Service-Dominant Orientation: Measurement and Impact on Performance Outcomes

A firm's ability to offer better service and to co-create valuable customer experiences is critically important to achieving competitive advantage. Service-dominant (S-D) logic, along with resource and capability perspectives, provides the underlying theoretical reasoning for the relevance of such capabilities. However, despite researchers’ recent contributions to marketing theory, empirical support for S-D logic and its implications is very limited at the strategic level. An open question, therefore, is what empirically constitutes a value co-creation capability, and what is its impact on important performance outcomes. Building on the conceptualization of an S-D orientation as a portfolio of value co-creation capabilities, this research first operationalizes and validates an S-D orientation measure through a multi-study approach across different contexts. The authors then apply the measurement instrument to an automotive retail setting to investigate the outcomes of S-D orientation in terms of both customer- and firm-related performance metrics. Results provide the first empirical demonstration of the importance of S-D capabilities, and thus S-D logic, for firms.     

Marketing as Value Co-creation Through Network Interaction and Resource Integration

This is a theoretical discourse on contributions to the marketing discipline primarily from service-dominant (S-D) logic, relationship marketing, and the many-to-many network approach. The study combines a literature review with theoretical insights. Framed within a relational context it specifically addresses interaction and its role in the co-creation of value through resource integration. As a consequence, the article also deals with elevating midrange theory in the direction of more abstract and general theory, grand theory.     

Long-Term Relationships,Partnerships and Strategic Alliances:

The aim of this paper is to identify the conditions under which three different relationship marketing mechanisms-- long-term relationships, partnerships and strategic alliances--are most efficient. The contingency theory that is developed is based on, and extends, the Transaction Cost Economics (TCE) framework. The TCE framework is modified in one respect, opportunism is assumed to vary across exchange relationships. In those relationships that are characterized by relational norms (absence of opportunism), the TCE governance mechanisms--markets, hierarchies and hybrids--are argued to be inefficient relative to the mechanisms of relationship marketing.     

Co-production and self-service: The application of Service-Dominant Logic

Abstract

Service-Dominant Logic (S-D logic) theory and related literature is reviewed to demonstrate S-D logic's potential to provide new insights for understanding an important contemporary issue in service delivery: the application of self-service technology (SST) to customer service. S-D logic considers operant resources to be the key to gaining a competitive advantage. Consequently, the most important aspect of the application of SST is the requirement for the customer to provide the operant resource at the point of transaction. It is argued that the implementation of SST could be improved by encompassing an understanding of the resources available to the customer and the value (or lack of value) experienced by the customer in using SST. Gaps in existing knowledge are identified, particularly in relation to the application of SST in business-to-business (B2B) contexts. An agenda for further research is outlined and a range of management implications are discussed.     

Value co-creation among hotels and disabled customers: An exploratory study

This study examines how service supplier and buyer value co-creation influences buyers' attitudes toward service providers. Service-dominant logic is a prevalent concept in the services industry, providing an important marketing theory in which intangible resources, co-creation of value, and relationships are the keys to determining marketing exchanges. This research describes a model for analyzing value co-creation management in the hotel industry, focusing on the specific market segment of disabled customers. This framework helps foster value co-creation to increase the benefits for participants during each stage of their relationship. The paper also presents the managerial implications of the research findings.     

How do consumers co-create their experiences? An exploration in the heritage sector

Abstract

Whilst the body of work around co-creation has grown, co-creation continues to be considered from a value perspective with key questions, such as what is actually being co-created, remaining unanswered. This article moves beyond value to experiences and explores co-creation of the consumption experience. The research examines the manifestations and antecedents of co-creation of the consumption experience from a consumer angle and presents a co-creation framework. Customer critic analysis with consumers from two exemplar heritage organisations is used to investigate co-creation. The findings illuminate three facets of co-creation: co-production, engagement, and personalisation. This paper addresses a gap in Service-Dominant Logic theory, arts/heritage, and broader marketing literature by distinguishing between co-creation of value and co-creation of the consumption experience and proposing a definitive conceptualisation of the latter. The proposed model progresses the co-creation discussion to an empirical level and provides a foundation for future research.     

