Lean Service Examples: Aggregate Services

The sixth principle in Lean Services allows us to demonstrate a lean service examples (or Lean for Service Operations is¹: Continually aggregate solutions to reduce the customer’s time and hassle.

Because consumers and customers are utilizing services from more and more service providers, why can’t service providers aggregate their services to the benefit of the customer? This question rests on the principle that reducing wait time and hassle for the customer is a good thing. Womack and Jones then make this point:

For example, why can’t a single provider solve your computation and communication problems by evaluating your specific needs and then determining the best equipment, software, and services?

The provider could then obtain, install, maintain, upgrade, and replace the required items for a standard fee, with no unpaid work or hassle for you. And why can’t another solution provider put the vehicles in your driveway, then maintain, repair, and dispose of them as appropriate, for a simple usage fee, without consuming any of your time or attention?

While the Lean for Service Operations mindset has not been widely adopted, it’s easy to see the innovations that can come from this type of thinking.

In the next post and final post, I’ll summarize and show a Before and After Case Study of Lean for Service Operations.

the principles of Lean for Service Operations are: Solve the customer’s problem completely by insuring that all the goods and services work, and work together, Don’t waste the customer’s time, Provide exactly what the customer wants, Provide what’s wanted exactly where it’s wanted, Provide what’s wanted where it’s wanted exactly when it’s wanted, Continually aggregate solutions to reduce the customer’s time and hassle. ↩