A business is simply a collection of related services that together produce and deliver value. Even within manufacturing, energy, agriculture and other resource-based organizations, it is the effective management of services that distinguishes the good from the great. All the more so with organizations that are squarely part of the service sector.
What do you think? Do you agree? Are businesses necessarily in the business of service?
Let me know.
Published by Jame Healy
With over 25 years of experience in CFO Advisory Services relating to cost accounting and financial performance management, Jame has worked with many large, multi-national organizations, with an emphasis on revenue and earnings growth through service harmonization, predictive financial analytics and cost management and optimization.
Jame has published several peer-reviewed articles and spoken at various conferences and business events on strategy alignment as well as capabilities-based strategy execution, service integration and service optimization.
View all posts by Jame Healy
Jame Healy 
Absolutely on the spot. No matter what your product may be, you are providing a service. And if the same product is offered by two suppliers, who do you think I’ll buy from? The one with the better service.
Thanks Don.
Though ‘customer service’ is certainly included, I’m also referring to the ‘service’ of Reasearch & Development, the ‘service’ of Product Development, the ‘service’ of Crop Harvesting as specific examples.
Each an example of how specific and core functions within the ‘non-services’ business are in fact services. That is, they each have a specific service provider, consumer, added value and process.
So in this sense, even a manufacturer or farm is a service business insofar as it is simply a collection of services, that collectively produce a product or a crop yield.