Global Megatrends

Shaping Services Success

By Vivek Agarwal and Robert Giacobbe

When customer centricity first landed on

management agendas, it was a distant
goala compelling source of insight that
companies could pursue for innovation and
competitive advantage.
Today, the importance of customer centricity
is recognized by nearly everyone. But most
companies still fail to live up to its promise.
In this Point of View, Accenture delves into service issues regionally
around the world to identify the global megatrends that are
defining its playing field as a source of growth and competitive
advantage. Different regions have their own unique characteristics,
including the nature of their markets, customer expectations and
service support competencies. These characteristics will likely drive
the pace of evolution in customer service operations and companies
ability to capitalize on these megatrends in individual regions.

Across regions and industry segments,

surveys often find that customers are
unhappy with the service they get.
One reason that service experiences
fall short is because customer support
competencies arent keeping pace with
growing customer expectations. The hyper
drive of technology usedigital, mobile,
socialoffers new ways to access service
and support. They are fueling customers
growing service expectations and changing
the way companies think about todays
service operations.

The Global Rise of

Service Profit
The rise of services as a business and
economic engine is a global phenomenon.
The economies of more than 80 percent of
the world are now led by services.1 In scores
of product-focused industries, services are
emerging as a new source of growth, profit
and competitive advantage. The reasons
are straightforward: Product offerings
can become commoditized quickly and
challenged by more efficient and cheaper
options. Disruptive technologies can make
products redundant and saturation in
mature markets cuts off even more growth
opportunities. The result can be a fruitless
treadmill of low-yield product battles.
Services, however, can provide significant
economic and strategic advantages.

For example, in the automotive and

industrial equipment industry, service
and spare parts average 10 percent to
25 percent of sales. But they can account
for as much as 40 percent to 75 percent
of profits.2
But financial impact is only part of the
equation. Services can also provide
these powerful strategic advantages:
Service-driven companies can
generate stronger shareholder value
than do product-driven companies:
capital light investment costs can
yield high net cash proceeds.
Service businesses can enjoy recurring
revenue streams and often dont rely
on one-time product sales. Companies
with these revenue streams may have
stronger shields against economic swings.
Since services can create full
solutions for customers, they open
up new markets and segmentsby
their very nature, services can bring
companies closer to their customers.
Services can provide powerful
product differentiation and build
barriers against other players that
cant easily replicate them.
In many cases, company services grew to
such a degree that they became enormous
businesses in their own right. Xerox is a
case in point. Services now account for

more than 50 percent3 of its revenues and

Xerox expects that to rise to two-thirds by
2017. Xeroxs service strategy focuses on
vertical expertise through inorganic growth
combined with innovation in its service
offerings. The company is fueling growth
efforts in its three main segments: managed
print services, business process outsourcing,
and IT outsourcing. Xeroxs service offerings
include customer care, healthcare claims
reimbursement, and automated tolling and
parking transactions.
Philips Healthcare is another prime
example. Over the years, the growth of
its service business has rivaled that of its
other operations and now accounts for
approximately 25 percent4 of revenues.
To achieve that growth, Philips Healthcare
has introduced a wide array of service
offerings including consulting, clinical
services, education, equipment financing,
asset management, and equipment
maintenance and repair. Philips MediGo
is an example of the companys market
leading offerings. A pay-per-use service,
it provides access to Philips medical
technology on a fee basis, with predefined
minimum and maximum patient volumes.
Philips MediServ is another examplea
managed service that covers procurement,
installation, commissioning, training,
maintenance, upgrading and replacement of
all client equipment for a fixed service fee.

Global Snapshots
A region-by-region look at what customers
are expecting and what businesses need to
know about the service landscape.

