Exploit, explore, and serve: a conceptual model of ambidexterity in islamic bank servitization

Abstract This conceptual paper examines how organizational ambidexterity enables Islamic banks’ transition toward servitization, evolving from product-centric operations to integrated service and solution providers. Islamic banks face acute challenges in developing innovative digital services and advisory functions while maintaining Shariah compliance and operational excellence. Integrating organizational ambidexterity theory with servitization and Islamic banking literature—including service quality and value co-creation perspectives—this study argues that balancing exploratory innovation with exploitative efficiency proves essential for servitization success. The paper proposes a three-dimensional ambidexterity framework—technological, market, and governance—and elucidates their interdependencies, relationships with servitization outcomes, and impacts on organizational performance. It offers actionable insights for banking executives alongside an agenda for future empirical research. This work addresses a critical theoretical gap: servitization in Islamic banking remains underexamined through an ambidexterity lens, despite pronounced exploration–exploitation tensions under Shariah constraints and fintech competition. The primary contributions comprise a novel three-dimensional framework and four propositions positioning ambidexterity as a mediator of servitization–performance relationships.