Is a manufacturing mindset applicable to service industries? This paper defends the production-line approach to service operations, arguing that services can 'reindustrialize' by adopting revised, progressive manufacturing technologies. The authors challenge the conventional view that transferring manufacturing logic to service operations is undesirable. The research illustrates how successful service businesses like Taco Bell, Southwest Airlines, and Shouldice Hospital have effectively implemented 'lean' service, applying lean manufacturing principles to their operations. Services businesses such as Taco Bell, Southwest Airlines, and Shouldice Hospital have mastered what we call “lean” service ‐ the application of lean manufacturing principles to their own service operations. This perspective suggests that services, often innovation laggards compared to manufacturing, can benefit from a revised production-line approach. The authors highlight that mass customization represents a convergence of service and manufacturing logic, opening new avenues for innovation in the service sector.
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