The Service-Dominant Logic of Marketing and Marketing Ethics

Abela and Murphy (J Acad Mark Sci 36(1):39–53, 2007) examined Service-Dominant (S-D) logic (Vargo and Lusch, J Mark 68(1):1–17, 2004) from the viewpoint of Marketing Ethics and concluded that whilst S-D logic does not have explicit ethical content, the Foundational Premises (FPs) of S-D logic do have implicit ethical content. They also conclude that what may be needed to make the implicit more explicit is the addition of another FP. The aim of this article is to explore whether S-D logic needs to be modified, if one wishes to construct a theoretical framework for analysis of Marketing that has ethical considerations fully integrated. We critically evaluate the claim that the FPs are inherently ethical and conclude that S-D logic should be modified. We offer an additional FP for consideration that relates to the role of personal and societal values in the co-creation of value. This FP is necessary because of the role that the ethical positions of actors play in exchange behaviour. However, it should be pointed out that whilst the article explores the ethical potential of S-D logic it does not privilege any particular ethical position or code. These concerns will be addressed in subsequent articles: the aim here is to establish the underlying rationale for including an explicit commitment to ethics in S-D logic.     

Value co-creation among retailers and consumers: New insights into the furniture market

This paper aims to examine the applicability of a value co-creation framework that integrates the process view (customer, supplier and encounter value-creating processes), the actors’ view (the value facilitator and the value co-creator) and the role of customer knowledge in furniture retail stores using service-dominant (S-D) logic.We conducted multiple case studies to analyse retailers’ points of view and in-depth interviews to explore customers’ perspectives. Our research findings suggest that the proposed model can be effectively used to analyse value co-creation management in furniture firms, allowing researchers to identify the actions of retailers and customers and evaluate their matching. Even more importantly, this framework helps to foster value co-creation to increase the benefits for each participant during each stage of the relationship.     

Value Co-Creation in Business-to-Business and Business-to-Consumer Service Relationships

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to examine the interrelationships among value co-creation, switching costs (SC), and customer share (CS) in both business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-consumer (B2C) relationships. In spite of increasing attention to value co-creation in the Service Dominant Logic, there are only a limited number of empirical studies on this concept. Furthermore, few researchers have investigated the inter-relationship among value co-creation, SC, and CS in a single framework for both B2B and B2C relationships, although many enterprises serve both types of customers. The conceptual framework is developed primarily based on relationship marketing and services marketing. This study evaluates six hypotheses, analyzing survey data from 209 enterprises and 337 individuals by structural equation modeling (SEM). Further, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) is conducted to confirm the convergent validity and discriminant validity. In conclusion, the positive impact of execution of value co-creation (EVC) activities on SC and CS is supported with appropriate statistical evidence in both B2B and B2C relationships. Also, the causal relationship between values in relational exchanges (VRE) and CS is confirmed with adequate empirical findings for both relationships. These results suggest to marketing managers that service firms may achieve larger CS by executing value co-creation activities and providing VRE for customers.     

The dark side of the sharing economy: Balancing value co-creation and value co-destruction

The sharing economy disrupts the marketplace and brings both benefits and disadvantages into service ecosystems. We discuss principles of the S-D logic and transformative service research and explore the processes of value co-creation and co-destruction of well-being within the ecosystem of the accommodation sharing economy. Following a brief period of euphoria, the dark side of the sharing economy emerges, defined as the socially, environmentally, or economically undesirable effects introduced by the sharing economy. Airbnb introduced new realities for visitors, neighborhoods, the accommodation industry, and city councils, whereby some stakeholders are frequently found to maximize their own value at the expense of others. Value co-destruction prevails often due to uncontrolled and rapid expansion. We seek to promote a more balanced process, and the optimization of value co-creation, while seeking to prevent value co-destruction. Using a literature review, netnography, and a case study, we investigate co-creation and co-destruction, as expressed by different stakeholders, and focus on the socio-psychological implications in the use of sharing platforms that affect the well-being of individuals and community. A conceptual framework is proposed to manage future research addressing well-being, value co-creation and co-destruction in complex ecosystem service networks.     

Making value co-creation a reality – exploring the co-creative value processes in customer–salesperson interaction

Abstract

We examine how value co-creation is engendered in transactional and relational interaction in a professional business-to-consumer (B2C) service industry through exploratory interviews with six organisations’ sales personnel and their customers. A dyadic model and propositions conceptualise the process of value co-creation at the interpersonal level. It was found that the customer and salesperson take on very distinct roles in the co-creative interaction, which is driven by characteristics previously unidentified in the context of value co-creation, such as a commitment to achieving common goals, establishing equitable dialogue and sharing interests. Examination of the value dimensions co-created found that reciprocal value realisation is not limited to business-to-business (B2B) contexts, as the involved parties create mutual episode value in discrete transactions, and mutual episode and relationship value in relational exchanges.     

