Services Science: A New Field for Today´s Economy

Agriculture and manufacturing used to be the major elements of the modern world´s economies. Now, services are a critical element, a trend also affecting the developing world. Universities throughout the world - most notably in North America, Europe, and Australia - are offering courses and graduate-level certification in services science, with the long-term goal of establishing degree programs. Services science is interested in both relatively simple service businesses such as fast-food restaurants and more sophisticated operations such as healthcare companies. Businesses could use technologies such as knowledge management and data mining to get targeted analytical information they can use to evaluate their operations. Companies can utilize technology to find patterns in the way they have successfully delivered services and interacted with customers. The companies could then repeat those patterns with multiple customers. Although technology is a key element of services science, a better understanding of human behavior is critical. The field calls on the resources of social sciences such as psychology and sociology, as well as anthropology, which could provide useful information about the way people and groups work and interact. Understanding these factors is an important aspect of services science. Businesses are also employing services science principles in their operations