North America
What Customers Experience5

86%

71%

84%

Over 80 percent of consumers

are frustrated with their
service providers for "having
them promise me one thing
but deliver another"

More than 70 percent of

consumers expect "getting
flexible solutions that fit their
schedule and lifestyle" (e.g.,
preferred appointment times,
home pickup & delivery)

Over 80 percent of
consumers indicate
contacting customer service
multiple times for the
same reason as the most
frustrating experience

What Customers Expect

As the most industrialized economies across
the globe, North America is dominated by the
service sector, both in terms of contribution
to GDP and job creation. The largest and
most sophisticated consumer market in
the world, its customers are in hyper-drive.
Their ranks are swelling and vary across
demographics, from aging Baby Boomers
who are slower to embrace new technologies
to Millennials, who are uncomfortable if
theyre not punching on a mobile device
this very instant. Moreover, consumers
are demanding customized, high quality
experiences at a low price. They want to
be recognized for their loyalty and expect
many premium services, such as exchange,
to be free. They also expect companies to
treat them proactively and notify them of
any service issues and their resolution.

Regional Strengths
Many North American companies have
already invested heavily in websites,
3

CRM systems, portals, call centers,

data collection and product tracking.
They also devote considerable resources
to customer and dealer management
systems, work-order management and
enterprise management systems, as well as
preventive maintenance programs. Most
organizations have these basic systems
and technology infrastructure in place.

Regional Weaknesses
Despite the significant investments in
systems and technology, North American
companies often fail to meet growing service
expectations. For example, businesses
often fall short on delivering premium
services they offer and sell. Moreover,
service experiences are rarely seamless
across multiple functions and operating
partners. Nor are they tailored to customer
demographics. Many organizations also fail
to develop new service revenue streams and
optimize retail-level service inventories/
in-stock positions. They also lag in the
use of remote diagnosis and telemetry

systems. All of which typically results in

these companies not only failing to meet
customer commitments, but also attempting
to do it in a cost-inefficient manner.

On the Horizon
The new age customer in North America is
forcing service organizations to rethink their
channels. Social media is major component
of the marketing mix and has the potential
to become the primary channel for customer
interactions and service delivery. In addition,
the rise of connected machines and
equipment is driving the growth of Big Data,
advanced analytics and decision sciences.
Service organizations are striving to garner
actionable insights and redefining their
service offerings to better meet the needs of
ever evolving customers. And a few visionary
businesses are attempting to reach the holy
grail of services: to deliver a personalized
customer experience for each transaction in
a cost-effective manner.

APAC
What Customers Experience5

86%

84%

87%

Almost 90 percent of
Chinese consumers expect
timely and accurate updates:
sharing regular status updates
for responses to service
requests, detailing issues
that arise and informing
customers in advance
about likely service delays

Over 80 percent of Indian

customers desire their after
sales service providers to be
transparent: clearly explaining
what level of service will be
provided for what price,
ensuring that price premiums
are justified by higher levels
of performance

Close to 90 percent of
Australian customers feel
frustrated at being on-hold
for a long time when
contacting customer service

What Customers Expect

Regional Strengths

In most of the Asian economies, the service

sector often grows faster than the economy
as a whole. In China, where the service
sector is still nascent, services are expected
to outpace overall economic growth.
As income levels grow and populations
increase, consumers are demanding more
(and higher quality) services. In effect, they
are leap frogging over the path that other
industrialized countries have taken. In this
region, customers are generally very cost
conscious and want to use equipment until
the end of its life, often beyond normal
usage limits. Customers also demand fast
and reliable service, making turnaround
times an important differentiator. In rural
regions, the service networks reach is the
most important driver of a products sales,
and its often executed by local, independent
operators who offer a very low, but reliable,
level of sophistication to their customers.

Most of the APAC countries have an inherent

culture of great service; its no surprise that
many companies here excel in soft service
capabilities such as service staff friendliness
and expressions of empathy. These traits
are critical. Emotion and past behavior are
central to meeting customer expectations
and delivering service quickly and profitably.
Companies in this region are also generally
effective at controlling service costs through
the use of third-party providers.

