Dynamic Capabilities in Microfinance Innovation : A Case Study of the Grameen Foundation

The purpose of this research is to understand how microfinance organizations innovate their products, services, and processes to improve financial inclusion. The approach used is a retrospective, longitudinal, qualitative case study of how Grameen Foundation, a global non-government organization that partners with various microfinance institutions to provide micro loans and savings innovated. Data was obtained using semi structured interviews and publicly available material. Applying Dynamic Capability Theory highlighted the unique ways in which Grameen Foundation innovated through the three concepts of (1) sensing, (2) seizing, and (3) transforming. Our findings offer five insights that characterize how Grameen Foundation innovated its products, services and processes to improve financial inclusion by: 1) sensing country-specific needs; 2) seizing opportunities to use existing technology; 3) funding projects that created financial linkages through multi-sectorial partnerships; 4) adopting a business model that enabled innovation transfer and scaling; and, 5) strengthening how program performance was measured, monitored and evaluated to sustain the scaling of outcomes. While single case studies suffer from limited generalizability, this study may help microfinance practitioners assess the transferability of the findings to other contexts where changes will likely produce different outcomes for microfinance institutions and their beneficiaries. Future studies will benefit from applying other methods and theories that focus on innovation with built-in resiliency and capabilities to withstand the everchanging economic environments in which microfinance institutions operate