in resuming operations.”
That’s why resilience, not just protection, sits at the center of HCLTech’s approach. It’s not enough to detect and respond; enterprises must maintain continuity, preserve trust and adapt quickly to any disruption.
A dynamic cybersecurity services operating model for modern cybersecurity
HCLTech’s cybersecurity approach is anchored in a dynamic, AI-driven cybersecurity services operating model that supports both agility and enforcement. The company has invested in proprietary frameworks, global delivery capacity and an architecture built for constant adaptation.
As Gattu explained, “We've been doing these services for close to 30 years. We have set up almost close to 10 SOCs/CSFCs across the world…providing the right solutions, cutting-edge solutions and providing the right level of skill sets.”
This experience supports a three-part model that HCLTech uses to help clients build total resilience, as Jain outlined:
- A new cybersecurity services operating model – “based on Agentic AI and platformization strategy,” allowing organizations to respond to both economic and technological volatility.
- Enterprise resilience across the stack – spanning “applications, data, Active Directory, identity,” and helping organizations survive and recover from attacks.
- Zero Trust realized – fulfilling years of investment through actionable implementation. “Organizations have put a lot of investments…and now HCLTech can deliver that promise with the help of our partnership, with the help of our frameworks and IPs…and with the help of our talent.”
At RSA, Jain summarized a key industry shift: “We have talked about visibility in cybersecurity all throughout…but enforcement is where we are leaning towards and that's where delivering better outcomes really come into the picture.”
From threat response to business resilience
Cybersecurity is no longer just an IT function. It’s a strategic enabler for enterprise growth and trust. In an age of advanced threats, AI disruption and increasing regulatory scrutiny, resilience must be engineered into the foundation of every digital business.
HCLTech’s cybersecurity vision reflects this reality: AI-powered, partner-enabled and outcome-focused. With a long-standing track record, global capabilities and a commitment to innovation, HCLTech is helping enterprises move from reactive protection to proactive, intelligent and scalable resilience.
To explore our full research and understand how global leaders are preparing for what’s next, read the HCLTech Global Cyber Resilience Study 2024–25.
