Mitigating uncertainty for industrial service operations: a multi case study

Abstract

Purpose This article aims to explore the evolution of industrial service uncertainties and the approaches for mitigating these uncertainties. The article also sheds light on how the interplay of potential uncertainties due to service operation challenges shapes the decisiveness of product-centric businesses. Design/methodology/approach To better understand how industrial firms mitigate uncertainties of industrial service provision by their supply chains, we adopted a qualitative multi-case logic methodology. Our approach is based on a research model of uncertainty avoidance and uncertainty reduction which we applied in an exploratory study with three major multi-national firms in the aerospace industry: BAE systems, Lockheed Martin and Rolls-Royce. Findings From the analysis, we found that to mitigate industrial service uncertainty, there is a need for aftermarket-oriented organisation, audit-oriented governance, relationship-oriented intelligence and lifecycle-oriented contracts. We also found that value uncertainty originating from unpredictability in client needs and project scope and structural uncertainty caused by volatility and variability of business structures are also important quandaries in decision making situations of firms towards their supply chains for industrial services. Originality/value The article makes two useful contributions. First it provides an assessment of the nature of uncertainty within operations for providing industrial services. Second, the paper identifies orientations for industrial service uncertainty mitigation. Whereas product-centric businesses firms tend to vary in their states for uncertainty avoidance and reduction, our work suggest similar orientations for uncertainty mitigation across these firms.