11896: Advancing Servitization: Theoretical Underpinnings, Practical Challenges, and Future Trajectories

Servitization and advanced services represent a transformative shift in manufacturing, moving from traditional product-centric approaches to service-led, value-driven business models. This paradigm fosters productivity, sustainability, and customer-centric innovation, redefining organisational theory and practice. This symposium brings together leading scholars and industry executives to explore the theoretical foundations, practical challenges, and future trajectories of servitization research. The session has four primary objectives: (i) to critically examine existing theories, identify gaps, and propose novel frameworks to advance the field; (ii) to integrate diverse perspectives across strategy, operations, and sustainability, fostering cross-disciplinary collaboration; (iii) to provide empirical insights from varied industrial contexts, demonstrating how servitization drives strategic transformation and delivers productivity and sustainability benefits; and (iv) to outline a forward-looking research agenda, emphasising interdisciplinary approaches and academic-industry collaboration. By framing servitization as a lens for investigating broader phenomena—such as value co-creation, organisational resilience, and the interplay between digitalisation and sustainability—this symposium aims to influence top-tier journals and guide future research. It offers a unique platform for aligning academic advancements with pressing industry challenges, ultimately shaping impactful research and policy directions over the next several years.