XVIII International RESER Conference “New horizons for the role and production of services” September 25th-26th 2008, Stuttgart, Germany

The RESER conference has become the annual platform and meeting place for European researchers and policy makers working on services. RESER is an interdisciplinary European network of social scientists linked by a common interest in service industries and their territorial expression. The annual RESER research conference provides a unique opportunity for the exchange of ideas concerning the cutting edge of service research and is open to all researchers interested in these topics.

The life-time achievement award in the field of services research will be presented at the RESER conference.

As in the past, we expect participation by the representatives of the European Commission and other policy makers. Businessmen and professional associations representing services sectors are also invited to attend.

Key-note speakers of the conference are Bo Edvardsson, Alex Lee.

Objective and main themes of the 2008 conference:
“New horizons for the role and production of services”

»Adapt or die« [Claus Heinrich 2003] might be the main motto of the current century. The effects of tertiarisation are not as dramatic as changes were in the days of the industrial revolution. However, evolutionary processes change the way economies work and force businesses to transform. Processes of change might be found in the macro, meso, and the micro level. The international division of labour has been transformed not only by political turnarounds but also by technology evolutions and namely information and telecommunications technologies (ICT). This gives formerly marginalized economies opportunities to participate in global markets as the most prominent example of India highlights. Worldwide networks allow for global sourcing as well as global competition. The involvement in international business increases the level of complexity to be handled. In addition to already known market conditions, specifics of every served market have to be taken into consideration. Wise decisions may only be made with adequate means of handling complex situations. Within the last decades thorough changes in the service sector have created new opportunities. Some of these changes are technology-driven, as the internet has opened up new channels for B2B and B2C activities. Others have been caused by deregulation and privatisation concerning most prominently sectors like telecommunication, transportation and health care. Almost every public service sector has to face new challenges and is currently undergoing restructuring or is discussing new and more efficient ways of performing.

Classical manufacturing has been revolutionised by modern services, thus this aspect is one of the major interests of the 2008 RESER conference. From an entrepreneurial point of view, adding services to an already existing product portfolio is a competitive strategy to counteract the increasing erosion of margins. Services are also a way to address new customers. However, new customers call for new service concepts. The increasing number of best agers is characterized as customers who are well-educated, have rather high disposable personal incomes, yet are not afraid to compare prices and ask for the highest quality. Meeting these demands requires personalized / customized services at a competitive pricing.

Within the history of tertiarisation it has to be noted, that both the level of added value as well as the level of service orientation is rising. Product related services are the basis for new services, since quite a number of products are greatly enhanced by services. Some products even require accompanying services such as training, individualization, or the like. Users experience greater benefits from the combination of product and service, than from the product itself. Products are sold on international markets, thus creating opportunities to offer services internationally. Continous availability or full service concepts are examples for process related services. The need for an efficient use of given resources creates opportunities for new service concepts. Forms of hybrid value added, it is the integration of product and service might be found at the most complex level of tertiarisation. Genuinely new business models are generated by the combination of products and services. On demand production is the most prominent example for this concept.

Service provision and product manufacturing are not necessarily interlinked. Companies may provide both, or specialise in one field. This creates a very competitive market. Economies of scale of mere service providers compete against the knowledge advantage of the products’ manufacturers. Manufacturers that also provide services for their products struggle for customer loyalty. Service providers have to adapt very quickly to product innovations, variations, and changed specifics. Teamed approaches between manufacturers and service providers starting in the earliest phases of product and service design offer great possibilities. A whole new approach on the value chain might be taken. Technical innovations are teamed up with a close understanding of customers’ needs. Manufacturers as well as service providers may take the lead in the creation of new product service combinations.

In all above mentioned service fields, issues concerning necessary structural changes, innovation processes, pricing, collaboration models, as well as issues on how to approach these questions scientifically arise. Since its establishment in 1987 the RESER research community has sought to identify and explore new service trends in a multidisciplinary context. The RESER conference is interested in studies ranging from the micro to the macro level. Papers that explore the following and related themes are welcome:

Main theme 1: Tertiarization of the Economy and new dynamics of services

• Structural change and globalization
• Business services and knowledge intensive Services
• Tertiarization patterns at international and regional levels (e. g. comparison between countries)
• Geographical and urban studies of services
• Sectoral studies
• Changes in labour markets and reactions to these changes
• Transformation of educational systems
• Knowledge effects caused by changes in structural and organizational patterns
• Transformation of the service sector caused by technological changes (e.g. ICT)
• Other dimensions of tertiarization and new roles of services

Main theme 2: Hybrid products & services

• Linkages between Manufacturing and Services
• Service Simulation / Service Prototyping
• Innovation and development processes
• Integrated data management for hybrid products (e. g. Service Oriented Architecture (SOA))
• Management of complex product models
• Change processes from producers to service providers
• Efficient Service Organisations
• Modularisation
• Service Life Cycle Management
• Human resource management – vocational training and qualification
• Virtual Economies (e.g. Second Life)

Main theme 3: Transforming business models and new approaches in the management of services

• New pricing and revenue models
• New organisational models
• Deregulation and privatisation of services (e. g. telecommunication, public transportation, healthcare, etc.)
• Organisation, Regulation and Competition in Public Management
• New ways of public service provision
• Service Management for NPOs
• Lean Service Management
• Outsourcing / Offshoring
• Collaboration
• Transformation of Services caused by new technologies
• Industrialisation
• Standardisation

Main theme 4: New perspectives for services research

• Forms of organisation of research (e. g. research clusters, networks)
• Integration of technological and Services research
• Internationalisation of Services Research
• Interdisciplinay research approaches
• Services Science, Management and Engeneering (SSME)
• Research on service products
• Knowledge and data management
• Service innovation and clustering

Papers on all other aspects of research on services are also welcome. Papers can be conceptual, empirical or methodological. We welcome studies from social, geographical, business, economic, policy and management sciences, and particularly interdisciplinary approaches. Doctoral studies are also welcome. A selection of papers presented at the conference will be considered for publication in international journals such as “The Service Industries Journal” (SIJ), in “Economies et Societes” serie “Economie et Gestion des Services” (EGS), and in Service Business Journal.

Requirements for abstracts to be submitted:

• Titel of paper
• Objectives
• Methodology
• Results
• Bibligraphical references

Maximum of two pages for the abstracts!

Important deadlines:

• Submission of abstracts: May 5th, 2008
• Notification to authors of acceptance: June 9th, 2008
• Submission of final texts: August 25th, 2008

Official languages:
The official languages of the conference are English, French, and German.

Conference venue:
Haus der Wirtschaft

Conference fees*:

* all conference fees include a one year RESER membership