Innovation of product‐related services

This paper aims to answer the following two research questions: “What antecedents are required for the innovation of product‐related services?” and “How do the antecedents differ for product‐related services developed during the product development process or during the product usage?”

A multi‐case research design was employed.

Involvement of frontline employees, information sharing, multifunctional teams, funnel tools, information technology, internal organization, and training and education have a similar impact on the success of integrated and separated service innovations. Presence of service champion, autonomy of employees, market testing, and market research have a positive effect on separated, but a negative impact on integrated service innovations. The strategic focus, external contacts, availability of resources, and management support are positively associated with both innovation types, but their importance is essentially higher for separated than for integrated product‐related service innovations.

The external validity (generalizability) of the antecedents could not be assessed accurately.

The explanation of antecedents forms a model that can guide managers who wish to develop product‐related services successfully.

The findings imply that managers contemplating a product‐related service innovation project have to consider the innovation type (integrated or separated) and reframe the antecedents accordingly.