基于社会交换的组织公正与心理契约违背关系研究

通过对中国文化背景下,组织公正、社会交换关系变量与员工心理契约违背间的关系研究,运用结构方程建模技术对35家企业410位员工的调查数据进行检验。结果表明：组织公正和领导－部属交换关系问卷具有良好的构思效度;组织支持感和领导－部属交换关系对组织公正各维度均有显著的预测作用;程序公正、互动公正是心理契约违背感的有效预测指标,对组织支持感与心理契约违背间的关系具有部分中介作用,组织支持感还会对心理契约违背产生直接影响;领导－部属交换关系完全通过组织公正的中介作用对员工心理契约违背感产生影响。因此,文章在检验中国文化背景下组织公正维度结构的基础上,拓展了组织公正、社会交换关系变量与员工心理反应的关系研究。     

服务化理论最新研究进展

服务化是制造业升级的重要途径,企业采用服务化战略实现由制造向服务转变,可以获得新的竞争优势。文章通过梳理国内外服务化理论的经典文献,阐述服务化的定义、目标与研究内容,归纳理论构成的主要维度：影响因素、发展策略和管理模式,并详细介绍了各维度的主要观点和演化过程。最后,基于对现有研究成果的总结和评述,运用系统思维和价值共创等概念,构建了服务化理论框架,并探索未来的理论发展方向。     

Value Co-Creation Processes—Early Stages of Value Chains Involving High-Tech Business Markets: Samsung–Qualcomm Semiconductor Foundry Businesses

Purpose: This research aimed to identify both the specialized resources and competences for value co-creation when the value co-creation phenomenon is extended to the early stage of the value chain. Further, it proposes a framework that can analyze the value co-creation process in the high-tech business-to-business (B-to-B) market.

Methodology/approach: The research methodology was based on building a theory from a case study. The qualitative data was coded based on the grounded theory coding after collecting data from multiple sources.

Findings: Four critical resource types (financial resources, knowledge resources, efficiency resources, and intellectual resources) and five competence types (relational capability, collaboration capability, strategic capability, innovation capability, and managing capability) were constructed as the principal factors for value co-creation at the early stage in the value chain within the high-tech B-to-B market. Among the four resources and five competences, intellectual resource and strategic capability associated with value co-creation were unique findings in our case research.

Research implications: Our results provided new insights, which the value co-creation can be extended to the early stages in the value chain, such as the research and development (R&D) stage, in the high-tech B-to-B market, whereas extant value research was more focused on the late stages of the value chain. The reciprocal value co-creation process, which used four resources and five competences of both the supplier and customer, was proposed as an integrated framework to co-create value at the early stage of the value chain within the high-tech B-to-B market.

Practical implications: A supplier’s R&D, marketing, manufacturing, planning departments and the customer can utilize the defined resources as well as competences at different stages of the value chain in order to co-create value and improve their performance. In particular, the marketing department of the supplier needs to turn their eyes to the early stages in the value chain so as to seek a value co-creation strategy.

Originality/value/contribution: A value co-creation strategy was sought from a different perspective, extending from a late stage to an early stage in the value chain of the high-tech B-to-B market. The integrated research framework, combining resources and competences of the supplier and customer, was established to analyze the value co-creation phenomenon.     

人口年龄结构对外汇储备增长的影响机制研究

文章通过建立三期世代交叠模型并加入遗产因素,尝试从人口年龄结构的角度研究了外汇储备增长的路径,并在此基础上运用中国数据进行了实证检验,得出外汇储备规模与少儿抚养负担率负相关;与老年抚养负担率正相关,而与利率正相关,因此在一定时期内这三个因素将对外汇储备增长起到推波助澜的作用。     

Reconceptualising product life-cycle theory as stakeholder engagement with non-profit organisations

ABSTRACT

The paper critically re-examines product life-cycle (PLC) theory, developed over 50 years ago. Despite prevalence in marketing pedagogy and continued popularity within empirical research, PLC is seldom challenged. The paper identifies the organisation-centric construct underpinning the theory and highlights a disconnection between PLC theory and the recent academic insight around customer engagement.

