A Systems Model of a Service Organization

Abstract

This paper develops a service systems model which is then used to discuss a number of important implications for service design. We begin by outlining the existing service design literature which is either too abstract or too low level for design. Thus, we develop the requirement for a service systems model which enables the consideration of a number of different alevelsa. The main contribution of this paper is the development of the service systems model from data collected in a single case study of a large international Telco. We conclude by considering three implications for service design of developing a systems model. Firstly, we challenge the level or unit of analysis of service systems design research. Secondly, we propose an alternative contingency variable based on the input type and finally we suggest the model may be used within service improvement to identify the appropriate approach to mathematical modeling.