Application of Service Science in the Emerging Service Industries

Abstract

According to Rostow’s the stage theory of economic development, emerging service industry refers to the newly-born service sectors in high demand and fast development which were basically blank or in small scale prior to the industrialization, appeared or evolved at the advanced stage of industrialization, and saw rebirths along with the development of information technology, emergence of knowledge economy, refining of the social division of labor and upgrading of consumption structure. China has just entered the second half of the Middle period of industrialization, and the emerging service industries are ready to thrive just like buds waiting to bloom although China is still at the initial stage. At present, the development of service economy is typically characterized by the progress and application of modern information technology, which results in the significant feature of information for the emerging service industries. With the speed of development, development potential and importance as the criteria for selection, this chapter delves into the application of service science to the emerging service industries by analyzing such typical industries as express delivery, call center and service-oriented manufacturing: China boasts a large population and a vast territory and features increasingly frequent market trades, thus posing a tremendous demand for the industry of express delivery. Moreover, the fast development of E-commerce since the new century stimulates the rapid expansion of demand for express delivery in China, which has become a major pillar sector for online economy; with the development of communication technology and the increasing importance of the customer service function for enterprises, call centers, transferring intangible services relying on communication technology, have been springing up like mushrooms, on the one hand developing into an indispensable auxiliary role for the development of other service industries and on the other hand gradually evolving into an independent emerging industry. Presently, China is still in the process of industrialization and has not entered the era of service economy. The manufacturing industry plays a pivot role in the national economy despite the rapid development of the service sector. The transformation of the manufacturing industry into service industry accounts for an important part of China’s industrialization process, giving a powerful impetus to the development of service economy. Different from the traditional service industries, service-oriented manufacturing is more than simple manufacturing and in this book, an independent introduction will be provided by treating it as an emerging service industry.