Regional Weaknesses
The region lags in deploying technology
solutions for spare parts planning, asset
management and field-force enablement.
Gaps in introducing and executing
differentiated service programs are also
weaknesses, as are the issues with the
integration of multi-channel service and
support channels. Since services are viewed
as cost centers, many service organizations
are understaffed and struggle with issues

such as non-standard processes, high

inventory costs and obsolescence. Methods
for spare parts, warranty management and
reverse logistics are rarely addressed with
scientific, analytical approaches. Use of
enterprise asset management, MRO, and
work order management systems is also low.

On the Horizon
The service evolution will likely follow a
path similar to that in developed regions,
but at a faster pace. In the next wave of
service transformation, companies will
invest in new technology service solutions.
Typically offered through the cloud,
these solutions will allow businesses to
select and implement solutions according
to their business needs without heavy
capital investment. As customers evolve,
segmentation and differentiated services
will gain ground in tier 1 cities. In rural and
remote areas, smart and frugal service
delivery innovations can potentially serve as
a model for future service expansion.
4

Europe
What Customers Experience5

62%

85%

88%

Over 60 percent of customers

from the UK expect to get a
consistent service experience
irrespective of the service
channel used (e.g. phone,
email, web etc.)

Almost 90 percent of
customers from Spain
indicated that they would like
to get problems fixed on the
first attempt

Close to 90 percent of
German customers place
significant value on
the service staff being
knowledgeable and
would like to be offered
"the most suitable solution
for my problem"

What Customers Expect

Regional Weaknesses

In Western Europe, like most industrialized

economies, customers service expectations
are rising quickly, often beyond the
competencies of service operators.
Customers are well informed and ready
to complain when service doesnt meet
muster. In Eastern European countries
that are still industrializing, services are
catching up fast. Customers expect good
service as a minimum, and seek customized
service that truly meets their needs.

Service providers in Europe continue to

struggle with the rising cost of service
delivery. As in other developed markets,
customers place significant emphasis
on individualization of services. When
individualized, however, costs increase
which requires optimizing customer
lifetime value with the cost to serve.
In many parts of Eastern Europe, as
well as some parts of Central Europe,
service providers face an infrastructure
gap due to historic underinvestment in
public and social infrastructure in these
regions. As a result significant capital
investments are needed in order to
provide the same service levels that are
being provided across Western Europe.

Regional Strengths
Many European companies have
standardized service provisioning and
delivery mechanisms. Investments in
service technology solutions are on the
rise, especially for field force enablement
and enterprise asset maintenance.

On the Horizon
With rising customer expectations and
service delivery costs, the regional focus
will shift towards modularity in the service
chain. The shift may require companies to
leverage third-party provider capabilities in

order to become more agile, reduce costs,

and redistribute risks while maintaining
customer satisfaction. Scientific methods
in service planning will likely play an
increasingly compelling role: companies
will look for analytical solutions to deliver
quality service at a balanced cost.
Another shift could be towards cloud
based solutions for service management
in order to bring down the cost of service
delivery. The companies would look at
a common platform to gather, collate,
analyze and use datasets to enhance
their after market service delivery.
Also, while economic conditions
remain challenging in Europe and many
organizations continue to have declining
margins, a strong after sales service
performance is uniquely placed to
address these issues drive new high
margin revenue streams, differentiate
product offerings, and improve the
relationship with consumers.

Services Dont Meet Muster

At the same time that services are
becoming important, surveys consistently
find that customers around the world
are disappointed and frustrated with the
customer service they receive. Whether
they realize it or not, companies make
implicit service promises to customers all
the time. Often, however, customers feel
that the promises have been broken. In our
experience, we have found that customer
service is failing in these three areas:

Keeping pace with

connected customers
The shift to digital, social and mobile has
fundamentally changed the way users
seek service and support from businesses.
Last year, many customers clamored for
basic push notifications when their laptop
was ready for pick-up. Today the trend
appears to be a demand for context-based
services that guide them to tailored buying
experiences using location services and
social media. The expectations of new age
digital customers are growing and they have
a burning desire to control their service
experience. Traditional service models tend
to fail to meet the demands of nonstop
customer experience.

