Abstract:
Services is the most rapidly developing sector of the global economy and currently constitutes
the major component of the South African economy, presently accounting for 63% of the
country’s gross domestic product. Increasingly South African institutions are attempting to
offer clients a bundle of services and products in order to gain a competitive advantage in a
highly competitive services dominant global economy. Seen within this context the objective in
this paper is to gain an insight into the nature of the services economy, its impact on an
enterprise and the management challenges associated therewith. In so doing specific
attention is given to the culture and skills related implications involved in moving from a
predominantly manufacturing to a services inclusive operational setting.
