Servitization strategy adoption: evidence from Italian manufacturing firms

Purpose – Despite the widespread application and implementation of servitization strategy by manufacturing firms worldwide, little attention has been devoted to its adoption by European- Mediterranean countries, such as Italy. Thus, this paper aims to fill this gap by investigating if and how Italian manufacturing firms adopt servitization strategy. Design/methodology/approach – According to the paper’s aim, the survey methodology has been chose and a specific questionnaire has been constructed by adopting and adapting the questions used by Baines et al. in 2010. Key respondents were CEOs and General Managers of the manufacturing firms surveyed. Findings – Findings show the main features and determinants of the adoption of a servitization strategy by the manufacturing firms located in the Italian region of Lazio, determining both theoretical and practical implications. Research limitations/implications – This study is not exhaustive and presents some limitations. In particular, this paper investigates the manufacturing firms located exclusively in the Italian Lazio region. Thus, even though it is reasonable to believe that they can be considered as a representative sample of the Italian reality, the enrichment of the sample can provide useful further insights on the investigation of the Italian case. Originality/value – The paper examines the little-researched adoption of servitization by Italian manufacturing firms, contributing to the servitization research and providing evidence on its trends in a specific European-Mediterranean region