Harmonizing innovation: a competitive strategy for the future.
by Gianluca Berghella, President & CEO, Armundia Group
Our society is undergoing a monumental revolution: artificial intelligence has been dubbed the electricity of our time, poised to significantly alter market operators’ approach. Those driving this change must do so sustainably and across different sectors. Generative AI presents significant growth opportunities by enhancing efficiency across all operational models, increasing competitiveness, and paving the way for new development challenges.
In this emerging context, sharing technological innovation is not just a possibility but a critical necessity. A striking example of how this sharing can be implemented in the financial world is Open Finance. This model is based on the principle that secure and controlled sharing of financial data among institutions can expand access to financial services, enhance competitiveness, and offer a personalized, high-quality customer experience.
The importance of sharing innovation
If an innovation remains confined within the walls of a company or laboratory, it risks losing its transformative potential. Innovation that is not shared is, to some extent, wasted innovation. Open Finance, by facilitating access to financial data through user authorization, allows for the multiplication of its impact, transforming not only the enterprises that adopt it but also the markets and societies in which they operate.
AI can help reduce disparities among the various generations coexisting in our societies by offering customized tools that adapt to different levels of readiness for innovation. In particular, in the banking and insurance sectors, the adoption of smart technologies can bridge information and relational gaps in real-time, improving access to financial services and the quality of the customer experience.
However, adopting technology requires awareness and strategic vision. It’s not just about adopting the latest technological tool available, but understanding how to integrate it harmoniously within the organization, keeping humans at the center of the process. It is crucial to govern the technological revolution with clear objectives, diversifying its use and modes of implementation across various sectors.
Current and future regulations play a crucial role in facilitating this flexibility of use but also in ensuring that technological innovation is accessible and usable for all actors in the economic and social system. In this way, innovation can become a driver of social as well as economic transformation.
Harmonized innovation as a lever of competitiveness
Consider, for example, the contemporary banking context. The harmonization and sharing of technological innovation among:
^ education and information
^ organization and operations
^ business and market
are essential to increasing competitiveness. Education and information form the foundation for building a deep understanding of new technologies, essential for effective innovation. Organization and operations, meanwhile, must integrate these innovations to optimize internal processes, improve efficiency, and reduce costs, thus transforming daily operations.
The business and market directly benefit from these synergies, as the consistent adoption of advanced technologies allows for more prompt responses to market needs and anticipation of trends, positioning the bank as a leader in innovation. In this scenario, generative AI plays a crucial role, acting as a bridge between different levels of the banking universe. It not only fills existing innovation gaps but also facilitates both horizontal and vertical integration of technologies, allowing for fluid and immediate sharing of information.
This not only harmonizes the various sectors of the bank but also creates an environment where innovation is continuous and systematically encouraged, ensuring the bank a strong position in the competitive financial market.
Thus, the modern enterprise must act as a catalyst in this process, drawing inspiration from institutions, research, and market experiences to create and spread innovation. This represents an opportunity to strengthen one’s own skills and explore new development paths, but also a responsibility towards the reference sector and society as a whole.
Sharing innovation is an imperative for collective progress.