Getting it right the

first time
Although call centers have been a major
source of investment for decades, the
typical call-center experience often falls
far short of expectations. Many call centers
use measures and incentives designed to
get a customer off the phone as quickly
as possible. AHT (average handle time) has
absolutely nothing to do with customer
issue resolution. Similarly, in-home service

execution, resource planning (parts, labor)

and production execution (schedule,
dispatch, routing) can remain almost
totally un-integrated despite considerable
investment over the years. All too often,
technicians show up without the right part,
cant fix the particular equipment, or miss
the appointment window altogether.

Ability to execute
on premium service
programs
Premium customers want to be treated
as such. They demand a personalized,
differentiated and, above all, a complete
service experience. And since they often
know more about products and services
than providers do, customers can switch to
alternatives if their expectations are not
met. Premium service offerings, however,
often misfire because siloed service
functions can compromise service execution
capabilities. Indeed, many companies
lose track of important customers once
they leave the call center. Other issues
arise when companies fail to balance the
costs and service levels of differentiated
service programs. The potential result:
over-spending on some groups of
customers and missed opportunities to
attract those willing to pay more for
premium product and service bundles.

Global Service Megatrends

Figure 1. Global service megatrends

Always on

Individualized

Differentiated

ual
text on
n
o
i
C
mat
Infor

Scientific

Across the globe, companies must meet

more demanding service expectations
and avail themselves of new technologies
and systems to meet those demands.
The world of customer service is changing
so rapidly that its old traditions will be
dead and obsolete very soon. In fact, you
could say we are entering a golden age
of management in customer service and
support. New trends are influencing and
fundamentally changing the way companies
approach the service operations. We have
identified these six megatrends that are
driving the future state-of-play of customer
service. Companies expecting to cash in on
their fair share of the opportunity need to
achieve mastery in each. (See Figure 1).

Data and Analytics Driven

Always On
Although customers are always on,
most companies arent. Customer service
is undergoing a major transformation as
technology digital, mobile, social offer
customers countless 24/7 touch points. New
age digital customers are seeking new forms
of service and support and new technologies
are emerging to provide it (See Figure 2).
However, these technologies and systems
are at different stages of maturity. Some
have already entered the mainstream: for
example, video tutorials in the electronics
and high tech sectors or social media
support, including Facebook and Twitter,
in consumer industries. Some are in their
adolescent phasesuch as social media
monitoring analytics and rich customer
service mobile applications. Others, such

Modular

as Big Data analytics for unstructured

data, are still in an embryoic stage but
have the potential to become main-stream
within the next few years. Its interesting
to note in Figure 2 that the Long Term is
defined as only 3-5 years into the future,
denoting the rapid and fundamental change
that is occurring across industries.

Individualized
Customers have become tired of businesses
that force them to repeat information,
navigate their complex processes and
subject them to different sets of data
workflows as they move from one channel
to another. Trends show that they want
individualized services that meet their
needs based on contextual information.
Context is the key to tailored offerings that
meet customer needs and preferences.

understands the situation and begins with

an appropriate assumption. It uses advanced
analytics to process the most likely cause
for a product or service support request.
The system anticipates future issues which
can be very powerful in after-sales service.

To align with customer expectations,

individualized services will likely be driven
by more than customer demographics
and relationship history. Contextual
informationsuch as emotion, location, and
past behaviorwill be central to meeting
customer expectations and delivering
service quickly and profitably (See Figure 3).
Take an example6 - a credit card is declined
during an Internet-based commercial
transaction from a loyal and profitable
customer. Most likely, the customer isnt
intending to defraud. He or she is trying to
make a purchase and the issue is probably
an expired or retired credit card. A system
that processes contextual information

Figure 2 Evolution of customer service and support systems

Long Term (3-5 years)

Big Data Analytics for Unstructured

data (video, speech, tweets etc.)

