The rapid rise of fintechs has become a global phenomenon in the financial services sector. Financial institutions are seeing traditional models and processes upended, and are losing market share and business to new technology players.

One of the most common reasons used to explain the threat is that traditional financial institutions are large and weighed down by institutional inertia and legacy platforms while fintechs are light and nimble.

However, the agile and successful tech giants like Apple and Google demonstrate that size and history aren’t necessarily the impediment to flexible and game-changing innovations.

Instead, what new fintechs have that large incumbent companies often lack is a resourceful and flexible way of thinking that helps steer them towards success in today’s competitive and disruptive environment. Specifically, I see three ways that fintechs think differently from large companies, all of which financial services companies can emulate.

Solve problems, then products
In their efforts to build growth and brand equity, fintechs have to communicate themselves to the market differently than an established company. They understand that products are an important way to package ideas and solutions, but also know they are only successful to the degree that they address a client’s pain point – in the case of a B2B relationship – or consumer’s desires. As a result, fintechs devote a great deal of focus towards listening and responding to their markets.

Building this sensitivity into an existing organisation with more established products, services and structures requires a significant shift in the cultural mindset. Employees need to be encouraged to look left and right to ensure they are remaining relevant and dynamic within the industry they operate. Where they feel they aren’t, they need spaces to explore and question.

This transformation can be painful, but it drives success. A problem-solving mindset is naturally goal-oriented. It creates tension in overly siloed areas of business, and motivates change to happen. It is resourceful and draws in as many tools as possible – data and analytics, experts and talents, partners – to come up with solutions (that can then be translated into products) to solve a problem.

Most importantly, a problem-solving mindset understands why a business exists and what it needs to do to continue doing so. This understanding helps companies adjust when the challenges change. It also drives confident and successful innovation, and improvements in products and services that are market-led rather than organisation-driven.

Empower people
Every person in a fintech must be empowered for the company to grow and succeed. , I’ve seen that established financial institutions can cultivate this culture in their organisations as well, and use that effort to power remarkable transformations.

Individual empowerment is built with a variety of tools, one of the most effective being diversity. Encouraging the representation of a variety of backgrounds, experiences and thinking in an organization signals to employees that unique strengths and talents are welcomed, and makes people feel welcomed to use them.

Companies should also empower their employees with clear direction. To do so, leadership should keep business strategies simple and communicate them regularly to enable people to make them a reality.

A useful core strategy can be summed up as—grow, diversify and build. The ‘grow’ pillar recognizes that our core customers, issuers, are at the heart of any business and that we need to continuously evolve to meet their expanding needs. ‘Diversify’ acknowledges that every financial institution today is part of a much larger and dynamic financial ecosystem, so all players must seek opportunities to flex their strengths more broadly. ‘Build’, is about opening up new untapped business segments altogether.

Banks can empower employees with similar strategies of their own. At their center, they have assets that still have much room to grow: networks, diverse portfolios, credibility, brand trust and excellence in execution. They can use these to develop partnerships that leverage their strengths to allow them to diversify through the system. Their access to capital and smart talent can also provide valuable resources to invest and innovate into new markets.

Own the business
A sense of ownership is the third primary distinguishing factors between fintechs and large companies. The leaders of fintechs come to work each day with the mindset that their existence depends on their ability to create value for their clients and stakeholders. This mindset inevitably gives them a great sense of ownership and motivates them to maintain a holistic understanding of the business.

I saw the effectiveness of this mindset in my own experience working within my family business. In that environment, there was no discussion around 'Okay, this is your job and that is your job.' It was, ‘we're successful or not as a family.’ If we weren't, it didn't really matter what your job was. If we were, everyone enjoyed the results of the effort.

A sense of ownership is not just good for organisations but also personally motivating and rewarding.

Sachin Mehra is the chief financial officer at Mastercard