Factors driving innovation strategies and long-term capability in the financial industry

With innovation being one of the elements to obtain a competitive advantage, organisations in the modern business environment are primarily focused on improving existing processes and products as a means of innovation. Organisations need to go beyond product and process innovation and develop strategies specifically intended for innovation. Innovation in most organisations happens in a non-systematic, arbitrary manner. Organisations should establish clear innovation strategies such as aggressive innovation, technological innovation, market innovation and opportunity innovation. Knowing what drives innovation strategies and capability will enhance organisations to gain an additional competitive edge. The purpose of this study was to investigate the factors driving innovation strategies that would ensure long-term capabilities within the financial industry. The study adopted a qualitative methodology, cross-sectional and used a case study design. As the existing body of knowledge on innovation strategies is limited, an interpretivist philosophy that is descriptive in nature were used as it describes and provides insight into this field of study. Following a thematic approach and using semi-structured interviews the empirical study was conducted on twenty top managers from twenty different organisations in the financial industry in one of South Africa's provinces. Data was analysed using Atlas-ti. The financial industry was selected because the industry is entering a digital phase that demands sustained innovation practices to survive in this new landscape. The industry is at the core of rapid structural changes that have a significant effect on South Africa. Prior to conducting the interviews, pre-testing was conducted by undertaking pilot tests to test the viability and reliability of the questions. Empirical evidence suggests that innovation strategies and innovation success is influenced by multiple factors, mainly technology, employee motivation and leadership. The results reflected that successful innovation in organisations cannot be achieved in silo's but organisational support is fundamental. It was found that idea-pitching platforms enhance the creation of new ideas and implementation of new innovation practices.