TY  - JOUR
U1  - Wissenschaftlicher Artikel
A1  - Hofmeister, Johannes
A1  - Kanbach, Dominik K.
A1  - Hogreve, Jens
T1  - Service productivity
BT  - a systematic review of a dispersed research area
JF  - Management review quarterly
N2  - The service productivity literature has grown remarkably over the last two decades and has gathered substantial knowledge. However, with the gradual acceleration of knowledge production about service productivity, the collective evidence becomes more fragmented and interdisciplinary. The purpose of this literature review is to systematically identify and analyze 190 publications focusing on service productivity to link previously dispersed studies as a next step in theory development. By clustering existing service productivity research into macroeconomic, mesoeconomic, and microeconomic dimensions, our review reveals that much progress has been made in advancing the open-ended theory of optimal service productivity. Reviewing key insights from the existing literature, we show that the majority of service productivity research adopts a one-sided industrial perspective that primarily focuses on firm productivity. Although valuable, these studies most often leave out consumers’ time and effort, neglecting the value of consumer-generated input. Thus, the present research offers a new conceptualization of service productivity by emphasizing it as an open and customer-inclusive process that transcends the service producer–customer divide. Finally, we contribute a set of propositions. Within these propositions, we identify beneficial conditions and means for firms to improve service productivity. In sum, the article provides policymakers, researchers, and practitioners with valuable guidance for developing means to generate positive effects in a service economy that lacks productivity.
KW  - Service productivity
KW  - Service efficiency
KW  - Service effectiveness
KW  - Service excellence
KW  - Systematic literature review
Y1  - 2023
SN  - 2198-1639
SS  - 2198-1639
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1007/s11301-023-00333-9
DO  - https://doi.org/10.1007/s11301-023-00333-9
VL  - 74
IS  - 3
SP  - 1249
EP  - 1281
ER  -