Resource test-driving for service innovation : How ordinary employees innovate new value propositions

• PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of ordinary employees in service innovation. Departing from the service-dominant (S-D) logic, service innovation is conceptualized as a resource integration process leading to the creation of value propositions.MethodologyThe paper reports on a case study of service development at three different organizations. Twenty ordinary employees were interviewed. Ordinary employees are defined as those lacking a formal innovation obligation, e.g. frontline employees. These normally have knowledge of both the customers’ needs and the firm’s ability to realize these.FindingsThe findings suggest that ordinary employees contribute to service innovation by test-driving resource integrations and potential value propositions. Specifically, the findings suggest that ordinary employees use three different ways of test-driving resources: Cognitive test-driving; Test-driving in practice, and Discursive test-driving. Although the findings suggest that these ways of test-driving resources are intertwined, they also suggest that parts of the innovation process are dominated by one of these.Research limitations/implicationsThis article is based on a case study of three organizations, thus limiting the possibility of statistical generalization.Originality/valueThe study is novel in several respects: (i) it introduces the notion of resource test-driving; (ii) it provides a systematic empirical analysis of how ordinary employees contribute to service innovation through test-driving resource integrations and new value propositions; (iii) it offers an S-D logic informed service innovation model; (iv) it contributes to the S-D logic by detailing how resource integration takes place in practice.

Ämnesord

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Ekonomi och näringsliv -- Företagsekonomi (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Economics and Business -- Business Administration (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

Service innovation

employee-driven innovation

resource integration

resource test-driving

service-dominant logic.

Business Administration

Företagsekonomi

Publikations- och innehållstyp

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