My new book "The Management of Service Business"

My new book “The Management of Service Business” (ISBN 9783756200290) is now available at www.bod.de and in other book stores.

Technical service is a large business field. It ranges from selling spare parts to the integral asset management of large installations. Many people think, “Service is just service.” This assumption is wrong. Each type of service has its own rules and its specific success factors. Many people also think that service is a simple residue of the systems business and comes automatically. This assumption is also wrong. Developing service to a sustainable and profitable business of relevant size requires a strategic life cycle orientation of the company. It also requires talented and dedicated service managers with a wide range of skills including technical, social, intercultural, and entrepreneurial ones. Only few systems and installations companies succeed in maximizing their capitalization on the service opportunities stemming from their products, systems, and installations. For these companies, recognizing the special strategic relevance of service and regarding it as an equally important business pillar as systems and installations is a key success factor.

By focusing on the management aspects of the service business for large systems and installations, this book aims at closing the gap in technical literature regarding this subject. It covers all relevant management aspects of this business, including strategy, planning, sales, competition, contracts, and operations. It further gives hints for setting up an international service business and explains the role of of technology and innovation.

The book addresses systems and installation companies and their service departments, providing them guidance on how to set up a successful service business and become genuine lifecycle partners of their customers. Target readers are also customers who operate large systems and installations, to help them in finding the best possible service provider for their technical assets. For both, the book gives advice on how to establish a trustful customer-supplier relationship. Finally, the book also addresses young people at the starting point of a manager career in the field of technical services.