ISSN (print) - 0131-7652

ISSN (online) - 2686-7605

Vol. 56 No. 1 (2026)
FINANCIAL ECONOMY

Organizational Ambidexterity as a Response to Disruptive Innovations in the Banking Services Market

Requires Subscription or Fee PDF (Русский) (RUB 200)
  • Antipov A.B.
Antipov A.B.
School of Business, National Research University Hidger School of Economics. Head of Business Development Department, Rosatom Compliance Technologies.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.30680/ECO0131-7652-2026-1-111-131

Published 2026-01-29

Keywords

  • response strategy; disruptive innovation; innovative management; new business models; dynamic capabilities; diversification; digitalization of financial companies; banking activities; digital platforms

How to Cite

1.
A.B. А. Organizational Ambidexterity as a Response to Disruptive Innovations in the Banking Services Market. ECO [Internet]. 2026 Jan. 29 [cited 2026 Jan. 30];56(1):111-3. Available from: https://ecotrends.ru/index.php/eco/article/view/4936

Abstract

This paper examines the response strategies of T-Bank and Sberbank to the competitive landscape of the financial market, which is being transformed by new technologies. T-Bank’s “Bank without Front Offices” business model has proven highly effective and can be considered a disruptive innovation for the banking market. Sberbank has implemented a more complex model of organizational ambidexterity, manifested in the form of related and unrelated diversification. A qualitative case study based on empirical data from Sberbank was used, including 10 business projects and strategic planning documents from 2008 to 2026. The paper establishes the application of a dual management model focused on the development of traditional and fundamentally new business areas. The effects achieved by this strategy are also demonstrated.
Requires Subscription or Fee PDF (Русский) (RUB 200)

