The present volume illustrates a rich and promising research field in service, service systems sciences, by combining and fusing two strands of sciences: the science of service systems and systems sciences of service. The scale, complexity, and interdependence of today¿s service systems have been driven to an unprecedented level by globalization, demographic changes, and technology developments, so that it is absolutely necessary now for us to cultivate a new frontier of service research.
In response, service science has emerged during the past decade as a transdisciplinary research field that aims to clarify, analyze, and design the structure and process of service systems. Service science is strongly motivated to prove the science of service systems. To deal with complexity, interactions, and the network of, in, and among service systems, we need to take a more systemic view. Because systems sciences offers a way of thinking in relationships and interaction and theories and models to address complexity, it is legitimate to develop systems sciences of service by explicitly focusing on systemic properties of service and service systems.
As a volume of the Translational Systems Sciences series, this book emphasizes, in particular, a translational systems sciences perspective when the authors are approaching service, service systems, and service innovation. Indeed, the book employs systems sciences as a common framework or language not only to approach service in a holistic way but also to take a translational approach aiming to explain, analyze, design, and support service systems and their evolution.

Professor, Department of Value and decision Science, Tokyo Institute of Technology

Visiting Professor, Hull University Business School (HUBS), UK; School of Business Management, Bandung Institute of Technology, Indonesia

Specialization (part): Systems sciences, Decision systems sciences, Service systems sciences, Operational research/management science

Part I: Service Systems Research Perspectives Ch1 Social Value: A Service Science Perspective (Jim Spohrer, Haluk Demirkan and Kelly Lyons).- Ch2 Service Systems Science: Translational and Trans-disciplinary Approach to Service Systems (Kyoichi Kijima).- Ch3 Service artifacts as co-creation boundary objects in digital platforms (Anssi Smedlund and Ville Eloranta).- Ch4 Four Axiomatic Requirements for Service Systems Research (David Reynolds and Irene CL Ng).- Ch5 Social innovations? manifested in new services and in new system level interactions (Marja Toivonen).- Ch6 The Limitations of Logic and Science and Systemic Thinking? From the Science of Service Systems to the Art of Coexistence and Co-prosperity Systems (Takashi Maeno) Part II: Service Systems Practice Ch7 Canadian Governments' Reference Models Using Reference Models for Government Improvement (Roy Wiseman).- Ch8 What is 5S-KAIZEN: Asia-African Transnational and Translational Community of Practice in Value Co-creation of Health Services (Hiro Matsushita).- Ch9 Creating Information-based Customer Value with Service Systems in Retailing (Timo Rintamaki and Lasse Mitronen).- Ch10 Service R&D Program Design Aiming at Service Innovation (Yuriko Sawatani and Yuko Fujigaki).