Options
Everything as a service? Introducing the St.Gallen IGaaS Management Model
ISBN
978-3-033-07563-4
Type
book section
Date Issued
2019-09
Abstract
Manufacturing companies enhance increasingly their hardware products with services. The deployment of digital technologies intensifies the fusion of products and related services towards hybrid offerings consisting of smart products and smart services. If manufacturing companies can control all relevant performance measures of such hybrid offerings in use, they are at the edge to further transform their business.
At this stage, bundles of products and services merge into a single service offering. With such a service, customers may use the product while the supplier ensures the product’s functionality. This kind of offering is called Product-as-a-Service. Manifold industry-specific applications of this concept have emerged, such as Lightning-as-a-Service or Windpower-as-a-Service. In a broader sense, these offerings are subsumed under Everything-as-a-Service (XaaS). However, only few manufacturing companies offer XaaS, let alone the number of companies that are economically successful in this endeavor.
In contrast, software vendors show the successful transformation from selling on-premise solutions to offering Software-as-a-Service (SaaS). In order to do so, software companies had to restructure their offering. Far more than just adopting a new business model, switching to SaaS was a strategic move for software firms that entailed fundamental organizational changes. As software vendors demonstrate how profitable SaaS is, the underlying transformation path could be a didactic play for manufacturing companies.
Importantly, a comprehensive framework to transform a manufacturing firm towards XaaS is missing. In order to fill this lacuna, we propose a holistic management model. The four layers strategy, business model, operating model and enablers represent the main levers for turning the transformation towards XaaS into action.
At this stage, bundles of products and services merge into a single service offering. With such a service, customers may use the product while the supplier ensures the product’s functionality. This kind of offering is called Product-as-a-Service. Manifold industry-specific applications of this concept have emerged, such as Lightning-as-a-Service or Windpower-as-a-Service. In a broader sense, these offerings are subsumed under Everything-as-a-Service (XaaS). However, only few manufacturing companies offer XaaS, let alone the number of companies that are economically successful in this endeavor.
In contrast, software vendors show the successful transformation from selling on-premise solutions to offering Software-as-a-Service (SaaS). In order to do so, software companies had to restructure their offering. Far more than just adopting a new business model, switching to SaaS was a strategic move for software firms that entailed fundamental organizational changes. As software vendors demonstrate how profitable SaaS is, the underlying transformation path could be a didactic play for manufacturing companies.
Importantly, a comprehensive framework to transform a manufacturing firm towards XaaS is missing. In order to fill this lacuna, we propose a holistic management model. The four layers strategy, business model, operating model and enablers represent the main levers for turning the transformation towards XaaS into action.
Language
English
HSG Classification
contribution to scientific community
HSG Profile Area
SoM - Business Innovation
Book title
Proceedings of the 2nd Smart Services Summit
Publisher
Swiss Alliance for Data-Intensive Services
Publisher place
Thun
Start page
61
End page
65
Event Title
Smart Services Summit 2019
Event Location
Zurich
Event Date
13.09.2019
Subject(s)
Division(s)
Eprints ID
257814