Service providers are entities that provide services to other entities. Usually we think of service providers as a business that provides subscriptions or service to other businesses or individuals. A good example of a service is a Mobile phone operator such as T-Mobile.
It's important to think about yourself as a Service Provider, looking at things that feed into the approach to delivering better value. Making sure your customers understand value so they can touch it and feel it. Value is not hardware nor is it not software, it's just a perception. Customers need to get that warm fuzzy feeling, they need to be comfortable and content with the service they are getting.
What makes a service provider stand out from the others? Offering superior value to your customers is and always will be the bottom line. If your customers see value they see reliability and availability, and high levels of service. Service Strategy's goal is alignment, we'll beat on about this many times don't worry! When we talk about Strategy we imply an harmonious bubble, a condensed container of value. Being harmonious is pivotal to functioning in an effective and efficient manner.
Implementation comes first - do a good job in planning and understanding what we are building. Be sure to include what tools we need to bring in and buy along the way. It's the relationship between the business and also the service relationship. It's the cultural and emotional piece of trying to understand, aligning goals, the visions and the charter. Don't worry if you feel like you're alone - building relationships and breaking down the barriers to achieve success is always going to be a challenge but remember that it's an important one. So the key to strategy comes from; creating binding relationships, knowing what's meaningful to customers and understanding what am I supporting today.