The Impact of Organizational Inertia on Data - Driven Marketing Efficiency: The Mediating Role of Strategic Agility (An Applied Study at Al-Rasheed Bank Branches).

Abstract

This study is to understand how Organizational rigidity affects data-driven marketing efficiency and how strategic agility mediates between the two. The study emphasizes Al-Rashid Bank branches in banking industry that is experiencing rapid digitalization and a heavy usage of data for making marketing decisions and marketing practices. It is based on the assumption that the rigid and unchanging organizational structure and organizational procedures can hinder the bank to adapt to the dynamic environment and to make best use of data if conditions change, and strategic agility can be used as an organizational mechanism to increase the bank's adaptability and effectiveness in using data.

 This study used descriptive analytical method, which involved questionnaires as its main data collection tools and the sample consisted of 305 employees from Al-Rashid Bank branches. Data analysis used descriptive statistics and reliability test in SPSS V26 and confirmatory factor analysis, structural equation modeling and assessment of direct and indirect effect in AMOS V24. The suitability of the measurement instrument was confirmed by the validity and reliability indicators and the suitability of the proposed model was supported by the goodness-of-fit indices. Results showed that organizational rigidity had significant negative effects on strategic agility (β = -0.48, P< 0.001) and had direct negative effects on data-driven marketing efficiency (β = -0.42, P< 0.001). On the other hand, data-driven marketing efficiency was found to have a statistically significant positive effect on strategic agility (β = 0.64, P<0.001). The Bootstrap test also confirmed the indirect effects of organizational rigidity on marketing efficiency via strategic agility (β = -0.31; 95% CI = -0.404 to -0.225), supporting partial mediation via strategic agility.

This study's relevance in the real world is that it emphasizes the need to also work on the organizational constraints that can be worked on along with strategic sensitivity, collective commitment and fluidity of resources, which, in turn, helps banks to improve the ability to translate data into efficient marketing practices and decisions. The study calls for a review of organizational procedures that do not allow for flexibility, building digital and analytical skills in employees, better data governance, and more flexible processes to reallocate resources for strategic agility and marketing efficiency driven by data.