A Study on Sevice Process Innovation from a Service Capability Perspective: Contribution of R&D to Service Innovation

Abstract

Rapid changes in the business environment require reconfiguration of organizational processes, and process innovation is considered as a source of competitiveness. However, despite its recognized economical value, process innovation has received less attention than product innovation. Especially in the industries related to services, where the simultaneity of production and consumption is pronounced, process innovation and product innovation are closely related, and therefore, process innovation efforts are essential. In this paper, based on the case of the lodging industry, service process innovation is reconsidered from the perspective of service capability. Through joint research between industry and university on the implication of technology into customer contact points, service process innovation was realized in accordance with the intended objectives. It is suggested that service process innovation requires integrated capital utilization and that joint research between industry and academia contributes to the capability.