Intent-Driven Customer Support Systems that are

context-aware and can detect emotion/sentiment

Near Term (1-2 years)

Scale and Complexity

Self Service Maintenance and

Repair Applications

Intelligent consumer devices with real time

monitoring and proactive diagnostics enabled
through M2M technologies

Rich Mobile Applications for

Customer Service

Current
24/7 Virtual Assistance on Web
Social media monitoring and analytics
(e.g. Consumer sentiment analytics)
Social Media SupportFacebook, Twitter etc.

Video support and tutorial on

usage, maintenance

C2C communities,
Peer to Peer Support

Gamification and Infotainment based

service applications

Mobile customer service with SMS

Time

Figure 3 Elements of individualized services

Customer Demographics

Contextual Information

Overall Relationship

Age
Gender
Income Profile
Ethnicity

Emotion/Sentiment
Location
Past Behavior

Buying History/Value
Loyalty
Experience

Interaction
Business Rules

Outcomes
Speed
Profit
Lower Costs

10

Differentiated
Many companies have launched premium
service offerings for valuable customers.
But these programs are often limited to
front-end service operations only. When
the customer leaves the call center, most
companies lose track of them. More and
more, companies are looking to create
a differentiated service program end to
end from initial contact right through
to post-purchase consumption. After sales
service operations can define a successful
differentiated service strategy.
Many companies are coupling traditional
segmentation approachessuch as
demographics or channelwith new
segmentation criteria including cost-toserve and lead times. The combination
improves the ability for back-end operations
to realize front-end promises efficiently.
The new tack avoids overinvesting in service
experiences that customers dont value
while providing services commensurate
with the delivery cost. It also results
in more predictable customer behavior
and, ultimately, higher loyalty among a
companys most important segments
the objectives of a truly differentiated
service strategy. Of critical importance:
defining service variables that govern
the level of differentiated post-sales
service and operationalizing them in
different segments (See Figure 4)

Scientific
Service businessesboth profitable
aftermarket and internal maintenance
operationsare turning to rigorous, scientific
management methods used in production

supply chains for decades for example,

forecasting, S&OP, network optimization,
synchronization, and analytics. These will
be used increasingly to optimize service
supply chains. The following methods are
gaining the greatest traction today:
Integrated Supply and Demand Planning
for Service (ISDP): ISDP for service is
similar to sales & operations planning
(S&OP) for products. It addresses the
challenges of simultaneously optimizing
the labor, parts and material components
of the service equation. The sophistication
of formal master planning in the service
supply chain (See Figure 5) is evolving,
providing planners with the tools, data
and processes needed to react effectively
to random, un-buffered service demand.
This tool, used effectively for decades in
the product supply chain, is finally being
adopted in services.
Scientific methods for spare parts
management: Along with advanced
segmentation models, rigorous statistics
modeling for parts forecasting and,
multi-echelon inventory optimization
are on the rise along with optimization
techniques for physical network modeling
and logistics execution.
Intelligent scheduling and dispatch
systems: Field service analytics solutions
and tools that optimize real-time field
service are maturing in integrated service
resource management. For example, a
cloud-based field service system can
interpret the working patterns of many
technicians, including the job types they
handle, the tools they use, and the routes
they take. These analytics can also provide
highly accurate predictions of capacity

to support scheduling. The mega suite of

vendor portfolios will likely absorb many of
these scientific methods and optimization
techniques. However, future innovation
will ensure the emergence of technologies
that fuel this constantly evolving market.
Parts and Service Pricing Optimization:
Global leaders, particularly in the
automotive and industrial equipment
industries, are realizing the importance
of service and parts as a primary source
of economic profit generation. As a
result, scientific and advanced pricing
methods, based on market intelligence
and customer perceived value analytics,
are replacing the traditional methods of
cost plus or rule of thumb pricing.
As companies realize hard dollar,
topline benefits from applying scientific
pricing methods in their service chains,
the adoption trend is most likely to
increase in the medium and long term.