It reconceptualises the life-cycle concept based on engagement between stakeholder and non-profit organisation (NPO), structured upon both the market orientation and social exchange constructs. The revised framework maps stakeholder engagement with the NPO through the five stages of incubation, interaction, involvement, immersion, and incapacitation. The paper concludes with identifying a roadmap for future empirical research to develop and validate the re-envisaged conceptual model. The methodology used is narrative literature review supported by secondary research from specialist practitioner reports.     

How risk influences the choice of governance mode in biopharmaceutical inter-firm relationships

This paper proposes a new theoretical framework for assessing the influence of risk in shaping the governance form in biopharmaceutical inter-firm relationships. In particular, we propose a multidimensional operationalization of relational and performance risk and, by following Transaction Cost Economics (TCE) and Real Options (RO) theory constructs, we hypothesize a relation between the aforementioned risk components and the choice of governance form. Specifically, following TCE reasoning, we hypothesize that a high level of relational risk leads towards more hierarchical governance forms, while, following RO theory, we hypothesize that a high level of performance risk leads toward market-oriented governance forms; finally, we hypothesize a moderating effect of each risk component on the other. We empirically test our framework through the analysis of 353 inter-firm relationships signed worldwide between pharmaceutical and biotech companies from 2007 to 2010. The results show substantive support for our theoretical framework. Furthermore, we find a significant moderating effect of the performance risk on the TCE relation between relational risk and governance forms.     

What Makes Logistics Integration More Effective? Governance from Contractual and Relational Perspectives

Third-party logistics (3PL) user–provider integration is attracting increasing attention from both academics and practitioners. However, it remains unclear how best to adopt governance mechanisms to safeguard 3PL user–provider integration (e.g., information sharing and process coordination). Based on transaction cost economics and social exchange theory, this study examined the individual and joint effects of contractual (e.g., detailed contracts and contract application) and relational governance (e.g., trust and relational norms) on 3PL user–provider integration for operational performance. We conducted a survey involving 247 3PL service users and analyzed the conceptual model using the method of structural equation modeling. The results showed that process coordination improved operational performance, while information sharing alone did not significantly improve operational performance but complemented the role of process coordination in improving operational performance. In addition, having detailed contracts was positively related to process coordination, while contract application was positively related to information sharing. Trust was not significantly related to information sharing or process coordination, while relational norms were positively related to both. Finally, three joint effects on 3PL user–provider integration were found. Two of them were substitutional (detailed contracts and relational norms; contract application and trust), and one was complementary (detailed contracts and trust). This study makes several theoretical contributions and provides novel guidelines for 3PL relationship development.     

Transformative service research and service dominant logic: Quo Vaditis?

This paper takes a closer look at the emerging topic of transformative service research (TSR) and compares its facets with the more established concept of the service-dominant logic (SDL). The paper thus contributes to both theory development and practical application. This work highlights the conceptual parallels in the two approaches, for example, their holistic approach, their systems thinking, addressing entities or actors within such system(s), inclusion of the wider environment, and their focus on the co-creative and interactive nature of well-being generation and value co-creation. The paper also reveals some differences, for example TSR’s focus on eudaimonic and hedonic well-being outcomes vs. SDL’s value co-creation. The paper concludes that both perspectives have merits, but could benefit from being used integratively. By comparing the areas of theory focus, practical application, value co-creation and co-destruction, intentionality, well-being and value concepts, and TSR and SDL’s “logic”, the paper provides suggestions for future research.     

Atypical Shifts Post-failure: Influence of Co-creation on Attribution and Future Motivation to Co-create

This study investigates how the effect of the failure of co-created products or services influences: (a) internal attribution (i.e. the self) and external attribution (i.e. the firm), (b) customers' expectancies of success, and (c) customers' future motivation to co-create and contribute to recovery from failure. We use attribution theory and the attribution–expectancy framework to explain the theoretical relationships we advance and test our hypotheses in two independent experiments that stimulate co-creation through role-play and vignettes. The results show that customer co-creation shifts the attribution for failure to the self, resulting in atypical shifts in expectancy (increasing customers' expectancy of future success and motivation to continue co-creating in the future). Our results suggest that utilizing customers' efforts and skills in the co-creation of products and services can help firms to manage failure effectively. The implications of our findings on co-creation research and product and service failures are discussed, specific applications within the digital context are considered, and suggestions are offered for future research.