Strategic Human Capital Development and Organizational Innovation in the Nigerian Banking Industry

This study empirically examines the relationship between strategic human capital development practices and organizational innovation outcomes in the Nigerian banking industry. As Nigerian banks navigate digital transformation, the quality of human capital strategy has emerged as a critical differentiator between institutions that innovate successfully and those that lag. Human capital theory and the knowledge-based view of the firm provide the theoretical foundation. The study adopts a quantitative survey design, collecting data from human resource directors, talent managers, and innovation leads of fifteen commercial banks operating across multiple geopolitical zones. A sample of 135 respondents was drawn through stratified sampling. Structural equation modelling was used to test the hypothesized relationships between human capital development dimensions and innovation output indicators. Findings indicate that competency-based training investment, career development architecture, and knowledge transfer facilitation each have significant direct effects on organizational innovation measured by new financial product launches, process innovation indices, and patent applications. The study establishes that employee learning agility partially mediates the relationship between development investment and innovation outcomes. The research fills a gap by providing SEM-based evidence of the human capital-innovation nexus specifically within the Nigerian banking context. The study concludes that banks must embed strategic human capital development frameworks within their digital innovation roadmaps. Keywords: human capital development, organizational innovation, banking industry, Nigeria, structural equation modelling.