Servitization by Sector and Manufacturers’ Operational Departments: Lessons Learned

This concluding chapter summarises the previous chapters by focussing on two questions: (1) Can sector-specific environments explain differences in servitization by sector? (2) What dependencies affect the adaptation of manufacturers’ operational departments to servitization? Juxtaposing the findings from the sector chapters suggests that manufacturers in sectors that are shocked by radical innovations in physical products, that serve markets with an oligopolistic customer structure and that have acquired superior knowledge in applying their own products are more likely to change their business models towards offering advanced services. In addition to the ratio of the installed base to annual sales, these three aspects have proved to be relevant for adopting servitization strategies. As the results presented in the departmental chapters indicate, mutual dependencies exist among the various decisions involved in adapting manufacturers’ capabilities, processes and structures to servitized business models. Accounting practices, procurement and supplier relationships, research and development, human resource management and—first and foremost—the competitive strategies of manufacturers must be reshaped simultaneously. This final chapter concludes with a discussion of possible future trends regarding servitization in manufacturing industries.