Data and Analytics

Driven
There are two primary sources of Big Data
in services:
1. Customer stream data which is primarily
unstructured and comes from sources
including video, Twitter, Facebook, blog
posts, and voice.
2. Data from the rise of connected devices
and equipment that communicate with
central servers through machine-tomachine (M2M) interfaces.

Figure 4 Examples of differentiated service variables in post-sales service operations

Depot Repair

Field Repair

Warranty Mgt.

Returns Mgt.

Maintenance

Sparing Program

Service Variables
Work Order Mgt.

Appointment Window

Cover Policy

RMA Request Process

Maintenance Schedule

Service Level

Labor/Resources Mgt.

Repair Lead-time

Extension of Goodwill

Return Options

Equipment Up Time

Turnaround Time

Scoper of Work/SLA

Extended Coverage

Extended Warranty

Exchange Options

Contract Mgt.

Critical Part Mgt.

Work, parts and labor

are strategically
prioritized.

Guaranteed
appointment and lead
time.

Most extensive
coverage, generous
use of goodwill.

Paid-for Exchange by
mail (XBM) box sent
to customer.

Reliability Centered
Maintenance used to
predict failure.

Highest tier part

availability 98%+.

Custom service
offerings available

Extended geography
coverage and support.

Very favorable terms

for reimbursement.

RMA automatically
issued.

Analytic services on
equipment failures.

Top Tier Customers

Expedited claim
handling.

11

On-site
replenishment-based
spares service.
Prioritized part
availability.

Figure 5 Master planning process in the service supply chain

Aggregate Resource Planning

Aggregate Service Planning

Labor
Materials

Annual operating plan with 12-month

rolling view

Network
Parts

Constrained Consensus Forecast

Front End
Rough Cut Capacity Planning

Master Service Sheduling (MSS)

Storage, flow and service capacities

by asset

Detailed Capacity Plan

Detailed Labor and Material Requirements Planning

Time-phased materials and labor plans by location

Engine
Detailed Material and Capacity Plans

Back End

Service Activity Control

Purchasing/Vendor Execution

Job sequencing
Technician dispatching

PO issuance
Receiving materials

The use of Big Data analytics for customer

service and support is growing and
transforming the customer service industry.
For example, Hertz uses social analytics
to identify peak periods of volume and
to determine the need for additional
resources, based on agent response times
and issue types.
Remote monitoring and device management
can provide proactive service through
M2M that senses real-time events and
failures. Intelligent devices are radically
changing support costs, improving
uptime and shifting service from reactive
to proactiveeverything from capital
equipment (for example, medical devices,
printers, automated teller machines, kiosks,
and oil and gas refineries) to physical
structures (for example, bridges, walkways
and stadiums). The gains come from realtime delivery of data monitoring, which
eliminates unnecessary maintenance
checks, helps zero in on failure points and
highlights the most likely fixes. This trend
allows companies to offer new types of
customer guarantees while driving down
costs. Centralized command service centers
are another emerging area. These centers
can monitor, sense and respond to realtime events and support service recovery
through effective scheduling and dispatch.

Modular
In these volatile economic times, many
companies, especially those with large
distributed asset bases and significant
service operations, struggle with cost
pressures and eroding margins. Increasing
commoditization and heightened
competition are reshaping the business
landscape, putting profits at risk and
forcing companies to reexamine their
cost structures.
Many effective service businesses are
responding to these challenges with a
modular service chain. The modularity
leverages the capabilities of third-party
service providers and combines global
and regional capabilities for flexible
service delivery. Modular service chains
can also drive agility, cost reduction, and
redistribution of risks while maintaining
customer satisfaction. This is especially
true for operators where the service supply
chain should not be a core competency,
but is important to serving customers,
such as a public utility or mining operation.
Specifically, the benefits can include:

Leveraging first-rate expertise and

capability of specialists who can provide
economies of scale and economies of skill
As modular service chains gain in
popularity, new risk and reward models will
likely be developed for service performance.
For example, in outsourcing arrangements
for spare parts planning, leading providers
can set targets such as inventory levels,
scrapping ratios and parts availability as
the basis of performance bonuses and
penalties. The provider can earn a portion
of the achieved savings when scrap rates
fall over a measured period. By the same
token, the provider can lose a percentage
share if targets are not met. Through
these contractually agreed service level
agreements, companies can manage
the natural tension between these key
factors in order to cost-effectively reach
desired outcomes.
Such commitments demonstrate the ability
and willingness of an outsourcing partner
to share risks and rewards: they ensure
interests are clearly aligned and all parties
are fully committed to measurable gains.

