The necessity of an integrative approach for business service evaluation from a buyer’s perspective

Purpose
This research aims to observe different evaluation procedures for business services that are applied by buying companies; revealing the necessity of an integrative evaluation approach.

Design/methodology/approach
Based on a systematic analysis, explorative case study research – regarding five Swiss multinational companies – is used. In addition, the research also provides a structured literature overview of existing evaluation procedures.

Findings
Next to specific and business service related difficulties, the research observes different phases – named “levels of integration” – in which the evaluation process takes place within a company: (1) preparation, (2) acquisition as well as (3) an operational phase.

Research limitations/implications
The paper is limited to a qualitative research approach addressing only five case selections from Switzerland. However, assuming the results are generalizable, future research on service evaluation should always distinguish between the different phases of evaluation.

Practical implications
For practitioners, it is shown that a company’s ability to consider information and experiences from all levels of integration is highly related to its capability to ensure a successful service purchasing performance. Therefore, the research provides practical support for the purchasing process to ensure highly efficient business services.

Original/value
As research on business service evaluation barely exists, this paper is the first known work that addresses the different phases of an integrated service evaluation.