As the founder of FDH Financial Holdings Limited, one of Malawi’s fastest-growing banking empires, Dr. Thomson Mpinganjira will be no stranger to the concept of digital disruption. Dr. Mpinganjira established FDH Bank in 2008; it’s a financial institution that has pioneered Malawi’s banking industry, developing a comprehensive catalog of digital banking solutions and driving financial inclusion through innovation.
Technological innovation is rapidly changing the way people live and work. Never in history have workers been exposed to such rapid changes in terms of speed and scale.
The exponential expansion of new technologies is on a scale never witnessed before. Historically, industrial revolutions did indeed transform the world, but each was rooted in just one key technology. Today’s explosion of innovation means any part of society, industry, or business could be influenced by at least 10 new technologies. Cybersecurity, 3D printing, AI, virtual reality, blockchain, robotics, crowdsourcing, quantified self, Internet of Everything, digital biology: the list goes on.
The speed of transformation is unprecedented. Historically, change took place over years, or in some cases, decades. Today, entire industries can be completely transformed in just a few months.
It is no longer just large corporations with vast resources that lie at the centre of change. Today’s business ecosystem is highly democratised, meaning that anyone can change industry. Combining these components has created a perfect storm for digital disruption, but how should businesses respond?
In Dr Thomson Mpinganjira’s case, adopting a proactive approach has led his companies to success after success. Acknowledging that the world has gone digital, FDH Bank took the stance that it was their job to bridge the gap.
Economic Disruptions Before Covid
Even before the arrival of coronavirus, with social distancing policies and economic disruptions stalling business, the world was already on a digital path. The COVID-19 crisis has simply sped up an inevitable transition to digitization. With aeroplanes grounded and lockdowns imposed in numerous countries worldwide, more and more organizations have been forced to embrace teleworking, relying on technologies such as Zoom and WhatsApp like never before.
Although Malawi has yet to fully embrace e-commerce, FDH Bank is pioneering digital technologies, delivering a vast suite of digital resources to help increase financial inclusion, reaching customers in even the most geographically isolated regions of Malawi, and delivering financial products and services that enhance their lives.
Innovation is not just about technology. It is about leveraging technology to create new, more astute business models. In commerce, disruption creates a radical break from existing processes within an industry. Derived from new, internet-enabled business models, digital disruption is revolutionising established industry models.
Digital disruption enabled Facebook to become the world’s largest media company. It means that the largest bookseller on the planet, Amazon, is also a software company. It allowed Netflix, which started life as a software company, to become the world’s largest video subscription service.
Digital disruption is more than a buzzword. Digital disruption hinges on improving the customer experience. In short, digital disruption makes people’s lives easier and is critical to commercial success.
Technological innovation is rapidly changing the way people live and work. Never in history have workers been exposed to such rapid changes in terms of speed and scale.
The exponential expansion of new technologies is on a scale never witnessed before. Historically, industrial revolutions did indeed transform the world, but each was rooted in just one key technology. Today’s explosion of innovation means any part of society, industry, or business could be influenced by at least 10 new technologies. Cybersecurity, 3D printing, AI, virtual reality, blockchain, robotics, crowdsourcing, quantified self, Internet of Everything, digital biology: the list goes on.
Changes in the Business’s Ecosystem
The speed of transformation is unprecedented. Historically, the change took place over years, or in some cases, decades. Today, entire industries can be completely transformed in just a few months.
It is no longer just large corporations with vast resources that lie at the centre of change. Today’s business ecosystem is highly democratised, meaning that anyone can change industry. Combining these components has created a perfect storm for digital disruption, but how should businesses respond?
In Dr Thomson Mpinganjira’s case, adopting a proactive approach has led his companies to success after success. Acknowledging that the world has gone digital, FDH Bank took the stance that it was their job to bridge the gap.
Even before the arrival of coronavirus, with social distancing policies and economic disruptions stalling business, the world was already on a digital path. The COVID-19 crisis has simply sped up an inevitable transition to digitization. With aeroplanes grounded and lockdowns imposed in numerous countries worldwide, more and more organizations have been forced to embrace teleworking, relying on technologies such as Zoom and WhatsApp like never before.
Although Malawi has yet to fully embrace e-commerce, FDH Bank is pioneering digital technologies, delivering a vast suite of digital resources to help increase financial inclusion, reaching customers in even the most geographically isolated regions of Malawi, and delivering financial products and services that enhance their lives.
Final Words
Innovation is not just about technology. It is about leveraging technology to create new, more astute business models. In commerce, disruption creates a radical break from existing processes within an industry. Derived from new, internet-enabled business models, digital disruption is revolutionizing established, industry models.
Digital disruption enabled Facebook to become the world’s largest media company. It means that the largest bookseller on the planet, Amazon, is also a software company. It allowed Netflix, which started life as a software company, to become the world’s largest video subscription service.
Digital disruption is more than a buzzword. Digital disruption hinges on improving the customer experience. In short, digital disruption makes people’s lives easier and is critical to commercial success.
