Purpose The purpose of this paper is to synthesize findings from health care research with those in service research to identify key conceptualizations of the changing role of the health care customer, to identify gaps in theory, and to propose a compelling research agenda....

Purpose – The purpose of the present research is to identify how business model innovation can be used to make the transition from service for free to service for fee. In particular, the focus is on identifying, describing and analysing alternative transition strategies, degree and type of...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the nature of context and its implications for theory and research in service. Design/methodology/approach – This is a conceptual paper based on exploring existing research and theory related to context in service research. Findings – The...

Purpose The extant new service development (NSD) literature tends to assume that the key practices for NSD identified in one context apply for all services, and has failed to sufficiently consider differences in NSD between service types. The purpose of this paper is to explore the nature of NSD...

Purpose – Almost everything consumers buy in a store has a package. At point of purchase, the first moment of truth, the package functions as a silent salesman. Once the purchase is made, the product is consumed in the second moment of truth. The purpose of this paper is to create a better...

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to explore three paradoxes of service innovation and provide a way forward for fresh thinking on the topic. Design/methodology/approach – Through a conceptual model of service innovation research, the authors challenge the “pro-change” bias and...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to encourage the reader to think differently about service-related issues and to strive to conduct service research that makes a transformational impact on individuals, organizations and society. The authors suggest that service researchers are in an...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify and describe the perceived value drivers (benefits and sacrifices) in outsourced service provision in public transportation. The authors focus on the suppliers' perception of value creation for customers and value creation in a...

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to investigate whether and how new ideas generated by customers can be used in a process of attractive quality creation. In addition, it aims to discover whether ideas identified as attractive early in the innovation process have certain characteristics...

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to shed further light on the dynamics of quality attributes, as suggested by the theory of attractive quality. The study aims to investigate the existence of the life cycle for successful quality attributes and to identify alternative life cycles of...