Service strategies within the manufacturing sector: benefits, costs and partnership

Abstract

This paper develops a typology of service maneuvers achieved by manufacturing companies. This typology is based on two dimensions: service specificity (split into customer service, product services and service as a product) and organizational intensity (tactical, strategic or cultural).The paper reviews the benefits and costs associated with service maneuvers and discusses their interplay with the typology. A collaborative option is proposed as an original strategy for supporting the challenging process of implementing a service maneuver, and the costs of running this option are developed in the light of the typology.

Service innovation in manufacturing firms: Evidence from Spain

“…Of course, the devel opment of profitable services in manufacturing firms is far from systematic and immediate (Malleret, 2006). The complexity of service strategies within manufacturing sectors may make their implementation difficult (Mathieu, 2001). Some manufacturing firms find it hard to make the transition to services, an example being the difficulties encountered by a computer firm seeking to offer IT awareness training services.…”

“…When innovation is expensive, sharing the costs is a logical response. Given the level and specificity of the costs attached to the implementation of a service strategy, collaboration could be an attractive option for manufacturing firms (Mathieu, 2001). Collaborative interaction with customers would be particularly beneficial, because strongly customer centred approaches form a key feature of servitisation (Baines et al, 2009).…”

Service orientation: changing in Tunisian industrial firms

“…However, today, current market realities indicate that service offer is more and more imperative to industrial firms (Furrer, 1997(Furrer, , 1998Gebauer et al, 2005;Mathieu, 2001aMathieu, , 2001b as it has become a significant factor of growth and competitiveness (Malleret, 2006;Tzokas et al, 2000). Today, offering a basic product is not enough; there is a need to suggest extra services that increase the value of the offer.…”

“…Services have certainly and greatly changed the industrial activity (Mathieu, 2001b). In fact, services have the potential to change the industrial activity's culture and fundamental characteristics (Mathieu, 2001b) and can even intervene in all the operations of the production process (Wagner and La Garce, 1981;Xu et al, 2011).…”

“…Services have certainly and greatly changed the industrial activity (Mathieu, 2001b). In fact, services have the potential to change the industrial activity's culture and fundamental characteristics (Mathieu, 2001b) and can even intervene in all the operations of the production process (Wagner and La Garce, 1981;Xu et al, 2011). More specifically, the classic value chain (production-product sales) lost some of its efficiency, especially that the benefits linked to product sales are decreasing in some markets (Almeida and Miguel, 2009;Salonen, 2011).…”