Guiding readers through each stage in the design and implementation of service operations, this book combines lively examples that are easy to relate to with clearly explained theory. Readers are introduced to the main differences between managing services to managing products and given a concise induction into the core principles of operations management. The text then maps out each consecutive stage in the life of a service, from the initial business proposal for a new service, through market research practices, to the development and implementation of a service and concludes with the termination and disposal of a service.

Service Operations Strategy

Service operations strategy

Of course strategy is hard – it's about making tough choices.

Professor Michael E. Porter, 2001, Harvard Business School

Organizations need to understand their operational world. In the classic definition, the two concerns of strategy are the ‘external environment’ and the ‘future’. Mintzberg (1994) states that ‘an organization needs a sense of where it is going and what forces in its environment are going to help or hinder it in achieving its goal’. Porter (1985) suggests that it helps the organization to explore a limited number of possible directions and create a model of how their actions are going to affect that environment.

Learning Outcomes

When you have completed this chapter you should be able to:

  • Discuss the nature of competitive advantage.
  • Identify the components of ...
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