A Product Service-System (PSS) is an integrated combination of products and services. This western concept embraces a service led competitive strategy, environmental sustainability, and the basis to differentiate from competitors who simply offer lower priced products. This paper aims to report the state-of-the-art of PSS research by presenting a clinical review of literature currently available on this topic. The literature is classified and the major outcomes of each study are addressed and analysed.On this basis, this paper defines the PSS concept, reports on its origin and features, gives examples of applications along with potential benefits and barriers to adoption, summarises available tools and methodologies, and identifies future research challenges. AbstractA Product Service-System (PSS) is an integrated combination of products and services. This western concept embraces a service led competitive strategy, environmental sustainability, and the basis to differentiate from competitors who simply offer lower priced products. This paper aims to report the state-of-the-art of PSS research by presenting a clinical review of literature currently available on this topic. The literature is classified and the major outcomes of each study are addressed and analysed.On this basis, this paper defines the PSS concept, reports on its origin and features, gives examples of applications along with potential benefits and barriers to adoption, summarises available tools and methodologies, and identifies future research challenges.

Purpose-The purpose of this paper is to present challenges experienced by UK manufacturing companies undergoing a servitization journey to becoming productservice providers. This paper emphasises real life complexity and the most common and problematic challenges experienced by practitioners. Design/methodology-The paper uses an exploratory single-case study approach based on semi-structured interviews, and archival data. Twenty-two senior managers were interviewed from the product-service provider and its two suppliers, resulting in more than 400 pages of interview data. Data were analysed through an inductive research analysis by an emergent identification of patterns. Findings-This research identifies critical and frequent challenges experienced by UK manufacturing companies undergoing a servitization journey to becoming product-service system providers. They are condensed into five pillars which constitute the architecture of challenges in servitization. The architecture of challenges in servitization provides a full description of the strategy and operations of product-service systems. Research limitations-This is qualitative research based on a single case study. Given the nature of research design, the identified patterns cannot be used as a predictive tool. However the depth of evidence is significant and allows analytical generalisations, which could lead us to tentative propositions for future research.

Our intent with this research is to articulate propositions for coalition building behaviors involving the weaker player in a buyer-supplier relationship. The context of our study begins in dyads, but grows into triads as coalitions are formed. We consider coalition formation arising from power asymmetry in dyadic buyer-supplier relationships. However, when a weaker player pairs up with another player, the context of our study becomes triads (i.e., buyer-supplier-supplier or buyer-buyer-supplier). On the basis of coalition theory, we identify three archetypes and then formulate four coalition conditions under each archetype. Each coalition condition, framed in a supply network triad, constitutes a finding. For instance, we propose that a supplier in a weaker power position in a buyer-supplier-supplier triad would try to create a coalition with another supplier to gain leverage against a common buyer. According to coalition theory, it does not matter whether this new supplier has more or less power compared with the old supplier as long as their coalition collectively yields more power than the buyer. By the same token, two buyers would create a coalition to gain leverage against a common supplier if their coalition collectively yields more power than the supplier. Furthermore, the buyer would create a coalition with a second-tier supplier if the buyer is in a weaker power position compared with the first-tier supplier and their coalition would yield more power against the first-tier supplier. This study marks one of the first attempts at formally theorizing the weaker player in the buyer-supplier relationship. It also marks the first attempt at applying coalition theory to supply chain dynamics and it extends emerging work in supply network triads.

The increasing popularity of service-based strategies among manufacturers, such as solution provision, make service triads commonplace within business. While there is some consensus that 'relational' (i.e., close or collaborative) relationships are beneficial for the performance of individual actors and the triad as a whole, there is little known on what exactly affects the service performance of an actor in these triads. In this study we investigate the influence of the manufacturer -service supplier relationship on the performance of the service supplier towards the manufacturer's customers. As this phenomenon is causally complex and context dependent, we assume that there will be alternative configurations of relationship characteristics and contingent factors that lead to high service performance. In order to uncover potential configurations we deployed fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA), on data collected from 38 triads within the network of a large Anglo-German commercial vehicle manufacturer. Our research shows that -in this context -superior service performance cannot be generalized to one relationship configuration and is also contingent upon exogenous factors -i.e., contract support and service site size. We uncovered four 'core', configurations of relationship dimensions and two exogenous factors. Three of the configurations exhibited relational properties, while the fourth configuration had transactional properties. This is counter to extant research findings. We extend the perspective that within triads, service performance is not an outcome of a single 'close', or 'collaborative' relationship, and is a combination of multiple configurations consisting of varying relationship dimensions and exogenous factors.

Design/Methodology/Approach -The research uses case based research which is appropriate for exploratory research of this type. In depth interviews were conducted with key personnel in a focal firm and two members of its supply chain and the results were analysed to identify emergent themes.Findings -The research has identified differences in supplier behaviour dependent on their role in PSS delivery and their relationship with the PSS provider. In particular it suggests that for a successful partnership it is important to align the objectives between PSS provider and suppliers.Originality/ value -This research provides a detailed investigation into a PSS supply chain and highlights the complexity of roles and relationships among the organisations within it. It will be of value to other PSS researchers and organisations transitioning to the delivery of PSS.