Is There a Science of Services Module v 2

8/13/2019 Is There a Science of Services Module v 2

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Is There A Science of Services? This document willguide our first assignment: Debate

The goal of this module is to explore whether a science of services exists.Computer Science is used as an example of the ideas that one should considerwhen formulating and articulating an opinion about whether a science exists todescribe and explain particular phenomena. To begin this exploration, the greatdeal of attention and focus services are garnering is presented. Next, we explorethe characteristics of science and examine whether SSME seems to displaythose characteristics. Then, the obections and responses to a science ofcomputers are presented and considered from the perspective of services. !reservices playing a more predominant role in our economy and changing the waywe loo" at things li"e productivity and efficiency# Certainly. $iven their morepredominant role, should services and their surrounding phenomena be betterunderstood# Certainly. %ill this understanding lead to a science of services#&nly time will tell. This module is intended to seed debate and exchange aroundthe 'uestion of whether there is a science of services.

(.( &bectives

(. Evaluate the idea of Services as a science). *dentify obections for or against Services as a science+. !rticulate whether or not Services should be pursued as a science

!ctivities(. To debate whether Services should or should not be a science.). -alidate or invalidate the obections made against Computer Science with

respect to Service Science.

Wherever there are phenomena there can be a science to describe ande!plain those phenomena" Thus the simplest #and correct$ answer toWhat is botan%?& is 'otan% is the stud% of plants"& And (oolog% is thestud% of animals astronom% the stud% of stars and so on" )henomenabreed sciences"&

* +ewell )erlis , Simon -./0

Services Science Management and Engineering SSME/ offers a new disciplinewhose focus is the study and understanding of services. This interdisciplinaryarea arose out of the wor" being done by many people in multiple disciplinesi.e., Computer Science, &perations 0esearch, *ndustrial Engineering, 1usiness


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Strategy, Management Sciences, Social and Cognitive Sciences and 2egalSciences/. SSME has also arisen a result of a continual shifting of the world3seconomy from manufacturing to services. Services represent about 456 of the7.S. gross domestic product and between 856 and 456 of the $9:s of the restof the world3s advanced economies(. This segment growth is changing the way

companies organi;e themselves, creating a ripple effect in industries anduniversities that are closely tied to these organi;ations). !lthough these trendssuggest that services need to be studied and better understood, the 'uestion ofwhether there is a science of services remains unanswered. The formation ofSSME as a discipline has drawn many comparisons to Computer Science3sformation as a discipline and a science. !s such, we will use Computer Scienceas an analogy to examine SSME3s potential as a discipline and a science.


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unified way of tal"ing about services that may be useful in creating "nowledgeabout service and in unifying a community around services.Second, a science of services would need a way to understand the phenomenaof services. *n particular, it would need some empirical framewor" that allows thecommunity to measure services.


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(.D ! Closer 2oo" !t The is not well defined.

&bection ) suggests that because the term computer is not well defined, it3smeaning will change with new developments. !s such, Computer Science doesnot have a wellHdefined subect matter. The response to this is that thephenomena of all sciences change over time and that the process of

understanding a phenomena or science almost guarantees that this will be thecase. The meanings and scopes of many other sciences have changed as aresult of identifying and understanding new phenomena. Examples includephysics3s inclusion of radioactivity and psychology3s inclusion of the study ofanimal behavior.

(.D.+ &bection + Computer Science is the study of algorithms or programs/,not computers.

This obection suggests that Computer Science does not actually studycomputers.


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obection involves noting that the computer is such a novel and complexinstrument that its behavior is not subsumed under any other science. *nstead,the study of computers leads to further study of computers ma"ing the computernot ust an instrument but a phenomenon unto itself, re'uiring description andexplanation.

(.D.D &bection D Computer Science is a branch of another science.

*n particular, this obection suggests that Computer Science is actually a branchof electronics or mathematics or a number of other sciences. is not well defined.

Just as the obection was raised that computers are not well defined, services arealso being critici;ed in the same way. This would imply that a science of serviceswould not have a wellHdefined subect matter. The meanings and scopes of othersciences have changed over time. The =%hat *s Services#> module begins toaddress this obection, and as more is understood about services, perhaps thedefinition of services will become more salient.

(.8.) &bection ) Services are instruments, not phenomena.

&bection ) suggests that services are instruments or lenses through which othersciences can be further studied, but are not phenomena unto themselves.%hether this obection is true has yet to unfold.


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(.8.+ &bection D Computer Science is a branch of other sciences and belongsto those disciplines, not science.

*n particular, this obections suggests that services is actually a branch of anumber of other sciences. SSME suggests that a science of services will be a

part of as well as inform the areas that ma"e up its name. Science is oftenviewed as a way to create "nowledgeI engineering is seen as a way to apply"nowledge and create new valueI and management is seen to improve theprocess of creating and capturing value. SSME wants to create "nowledgeabout the phenomena of services science/. *T see"s to apply that "nowledge insuch a way that its application creates value Engineering/. *n addition, SSMEalso see"s to improve the process of creating and capturing valueManagement/. ! rigorous study of services that ta"es advantage of theaffordances each of these disciplines brings may begin to reveal the methodsand tools that are most appropriate for studying and understanding services andthe phenomena. ! study of services may also begin to uncover new methods

and tools that are uni'ue to services science.

(.G %hat Could %e 9o %ith a Science of Services#

?or many sciences, there exists some grand challenge or set of challenges thathelp to unify the community and, in turn, move the field forward. *f there is ascience of services, what might its grand challenges/ be# ! grand challenge forservices should not be able to be phrased or solved using only one of thedisciplines that ma"e it up.

&ne example of a potential grand challenge for SSME is the area of "nowledge

management. Many disciplines have attempted to create "nowledgemanagement systems that wor" well, but as of yet, no one has succeeded increating a "nowledge management system that can be used and built on wellover time. :erhaps a science of services could provide a way of describing"nowledge management systems such that they can be studied, modeled,analy;ed and applied.


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Tien, James M. and 9aniel 1erg )55+/ ! case for service systemsengineering. The Journal of Systems Science and Systems Engineering.-ol. (), No. (. :p ((+H)4. March.

!be, Tadahi"o. =%hat is service science#3> ?uitsu 0esearch *nstitute. 4March )55D. :df.

(. !dditional 0eadings to , Harvard Business eview,

*EEE Computer Maga;ine. !ugust )558 (4H)(. :df.

ha;anchi, 9eepa", and 1orn Eri" Mun"vold. =*s information system ascience# !n in'uiry into the nature of the information systems

discipline.>!"# S$%#$S+(.+ )555/ )BHB). :df(.4 M1/

9edric", Jason, -iay $urbaxani, and enneth 2. raemer. =*nformationtechnology and economic performance ! critical review of theempirical evidence.>!"# "om&uting Surveys '"S()+D.( )55+/ (H)4.

:df++ 1/

?ein, 2ouis. =The role of 7niversity in computers, data processing, and

related fields.> "ommunications of the !"#). (D/ GH(B. :df(.(5 M1/

1anville, Claude, and Maurice 2andry. =Can the field of M*S be

disciplined#> "ommunications of the !"#+).( (4/ B4H85. :df(.88 M1/
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Is There a Science of Services Module v 2

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