Servitization and business performance: the moderating effects of environmental uncertainty

Purpose: To obtain in-depth explanations of the effects of servitization, this paper aims to analyse the benefits and costs at different servitization levels. The authors also investigate the moderating roles of demand uncertainty and technological turbulence on such effects. Design/methodology/approach: The authors use the resource-based view (RBV) and transaction cost economics (TCE) to analyse the varying benefits and costs associated with servitization at its different levels and proposes the hypotheses. Then they use the survey data of 239 Chinese manufacturing firms to empirically test these hypotheses. Findings: The interplay among service benefits, adjustment costs and coordination costs results in a nonlinear relationship between servitization and business performance. A negative servitization–performance relationship is observed at low levels of servitization as adjustment costs would be dominant. At moderate servitization levels, a positive relationship is observed because service benefits increase substantially and outweigh the increase in adjustment and coordination costs. As servitization levels further increase, coordination costs become dominant and a negative servitization–performance relationship reappears. The study further shows the significant moderating role of demand uncertainty and the insignificant moderating role of technological turbulence. Research limitations/implications: This study provides a nuanced understanding of the curvilinear effects of servitization on business performance in response to the calls for detailed insights from quantitative studies. Practical implications: The findings provide guidance on the degree to which the manufacturing firm should extend its service businesses based on demand and technological environments. Originality/value: This is one of the pioneering empirical studies applying RBV and TCE to examine the varying benefits and costs across different servitization levels. The findings provide insight into the ongoing discussion about “service paradox” and “deservitization”.