Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to delineate a research agenda to guide future service research investigating the digital transformation of financial service systems through Fintech – disruptive innovations by new market entrants that challenge the position of mainstream financial institutions.Design/methodology/approach: Rooted in the philosophical foundations of “use-inspired research,” this paper addresses the managerially and societally relevant phenomenon of Fintech by identifying, and responding to, the individual challenges and problems associated with the digital transformation of financial services. This is accomplished through a computational text-mining approach to analyze the corpus of 1,545 published practitioner articles associated with Fintech, identification of managerial challenges therein and subsequent delineation of a novel research agenda.Findings: By connecting managerial challenges relating to Fintech with the service literature, this paper develops a use-inspired research agenda that provides scholarly and managerially relevant research directions (RDs). These pertain to the complexity of digital financial service systems (micro level), orchestration of value co-creation with Fintech (meso level), and the development of elastic infrastructures, models and markets (macro level).Research limitations/implications: Fintech is an emerging phenomenon associated with the digital transformation of financial services. However, actual guidelines on how service research related to Fintech could be advanced from a theoretically as well as managerially relevant angle are unavailable to date. Here, the authors address this challenge and provide the field with 18 tangible RDs to advance service theory and practice.Practical implications: The purpose of this paper is to guide future academic research addressing managerial challenges associated with Fintech and the digital transformation of financial service. Due to the explicit use-inspired nature of the work, the future research stemming from the agenda that the authors put forward here will be of benefit to decision makers and society more broadly.Originality/value: This empirical research contributes to the discourse regarding the role of information and communication technologies in service in general, and the digital transformation on financial services in particular. The in-depth computational text-mining analysis is unbiased, replicable and provides the foundation for a use-inspired research agenda that is subsequently delineated.

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to provide clues to industry and academia on how best to approach the challenge of developing a sustainable supply chain. Design/methodology/approach – A case study was undertaken of the Westpac Banking Corporation – one of the world's most socially responsible banks – to examine how they approached the challenge of managing corporate social responsibility (CSR) in their supply chain. Findings – This paper highlights some of the challenges and opportunities associated with extending corporate governance beyond the firm boundary. Specific attention is given to a discussion of assessment and governance tools. Research limitations/implications – The use of a single case study limits the generalizability of these findings. Future research can build on these findings by extending the scope to include additional firms, regions and methods. Practical implications – A best practice model is developed from the discussion to provide practical guidance to firms. Originality/value – While the extension of CSR to the supply chain is an emerging area of interest, the literature provides few clues on how best to pursue sustainable supply chain management. This paper provides a valuable and timely contribution to this topic by reviewing the lessons and practices of a recognised CSR leader.

The onset of Internet marketing is revolutionising marketing practice. Although growth in sales of goods and services online has been dramatic, very little research has addressed the factors that lead to the delivery of superior service and the creation of effective marketing relationships. This paper explores and defines two related constructs – service quality and relationship quality – to ascertain whether consumers can meaningfully distinguish between the constructs. The research uses focus groups and an online survey to address this issue. The paper finds that, although service quality and relationship quality are distinct constructs, they overlap in the area of personal interaction and problem solving. The key drivers for the delivery of superior service and the creation of an effective relationship are reliability and trust emanating from service quality and relationship quality respectively.

Purpose: In providing a fine-grained analysis of public service management, the purpose of this paper is to make an important contribution to furthering research in service management, a body of literature that has tended to regard public services as homogenous or to neglect the context altogether.Design/methodology/approach: Integrating public management and service management literatures, the past and present of public service management are discussed. Future directions for the field are outlined drawing on a service-dominant approach that has the potential to transform public services. Invited commentaries augment the review.Findings: The review presents the Public Service Network Framework to capture the public value network in its abstraction and conceptualizes how value is created in public services. The study identifies current shortcomings in the field and offers a series of directions for future research where service management theory can contribute greatly.Research limitations/implications: The review encourages service management research to examine the dynamic, diverse, and complex nature of public services and to recognize the importance of this context. The review calls for an interdisciplinary public service management community to develop, and to assist public managers in leveraging service logic.Originality/value: The review positions service research in the public sector, makes explicit the role of complex networks in value creation, argues for wider engagement with public service management, and offers future research directions to advance public service management research.