Assessing the value dimensions of outsourced maintenance services

Abstract

Purpose-The purpose of this research is to investigate the diverse nature of tangible and intangible value dimensions that contribute to customers' perception of value from outsourced maintenance services.Design/methodology/approach-A multiple case study approach has been adopted. Repertory grid, an in-depth structured interviewing technique, has been used in order to draw out the respondents' hidden constructs in evaluating outsourced maintenance services. Data has been collected from four customer organizations of outsourced maintenance services, and a total of 33 interviews have been undertaken. Findings-The research has identified a range of tangible and intangible value dimensions that are of importance in maintenance outsourcing decision-making. The most important value dimensions for maintenance outsourcing were found to be specialist knowledge, accessibility (of the service provider), relational dynamic, range of products and services, delivery, pricing and locality. Although we have identified the most important value dimensions we also emphasise the need to take into account the full range of value dimensions in order to understand the whole value pattern in an organization.Practical Implications-The results will be of use for maintenance service providers to help them to improve value adding capacity of maintenance services. The results can also be applied by customers to help them assess the value they receive from outsourced maintenance services. Originality/value-A different perspective on maintenance outsourcing value is provided. The value patterns in different organizations and the viewpoints of respondents in different organizational roles are described. The dynamic nature of these tangible or intangible values over time and their interrelationships has also been explored. 2

A framework to inform PSS Conceptual Design by using system-in-use data

“…have identified several dimensions of value which are necessary for the provision of maintenance services [25] but which could also apply to services and capabilities in general. Some of these dimensions of value are Delivery, Locality, Cost Saving and Responsiveness.…”

“…Five typical approaches have been described by Rios et al [20] which includes ECSS-E-10A [21], Hooks and Farry [22], Robertson and Robertson [23], Kontoya and Somerville [18] and Pahl and Beitz [24]. These have some overlap with the dimensions of value for services within the context of PSS which have been proposed by Toossi [25] such as reliability and availability which should be particularly useful for this research. However, for PSS development, there is a need for customer requirements to be translated into a process depiction [26] Computers in Industry Special Issue "Product-Service System Engineering: From Theory to Industrial Applications" where the designer (and customer) can see exactly where in the process value is lost as well as which aspect and under which circumstances so that this value loss can be designed out.…”

Customer requirements for the continuous improvement of product-service system: a conceptual approach

“…Outsourcing PSS provider refers to the ability of the PSS provider to hire another company to meet new customer needs (SHIMOMURA et al, 2013;TOOSSI et al, 2013). This is an important requirement when occurs a customer's business change.…”

“…Customer requirements contribute to the customer perception of value TOOSSI et al, 2013). Therefore, they influence the acceptance of PSS These requirements may be tangible or intangible (TOOSSI et al, 2013) and they relate to the PSS components (i.e., the tangible goods or services) (GENG; CHU; XUE; ZHANG, 2010).…”

“…Therefore, they influence the acceptance of PSS These requirements may be tangible or intangible (TOOSSI et al, 2013) and they relate to the PSS components (i.e., the tangible goods or services) (GENG; CHU; XUE; ZHANG, 2010). However, Geng et al (2010) state that tangible-good requirements are often specific and related to the type of industry in which the PSS evolves.…”