References

  1. Маркова В., Кузнецова С. Экосистемы как инновационный инструмент роста бизнеса // ЭКО. 2021. 51(8): 151–168. https://doi.org/10.30680/ECO0131–7652–2021–8–151–168
  2. Попов Е., Симонова В., Челак И. Стратегия расширения инновационной экосистемы предприятия в условиях диверсификации деятельности // ЭКО. 2022. 9(579): 96–112. https://doi.org/10.30680/ECO0131–7652–2022–9–96–112
  3. Andreasson, M., Karabag, S. F., Simonsson, J., Agarwal, G. (2024). Dynamics of related and unrelated digital diversification in established firms: Strategies, programs, process, and outcomes. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 202: 123300. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2024.123300
  4. Bassens, D., Hendrikse, R. (2022). Asserting Europe’s technological sovereignty amid American platform finance: Countering financial sector dependence on Big Tech? Political Geography, 97: 102648. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.polgeo.2022.102648
  5. Berman, S.J. (2012). Digital transformation: opportunities to create new business models. Strategy & leadership, 40(2), 16–24. https://doi.org/10.1108/10878571211209314
  6. Bian, W., Wang, S., Xie, X. (2024). How valuable is FinTech adoption for traditional banks? European Financial Management, 30(3), 1065–1093. https://doi.org/10.1111/eufm.12424
  7. Boschma, R., Minondo, A., Navarro, M. (2013). The emergence of new industries at the regional level in Spain: a proximity approach based on product relatedness. Economic Geography. 89 (1): 77–96. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1944–8287.2012.01170.x
  8. Ceipek, R., Hautz, J., De Massis, A., Matzler, K., Ardito, L. (2021). Digital transformation through exploratory and exploitative internet of things innovations: The impact of family management and technological diversification. Journal of Product Innovation Management, 38 (1): 142–165. https://doi.org/10.1111/jpim.12551
  9. Chen, Y. (2017). Dynamic ambidexterity: How innovators manage exploration and exploitation. Business Horizons, 60 (3): 385–394. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2017.01.001
  10. Christensen, C.M. (1997). The Innovator’s Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail, Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press.
  11. Christensen, C.M. (2006). The ongoing process of building a theory of disruption. Journal of Product Innovation Management, 23(1). https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540–5885.2005.00180.x
  12. Christensen C.M., Alton R., Rising C., Waldeck A. (2011). The new M&A playbook. Harvard Business Review, 89(3): 48–57.
  13. Christensen C.M., McDonald R., Altman E.J., Palmer J.E. (2018). Disruptive Innovation: An Intellectual History and Directions for Future Research. Journal of Management Studies, 55, 1043–1078. https://doi.org/10.1111/joms.12349
  14. Christensen C.M., Raynor M., McDonald, R. (2015). Disruptive innovation. Harvard Business Review, 93(12), 44–53.
  15. Eferin Y., Hohlov Y., Rossotto C. (2019). Digital platforms in Russia: competition between national and foreign multi-sided platforms stimulates growth and innovation. Digital Policy, Regulation and Governance, 21(2): 129–145. https://doi.org/10.1108/DPRG-11–2018–0065
  16. Eisenhardt K.M., Martin J.A. (2000). Dynamic capabilities: what are they? Strategic Management Journal, 21(10‐11): 1105–1121. https://doi.org/10.1002/1097–0266(200010/11)21:10/11<1105:: AID-SMJ133>3.0.CO;2-E
  17. Eni, L.N., Chaudhary, K., Raparthi, M., Reddy, R. (2023). Evaluating the Role of Artificial Intelligence and Big Data Analytics in Indian Bank Marketing. Tuijin Jishu/Journal of Propulsion Technology, 44(3).
  18. Frenken, K., Van Oort, F., Verburg, T. (2007). Related variety, unrelated variety and regional economic growth. Regional Studies 41: 685–697. https://doi.org/10.1080/00343400601120296
  19. Gilbert, C.G. (2006). Change in the presence of residual fit: Can competing frames coexist? Organization Science, 17(1), 150–167. https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.1050.0160
  20. Gomber, P., Kauffman, R.J., Parker, C., Weber, B.W. (2018). On the fintech revolution: Interpreting the forces of innovation, disruption, and transformation in financial services. Journal of Mamanagement Information Systems, 35(1), 220–265. https://doi.org/10.1080/07421222.2018.1440766
  21. Guitton, M. J. (2022). Sovereignty in the age of technology: Challenges and Opportunities. Computers in Human Behavior, 134: 107331. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2022.107331
  22. Gyau, E.B., Appiah, M., Gyamfi, B.A., Achie, T., Naeem, M.A. (2024). Transforming banking: Examining the role of AI technology innovation in boosting banks financial performance. International Review of Financial Analysis, 96, 103700. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.irfa.2024.103700
  23. Hausmann, R., Hidalgo, C. A. (2011). The network structure of economic output. Journal of Economic Growth, 16: 309–342. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10887–011–9071–4
  24. Hendrikse, R., Bassens, D., Van Meeteren, M. (2018). The Appleization of finance: Charting incumbent finance’s embrace of FinTech. Finance and Society, 4(2), 159–180. https://doi.org/10.2218/finsoc.v4i2.2870
  25. Karminsky, A., Voytov, N. (2022). Platform ecosystems and its modelling: Russian evidence. Procedia Computer Science, 199, 572–579. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.procs.2022.01.070
  26. Langley, P., Leyshon, A. (2021). The platform political economy of FinTech: Reintermediation, consolidation and capitalisation. New Political Economy, 26(3), 376–388. https://doi.org/10.1080/13563467.2020.1766432
  27. Liao, K., Ma, C., Zhang, J., Wang, Z. (2024). Does big data infrastructure development facilitate bank fintech innovation? Evidence from China. Finance Research Letters, 65, 105540. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.frl.2024.105540
  28. Lin, H.E., Hsu, I.C., Hsu, A.W., Chung, H.M. (2020). Creating competitive advantages: Interactions between ambidextrous diversification strategy and contextual factors from a dynamic capability perspective. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 154:119952. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2020.119952
  29. Meyer, C.B. (2001). A case in case study methodology. Field Methods 13(4): 329–352. https://doi.org/10.1177/1525822X0101300402
  30. Morris, T., Wood, S. (1991). Testing the survey method: continuity and change in British industrial relations. Work, Employment and Society 5 (2): 259–282. https://doi.org/10.1177/0950017091005002007
  31. O’Reilly, III C. A., Tushman, M. L. (2008). Ambidexterity as a dynamic capability: Resolving the innovator’s dilemma. Research in Organizational Behavior, 28, 185–206. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.riob.2008.06.002
  32. O’Reilly, III C. A., Tushman, M. L. (2013). Organizational ambidexterity: Past, present, and future. Academy of Management Perspectives, 27(4): 324–338. https://doi.org/10.5465/amp.2013.0025
  33. O’Reilly, III C. A., Tushman, M. L. (2021). Lead and disrupt: How to solve the innovator’s dilemma. Stanford University Press.
  34. de Paula, Pereira G., de Medeiros, J. F., Kolling, C., Ribeiro, J. L. D., Morea, D., Iazzolino, G. (2024). Using dynamic capabilities to cope with digital transformation and boost innovation in traditional banks. Business Horizons, 67(4): 317–330 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2024.03.006
  35. Piekkari, R., Plakoyiannaki, E., Welch, C. (2010). «Good» case research in industrial marketing: Insights from research practice. Industrial Marketing Management 39 (1): 109–117. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indmarman.2008.04.017
  36. Pinheiro, F.L., Hartmann, D., Boschma, R., Hidalgo, C.A. (2022). The time and frequency of unrelated diversification. Research Policy, 51 (8): 104323. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2021.104323
  37. Russell, S. J., Norvig, P. (2016). Artificial intelligence: a modern approach. Pearson. https://thuvienso.hoasen.edu.vn/handle/123456789/8967
  38. Subburayan, B., Sankarkumar, A.V., Singh, R., Mushi, H.M. (2024). Transforming of the Financial Landscape from 4.0 to 5.0: Exploring the Integration of Blockchain, and Artificial Intelligence. Applications of Block Chain technology and Artificial Intelligence, 137–161. https://doi.org/10.1007/978–3–031–47324–1_9
  39. Teece, D.J. (2007). Explicating dynamic capabilities: the nature and microfoundations of (sustainable) enterprise performance, Strategic Management Journal, 28 (13), 1319–1350. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.640
  40. Teece, D. J. (2018). Business models and dynamic capabilities. Long Range Planning, 51(1), 40–49. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lrp.2017.06.007
  41. Vahlne, J. E., Ivarsson, I. (2014). The globalization of Swedish MNEs: Empirical evidence and theoretical explanations. Journal of International Business Studies, 45, 227–247. https://doi.org/10.1057/jibs.2013.60