Course content

The subject provides insight into the customer strategies of different service companies, from the company's and the customer's perspective. The focus is on traditional service businesses on the consumer market (B2C) and/or the business market (B2B), as well as on professional service that is adapted to each individual customer. The aim is to create an understanding of the importance of trust, the service company's need for adaptation to external uncertainty and sustainability, as well as to discuss how technology (automation and digital transformation) can contribute to both service companies' sustainability and customer delivered value. The primary aim is to provide analysis and decision support for service businesses' customer focus, using different theoretical perspectives (including social exchange theory and economic behavioral theories) and empirical studies.

Learning outcome

Knowledge: The student will acquire knowledge about the development and design of strategies for various service businesses, including knowledge of mechanisms for flexibility and adaptation to ensure profitable service businesses in uncertain external environments. More detailed knowledge includes the following topics: Internal customers versus external customers, service quality versus relationship quality, service failure, communication strategies and listening, satisfaction, fairness, loyalty and information asymmetry. Students will learn about different service firms, where some operate on the consumer market, and others serve both consumers (B2C) and businesses (B2B). Service firms of interest also includes relationships between professional services (for example management consulting, advertising and communication agencies, or corporate banking) and their clients.

Skills: The student shall be able to use theories and research to develop strategies for different service businesses in different markets. Professional service businesses may, for example, require different strategies than service businesses such as hairdressers, restaurants and hotels. Furthermore, the student shall develop skills that enables them to understand how service companies can create and deliver value to customers, as well as their suppliers and strategic alliances partners contribution to customer value. Emphasis will be made in developing skills to support employees' (internal customers) effort to deliver value to external customers, as well as to when different service strategic can yield benefits and when not.

General competence: The student shall acquire competence that makes the person a resource when businesses develop service strategies. Through theories, methods, and past empirical research, the student develop knowledge about systematic analyze and insight into management and adaptation of customer strategies in general, and about technology, automation and digital transformation into sustainable service businesses, that enables firms to adapt to changes in external and internal environments.

Learning methods and activities

Lectures, discussions, presentations, cases and term paper.

Further on evaluation

The course assessments consist of a 4-hour individual school exam (accounts 50% of the final grade) and group-based term-papers (accounts 50% of the final grade).

Specific conditions

Course materials

Information is given at the beginning of the term.