eThesis - School of Business electronic theses

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Objective of the Study This study examined the productization process in the context of communication services. This study focused on the productization process of a communication service in the case company. The objective of this study was to find out how communication service providers can benefit from service productization and how communication service can be turned into a service product that reflects the specific attributes and benefits of the offering. Four research questions were: 1. What is the purpose of service productization? 2. What are the main steps in a service productization process? 3. What are the perceived benefits of a service productization? 4. What are the perceived challenges in service productization?

Methodology and Data A qualitative research approach and a single case study method were used in this thesis. The empirical data consisted of eight semi-structured interviews of case company’s personnel and an outside productization consultant. The research problem was approached on the basis of a theoretical framework, which was constructed drawing from the academic literature on service development, service productization and corporate communication.

Findings and Conclusions The findings of this study show that communication service providers could benefit substantially from productization. Moreover, the abstract nature of communication services highlights the importance of productization. Productization makes the elusive communication service more controllable, thus increasing the overall efficiency and quality of the service. However, it is important to notice that productization alone does not create competitiveness nor improve performance. It is essential that the development of a communication service starts from the recognition of the customer need and the problem that the service aims to solve. Overall productization makes the service and its production more controllable, and thus more efficient and rational. Efficiency in turn increases profitability and supports sustainable growth, which are the underlying goals of productization. Therefore, this study argues that it is crucial for the overall success of a communication service provider to productize their service offerings.