Innovation in investment banking has traditionally focused on speed, scale, and quantitative precision. But as genAI gains traction, a new focus is entering the equation: creativity. Creativity is emerging as a key driver of differentiation, especially when paired with data and applied through genAI tools.
A Creative Shift in a Historically Analytical Industry
New research from the LexisNexis Future of Work 2025: Innovating the Industry – GenAI and the Rise of the Creative Financial Professional report reveals a notable shift in mindset for financial professionals:
- 69% of financial services professionals say they prefer creative thinking over purely analytical tasks
- 84% are open to adopting new technologies like genAI
- Finance (73%) and Accounting (74%) professionals now show stronger creative preferences than even Marketing (64%)
For a sector long defined by structure, models, and rigor, this creative leaning marks a seamless yet profound evolution. As genAI tools become more deeply embedded in workflows, professionals are finding themselves less bound by repetitive tasks and manual processes. Time and space to think more broadly is replacing hours once spent on data gathering, formatting, and basic reporting—enabling analysts to spot opportunities faster and shape more original, high-value solutions, especially in high-stakes, client-facing roles.
This shift is particularly relevant for investment banks, where the competitive edge no longer comes from how fast analysts can build a model but how well they can interpret it, tailor it, and communicate its implications in compelling ways. When applied with precision, creativity is emerging as a critical differentiator in analyst performance.
Creativity in Action: What It Looks Like in Investment Banking
In the context of investment banking, creativity is about approaching complex deal challenges with new angles and surfacing unique client insights faster and more personally than ever before.
GenAI is playing a key role in enabling this shift by:
- Accelerating research and discovery: Analysts can surface market trends, deal histories, and regulatory changes in seconds.
- Personalising insight generation: Tools can tailor competitive positioning or valuation arguments to client-specific contexts.
- Streamlining content creation: From pitch copy to scenario analysis write-ups, genAI helps analysts quickly develop and refine clear, compelling narratives—ensuring alignment, structure, and strategic focus.
In a crowded market, bespoke insight and creative positioning are what set high-performing teams apart.
Leading Through Transformation
For senior leaders, it is essential to understand that creativity is becoming a key performance lever with genAI as the infrastructure enabling it.
Empowering analysts to move beyond routine tasks goes beyond morale and efficiency. It directly impacts how quickly your teams can produce differentiated thinking, how flexibly they can respond to market shifts, and how confidently they can drive client conversations.
To lead in this environment, banks must ensure genAI isn’t experimental. It needs to be embedded into workflows, supported by tailored training, and championed at the top. Creative thinking in investment banking is about future-proofing your analyst teams for a faster, more insight-driven market.
Fostering a Creative Working Environment
The shift toward genAI-enhanced creativity requires a working culture that encourages it. In an environment where speed, accuracy, and risk mitigation are paramount, fostering creativity might sound counterintuitive. But the data tells a different story: teams that value creative problem-solving are significantly more open to innovation and more likely to unlock the full potential of genAI tools.
What a creative analyst environment looks like in practice:
- Permission to challenge the norm: Encourage analysts to go beyond templates and surface original insight, even in tightly structured outputs.
- Collaboration across roles: Bring together analysts, product teams, and technologists to co-develop insights, not just distribute deliverables.
- Time to think strategically: Reduce the manual burden with genAI so analysts can invest more time in brainstorming, storytelling, and client-specific recommendations.
- Tailored training and feedback loops: Upskill teams not just on basic genAI usage, but on how to use it to elevate the quality of strategic thinking and narrative clarity.
Leaders who intentionally create space for this kind of thinking should see faster innovation, more compelling client output, and stronger analyst engagement—all key strengths in a competitive, commoditised advisory market.
GenAI is reframing what it means to be a high-performing analyst. The most effective teams will be those that pair technical focus with creative application, surfacing insights others miss and articulating client value more sharply and efficiently.
For leaders in investment banking, it’s time to invest not just in tools, but in creativity itself.
Is your team building the next generation of analyst capabilities?
Explore the full LexisNexis Future of Work 2025: Innovating the Industry – GenAI and the Rise of the Creative Financial Professional to see how genAI is reshaping talent, productivity, and performance in banking.