Increased competitive agility

through fixed cost reduction and
focus on core differentiators
Meeting customer expectations
more quickly by using global talent
and capabilities
12

Conclusion
Customer service used to be something that
involved face-to-face interaction with a
customer. It was about smiling, empathizing
with customers, and going that extra step
to help resolve their problems. While these
basics still hold, the information revolution,
coupled with fundamentally changing
customer behavior, is transforming services
across industries.
We believe that six megatrends are defining the
transformation. Technologies are maturing to address
the always on customer. Contextual information is
underpinning individualized service experiences and
more sophisticated segmentation is driving differentiated
services for important customers. Scientific management
and analytics are reshaping service delivery by supporting
new levels of service-value chain efficiency. Finally, modular
approaches to the service chain will bring new expertise
and capability to bear and provide agility in service operations.
These service megatrends will likely have a profound impact
on the transformation of customer service as it increasingly
defines the competitive reality for global and local companies.
As we stated earlier, its easy to see that weve entered into a
new golden age for services, and it is likely that the changes
well see in the next five years in services will be greater
than the combined changes of the last twenty-five years.

13

14

References

About the Authors

About Accenture

Central Intelligence Agency. The World Fact

Book. GDP- Composition by sector. Web.
2
Accenture Research and Analysis on Auto
and IE companies
3
Xerox. 2012 Annual Report: Todays Xerox.
Xerox. Web.
4
Philips. 2012 Annual Report: Accelerate!
Progress in delivering our full potential.
Philips. Web.
5
Accenture Global Consumer Research 2012;
Accenture Service Strategy and Operations
Pulse Survey 2013
6
Hype Cycle for CRM Customer Service and
Support, 2012. Gartner

Robert Giacobbe is a Managing Director

for Accenture and is the global lead for
Accentures Service Strategy and Operations
practice. He works with clients in their
service chain, aftermarket business and
maintenance organization to help them
improve their operational and financial
results. He has extensive experience in
leading his clients through service business
transformation programs, from strategy
formulation to solution deployment.
Based in Atlanta, he can be reached at
robert.giacobbe@accenture.com

Accenture is a global management

consulting, technology services and
outsourcing company, with approximately
266,000 people serving clients in more
than 120 countries. Combining unparalleled
experience, comprehensive capabilities
across all industries and business functions,
and extensive research on the worlds
most successful companies, Accenture
collaborates with clients to help them
become high-performance businesses and
governments. The company generated
net revenues of US$27.9 billion for the
fiscal year ended Aug. 31, 2012. Its
home page is www.accenture.com.

Vivek Agarwal is a Manager in Accentures

Operations Consulting practice. He has
extensive industry & consulting experience
in supply chain and service operations areas
with some of the world largest companies
in High Tech, Industrial Equipment and
Energy industries. Vivek supports the global
Service Strategy & Operations practice
in the areas of new offerings, assets and
thought leadership development. Based
in New Delhi, India, he can be reached
at vivek.b.agarwal@accenture.com

Special Contribution
The authors would like to extend a special
note of thanks to Deepak Kumar Sinha
who helped in research, envisioning and
detailing the relevant trends for this study.
Deepak is a Manager in Accentures Global
Operations consulting practice. He has
wide experience across consulting and
industry in areas covering product life
cycle management, product development,
aftermarket services and manufacturing,
among others. Based in New Delhi, he can be
reached at deepak.k.sinha@accenture.com

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High Performance Delivered
are trademarks of Accenture.

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