Service Design & Engineering

Current Issues

The case for the winter term 2021/2022 is provided by TÜV NORD AG. TÜV NORD AG is an internationally active service provider for technical testing and certification in various sectors such as industry, automotive, and education.
The scope of the case lies on the development of a service for the assessment of sustainability along supply chains. Due to the new supply chain law, companies are facing growing pressure to prove compliance with standards that have to be defined. The case focuses on the hydrogen value chain, which is increasingly becoming the center of attention as an alternative energy source. Further information on the case and TÜV NORD AG will be announced at the kick-off event at the latest.

Content

Designing new services is of increasing importance for companies both to develop successful business strategies and to develop and implement new and successful business models. The objective of this class is to introduce into a comprehensive set of methods and tools which guide through the design of new services. The perspective of the business manager is taken and enhanced by an in-depth insight of academic and research challenges as well.
We will have a focus on management questions and will take a framework which organizes the different tasks to design a new service concept within the context of a new business model. There will be a specific focus and a stepwise methodology to systematically designing innovative services. We will learn why and when to use the different methods and will learn how to manage the overall design process.
The class is case-study based. The case study will be introduced and we will solve the given problem in a team based approach. There will be lectures to introduce into the overall methodology and tools and workshops and exercises to experience how to make use of the knowledge gained. In addition, we will discuss a number of academic journal papers on the topics discussed in the class.

Objectives

After participating in this course, students should be in a position to:
- Acquire a sound understanding of the importance of new services for successful business strategies and new business models
- Differentiate various understandings of new service design and engineering
- Acquire competences to successfully manage a new service design project and process
- Structure the design process and integrate with other corporate functions such as marketing and engineering
- Know about tools and methods of new service design and engineering
- Argue about future trends the service industry

Lecturer

Dr.-Ing. Gerhard Gudergan