17. The Case of Digitalisation in the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES): How Brazilian Culture and the Institutional Values Influence the Process

The path and velocity of technological innovations sparked a process of digital transformation in almost every economic sector. It goes without saying that cultural aspects play a fundamental role in these processes both at a national level as well as at an institutional one. This chapter presents a case study of the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES), an important Brazilian federal institution whose mission is to implement government policies to foster national development in different forms. The BNDES’s case is particularly interesting as it focuses its attention on how intellectual capital and cultural characteristics shaped the digitalisation strategy of an important part of its operations from 2016 to 2019. For the purpose of the present analysis, two researchers were used: one involving an organisational survey directed at all 2700 employees and the other a qualitative interview with key executives. The result demonstrated that aspects like the culture of silos and its hierarchy (both also found in Brazilian Culture) acted as obstacles as it underwent this digital transformation process, even when the traditional and current process posed a threat to the existence of business model sustainability in the near future. The BNDES case sheds light on the importance of building resilient institutions in opposition to resistant ones. A strategy of change starts by recognising patterns of cultural behaviours in an organisation and the need to shape them to adaptation and suitability. Once that strategy is well implemented in a particular sector of activities, it can then act as a benchmark for future reference and guidelines of action.