Services science management : the hart beat of the contemporary South Africa enterprise

Abstract

Services is not only the fastest growing sector of the global economy, it in many cases constitutes the major source of revenue for many institutions within business and industry across the world, including South Africa. In the case of South Africa, services represent over 65% of the country's gross domestic product. Seen within this context it is no surprise that services science management has gained the attention of both academics and managers in most developed nations and there increasingly is a growing awareness as to its importance within developing countries as well. It is in effect suggested that it is rapidly becoming the hart beat of many a contemporary South African institution. The purpose of this paper is therefore to shed light on a few of the key issues, in relation to services science management from a South African perspective, by researching and discussing a few pertinent questions, namely: The nature of the South African economy and the importance of the services sector to future economic growth; The nature of services and the associated management implications thereof; The challenges associated with integrating manufacturing and services at a strategic and operational level; The need for a new services paradigm of management.