The evolution of service systems to service ecosystems: A literature review

Abstract

High academic interest and numerous theoretical and practical studies on service systems and service ecosystems, paired with the accelerated evolution of the service (eco) system concept, have resulted in complex research in this field. Multiple perspectives from which service systems were studied added to this complexity and inadvertently produced conceptual confusion regarding service (eco) systems. This literature review addresses this confusion by focusing on the evolution of service systems to service ecosystems to consolidate and clarify the field. Therefore, this article's purpose is to systematise the extant research on service (eco) systems and indicate future research directions based on the analysis. Specifically, the article systematically reviews 770 publications on service (eco) systems from 2020 and earlier and identifies the main research topics (focusing on service [eco] systems' constituent elements, inherent processes, and outcomes), theoretical perspectives, and bridging elements, and suggests future research based on the review results. The article concludes by providing a foundation for continued research emerging from the analysis, with emphasis on five aspects that may stimulate new avenues of research: service ecospheres, service ecosystem simplicity, failures of service ecosystems, paradox in service ecosystems, and panarchy and service ecosystems.

Beyond the nexus family – business: introducing the family business service ecosystem

“…This paper builds on prior research that has already established a first link between BMI and SDL (Andreini et al, 2021;Gamble et al, 2021;Nenonen and Storbacka, 2010) to form a process view of value creation within an ecosystem considering a wide set of stakeholders in the family business context. SDL originated in the field of service marketing in the 2000's with the works of Vargo and Lusch (Brozović and Tregua, 2022), and has since been successfully deployed in a wide variety of industry contexts and fields of research (Brozović and Tregua, 2022;Thomas and Ambrosini, 2021).…”

“…Service ecosystems are somewhat self-contained and self-adjusting, comprised of stakeholders linked through shared institutional arrangements and value co-creation through service exchange (Vargo and Lusch, 2016). The current state of service ecosystem research is based on SDL (rather than service theory) and embraces a landscape view of interpenetrating ecosystems within the meta-ecosystem (Brozović and Tregua, 2022). As such, the service ecosystem is perfectly adapted to further research dedicated to the study of value co-creation among different stakeholders within a meta-ecosystem, covering the micro, meso, and macro levels.…”

“…As such, the service ecosystem is perfectly adapted to further research dedicated to the study of value co-creation among different stakeholders within a meta-ecosystem, covering the micro, meso, and macro levels. The inclusion of the meta-ecosystem allows to take into consideration the growing concern for ecology and global challenges (Brozović and Tregua, 2022;Thomas and…”

“…The role of each stakeholder in the service ecosystem is to both create the service ecosystem and to integrate resources to create value (Brozović and Tregua, 2022;Nenonen and Storbacka, 2010). These relationships being dynamic means that stakeholders' roles can change.…”

“…The purpose of the FB Service Ecosystem is to provide a framework for value creation that goes beyond the dichotomous approach (agency-financial versus stewardship -SEW) to undergird a wider structure of value creation with an expanded set of economic and social actors involved in the project (Eijdenberg et al, 2019;Thomas and Ambrosini, 2021). This is akin to a mosaic that the family firm will piece together with its multiple and specific set of stakeholders to co-create mutually distinctive value with each stakeholder (Brozović and Tregua, 2022;Ranjan and Read, 2016;Thomas and Ambrosioni, 2021). The shift from the view of value as a trade-off and immediate to an understanding of value creation as pluralistic and processual paves the path to both a broader scope of interactions (beyond the familybusiness nexus, to include internal and external stakeholders) as well as an infinite variety of values potentially created (based on ViU) (Eggert et al, 2018;Vargo and Lusch, 2008b).…”