Managing Services

Book excerpt: The rapid increase in global services during the last few decades is without doubt one of the most challenging social, cultural, political, and especially economic, forces of our time. Services have supplanted agriculture, manufacturing and resources, as the primary source of international competitive advantage in many countries, providing wealth, employment, and almost unlimited future opportunities for growth, whether in traditional or more innovative forms. This book explores the strategic management of services through an Integrated Services Management Model which links operational, marketing, financial and human resource management functions, within a broad and diverse collection of international, regional, and local service contexts. It contains numerous case examples, student projects and exercises, designed to illustrate common problems and innovative approaches, with a particular focus on the Asia Pacific and Australasian regions.