GILASTATE

I attended a conference this past weekend in Orlando that presented a cross-functional perspective of service. Interestingly, there is still some disagreement about just what service is. Some view it as the intangible version of a product. Some equate it with customer service that is typically delivered by front line employees. Others view it as the nature of the economy as it shifts away (at least in some parts of the world) from manufacturing. Still another group view services as a very specific implementation of software. And finally, some academics view it as the new service dominant logic with which we market both products and services. So apparently, services are everything and nothing.

Still, regardless of definitions, I found the conference to be interesting. I particularly found IBM’s ideas of service science management and engineering intriguing. IBM is seeking to create an entirely new field for academics and researchers interested in services. They believe a new scientific discipline is necessary to effectively drive the new service economy. They compare this new discipline to the formation of the field of computer science.

Clearly, new businesses have to be adept in both the technology and business of services. Unlike in the past, however, the functional distinctions between engineering, marketing, and other traditional roles are not clear cut. It seems the new businesses that will drive economic growth in the future will require employees who do not fall into such simple classifications. So, while interesting, I wonder if traditional academia is up for the challenge of breaking down the long existing functional silos that have so far made such an endeavor unlikely to succeed.