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FutureLearn

Principles of Service Management

Hanken School of Economics via FutureLearn

Overview

Find out what the discipline of service management can do for your business

Today an increasing number of companies compete on service, not product. As a result, understanding a service-based approach to business is essential - even for product-based businesses.

On this course you’ll learn the latest thinking in service management, exploring a service-centric perspective to marketing and management. You’ll examine service as a business model, the value creation process, customer perceived quality and promise management.

Ultimately, you’ll discover how service-based thinking can help you better serve your customer, and overcome a range of business challenges.

This course would be particularly relevant to business professionals and managers interested in the potential of adopting a service-based strategy, whether their firms are currently operating in an industrial or consumer context, or a manufactured goods or services context. It is also relevant for business students wishing to specialise in service management and marketing.

Syllabus

  • Service as a perspective on business
    • Welcome to the course!
    • Service as a business model
    • Customer value and value creation
    • Week 1 Wrap-Up
  • The importance of service orientation
    • How customers perceive quality
    • Service orientation and customer focus
    • Customer expectations management
    • Customer-focused marketing
    • Week 2 Wrap-Up
  • A profitable service business
    • How does the service profit work?
    • Managing customer promises
    • Service profitability
    • Reciprocal return on relationships (ROR)
    • Week 3 Wrap-Up
  • Managing a service business
    • Service productivity
    • Internal marketing
    • Customer-driven marketing communication
    • Service branding
    • Week 4 Wrap-Up
  • From manufacturing to service
    • Managing a service culture
    • Transforming manufacturing into a service business
    • Conclusions, guiding rules and barriers
    • Week 5 Wrap-Up

Taught by

Gustav Medberg and Christian Grönroos

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