Service science, management and engineering explained

Service science, management, and engineering (SSME) is a term introduced by IBM to describe an interdisciplinary approach to the study and innovation of service systems. More precisely, SSME has been defined as the application of science, management, and engineering disciplines to tasks that one organization beneficially performs for and with another. SSME is also a proposed academic discipline and research area that would complement – rather than replace – the many disciplines that contribute to knowledge about service.^[1] The interdisciplinary nature of the field calls for a curriculum and competencies to advance the development and contribution of the field of SSME.^[2]

Service systems

Service systems are designed and constructed, are often very large, and, as complex systems, they have emergent properties. This makes them an engineering kind of system (in MIT's terms).^{[3] [4]} For instance, large-scale service systems include major metropolitan hospitals, highway or high-rise construction projects, and large IT outsourcing operations in which one company takes over the daily operations of IT infrastructure for another. In all these cases, systems are designed and constructed to provide and sustain service, yet because of their complexity and size, operations do not always go as planned or expected, and not all interactions or results can be anticipated or accurately predicted.

As the world becomes more complex and uncertain socially and economically, a computational thinking approach has been proposed to model the dynamics and adaptiveness of a service system, aimed at fully leveraging today's ubiquitous digitized information, computing capability and computational power so that the service system can be studied qualitatively and quantitatively. ^[5]

SSME has been used to describe higher education as a service delivered by colleges and universities that are viewed as complex systems. ^[6]

Service Science

SSME is often referred to as service science for short.^[7] The flagship journal Service Science is published by the professional association INFORMS. The journal publishes innovative and original papers on all topics related to service, including work that crosses traditional disciplinary boundaries.

See also

• Customer service
• Enterprise architecture
• Managed services
• Service (economics)
• Service design
• Service dominant logic (marketing)
• Service economy
• Service management
• Services marketing
• Service provider
• Service system
• System
• Web service
• Secure Operations Language
• Viable systems approach

Further reading

• Rennick, Dawn M (2015) "Moving the high tech industry forward toward service science competency: A case study of ABC association", "Doctoral dissertation, Capella University"
• Hefley B, Murphy W (eds.) (2008) "Service Science, Management, and Engineering: Education for the 21st Century." New York NY USA: Springer.
• Xiong G, Liu Z, Liu XW, Zhu, Shen D (2013) "Service Science, Management, and Engineering: Theory and Applications." Cambridge MA USA: Academic Press.
• Cardoso J, Fromm H, Nickel S, Satzger G, Studer R, Weinhardt C (2015) "Fundamentals of Service Systems." New York NY USA: Springer.
• Kijima K (ed.) (2010) "Service Systems Science." New York NY USA: Springer.
• Qiu RG (2014) "Service Science: The Foundations of Service Engineering and Management." Hoboken NJ USA: John Wiley & Sons.
• Galvendy S, Karwowski W (eds.) (2010) "Introduction to Service Engineering." Hoboken NJ USA: John Wiley & Sons.
• Andersen B, Howells J, Hull R, Miles I, Roberts J (eds.) (2000) "Knowledge and Innovation in the New Service Economy." Cheltenham UK: Edward Elgar.
• Metcalfe JS, Miles I (eds.) (2000) "Innovation Systems in the Service Economy: Measurement and Case Study Analysis." New York NY USA: Springer.
• Gadrey J, Gallouj F (eds.) (2002) "Productivity, Innovation and Knowledge in Services: New Economic and Socio-Economic Approaches." Cheltenham UK: Edward Elgar.
• Maglio PP, Kieliszewski CA, Spohrer JC (eds.) (2010) “Handbook of Service Science.” New York NY USA: Springer.
• Pym D, Taylor R, Tofts C (2007) "Public Services Innovation through Technology." Bristol UK: Hewlett-Packard.

Notes and References

1. IfM and IBM (2007) "Succeeding Through Service Innovation: A service perspective for education, research, business and government.", "Cambridge Service Science, Management and Engineering Symposium"
2. Choudaha, Rahul (2008) "Competency-based curriculum for a master's program in Service Science, Management and Engineering (SSME)", "Doctoral dissertation, University of Denver"
3. Web site: MIT-NSF Workshop on Smarter Service Systems.
4. Web site: The Continuing Evolution of Service Science. 8 August 2016 .
5. Qiu, R. (2009) "Computational Thinking of Service Systems: Dynamics and Adaptiveness Modeling" "INFORMS Service Science Vol 1., No 1."
6. Pavlov, O.V. and F. Hoy "Toward the service science of education" In Paul P. Maglio, Cheryl A. Kieliszewski, James C. Spohrer, Kelly Lyons, Lia Patrício, Yuriko Sawatani (Eds.). 2019. Handbook of Service Science, Volume II. New York, Springer.
7. Spohrer, J., Kwan SK. (2009) "Service Science, Management, Engineering, and Design (SSMED): An Emerging Discipline - Outline & References", International Journal of Information Systems in the Service Sector, Vol. 1, No. 3.