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This classic work chronicles how New York, London, and Tokyo became command centers for the global economy and in the process underwent a series of massive and parallel changes. What distinguishes Sassen's theoretical framework is the emphasis on the formation of cross-border dynamics through which these cities and the growing number of other global cities begin to form strategic transnational networks. All the core data in this new edition have been updated, while the preface and epilogue discuss the relevant trends in globalization since the book originally came out in 1991.

Background Self-regulation of payment disclosure by pharmaceutical industry trade groups is a major global approach to increasing transparency of financial relationships between drug companies and healthcare professionals and organisations. Nevertheless, little is known about the relative strengths and weaknesses of self-regulation across countries, especially beyond Europe. To address this gap in research and stimulate international policy learning, we compare the UK and Japan, the likely strongest cases of self-regulation of payment disclosure in Europe and Asia, across three dimensions of transparency: disclosure rules, practices, and data. Results The UK and Japanese self-regulation of payment disclosure had shared as well unique strengths and weaknesses. The UK and Japanese pharmaceutical industry trade groups declared transparency as the primary goal of payment disclosure, without, however, explaining the link between the two. The rules of payment disclosure in each country provided more insight into some payments but not others. Both trade groups did not reveal the recipients of certain payments by default, and the UK trade group also made the disclosure of some payments conditional on recipient consent. Drug company disclosure practices were more transparent in the UK, allowing for greater availability and accessibility of payment data and insight into underreporting or misreporting of payments by companies. Nevertheless, the share of payments made to named recipients was three times higher in Japan than in the UK, indicating higher transparency of disclosure data. Conclusions The UK and Japan performed differently across the three dimensions of transparency, suggesting that any comprehensive analysis of self-regulation of payment disclosure must triangulate analysis of disclosure rules, practices, and data. We found limited evidence to support key claims regarding the strengths of self-regulation, while often finding it inferior to public regulation of payment disclosure. We suggest how the self-regulation of payment disclosure in each country can be enhanced and, in the long run, replaced by public regulation to strengthen the industry’s accountability to the public.

The present economy is not sustainable with regard to its per capita material consumption. A dematerialization of the economy of industrialized countries can be achieved by a change in course, from an industrial economy built on throughput to a circular economy built on stock optimization, decoupling wealth and welfare from resource consumption while creating more work. The business models of a circular economy have been known since the mid-1970s and are now applied in a number of industrial sectors. This paper argues that a simple and convincing lever could accelerate the shift to a circular economy, and that this lever is the shift to a tax system based on the principles of sustainability: not taxing renewable resources including human labour-work-but taxing non-renewable resources instead is a powerful lever. Taxing materials and energies will promote low-carbon and low-resource solutions and a move towards a 'circular' regional economy as opposed to the 'linear' global economy requiring fuel-based transport for goods throughput. In addition to substantial improvements in material and energy efficiency, regional job creation and national greenhouse gas emission reductions, such a change will foster all activities based on 'caring', such as maintaining cultural heritage and natural wealth, health services, knowledge and know-how.

Purpose This study develops the idea of smart retailing, exemplified in innovative, technology-enriched retail services as part of service-oriented strategies. In particular, the purpose of this paper is to provide a new integrated framework to understand the emerging retail scenario based on the smart usage of technologies to improve retail service and develop innovation management strategies. This framework will provide a comprehensive understanding the basic forms of smart retailing as the current competitive scenario. Design/methodology/approach As a viewpoint, this paper employs an interdisciplinary approach, drawing upon the actual challenges in retailing, to propose a new perspective, the smart retailing one, to describe the new competitive scenario and formulates an emerging research agenda. Findings The present paper contributes to research on innovation and technology management for retailing by examining the key dimensions of smart retailing, which aims to enhancing retail service quality and retailers’ performance. Originality/value The paper clearly explains how current retailing is moving to a smart perspective, and how retail management should be adapted to successfully perform in the current service-dominant logic scenario, as consequence of the increasing consumer involvement in service co-production and the rapid growth of digital technologies.

Purpose This study aims to provide a taxonomy of relational benefits that drive customer loyalty in sharing-economy services, assess the relative strengths of these relational benefits in influencing customer loyalty and examine whether commitment mediates the influence of relational benefits on customer loyalty in this context. Design/methodology/approach Relational benefits of sharing-economy services were explored through a focus group interview, followed by an online survey completed by 440 respondents in China. Structural equation modeling was used to test the hypotheses. Findings This study shows that confidence and social benefits have significant and positive effects on commitment in sharing-economy services. In addition, safety benefits, a new type of relational benefits, also significantly affect commitment in this context. Furthermore, the findings suggest that commitment acts as a mediator between confidence, social and safety benefits and customer loyalty. Special treatment benefits had no effect on commitment and loyalty in the sharing-economy context. Practical implications This paper provides sharing-economy service providers with insight on how to better create and sustain loyal relationships with customers through the provision of relational benefits. Originality/value This study offers initial insight into why customers would stay in peer-to-peer relationships in the sharing economy, and suggests how to strengthen relationships between customers and peer service providers.

The nature of marketing science is changing in a systematic, predictable, and irrevocable way. As information technology enables ubiquitous customer communication and big customer data, the fundamental nature of the firm's connection to the customer changes: better, more personalized service can be offered, from which service relationships are deepened, and consequently, more profitable customers grow the influence of service within the goods sector and expand the service sector in the economy. Marketing is becoming more personalized, and marketing science techniques that exploit customer heterogeneity are becoming more important. Information technology improvements also guarantee the increasing importance and usage of computationally intensive data processing and \"big data.\" Most importantly, these trends have already lasted for more than a century, and they will become even more pronounced in the coming years as a result of the monotonic nature of technology improvement. These changes imply a transformation of marketing science in both the topics to be emphasized and the methods to be employed. Increasingly, and inevitably, all of marketing will come to resemble to a greater degree the formerly specialized area of service marketing, only with an increased emphasis on marketing analytics.

This paper analyzes the role of specialized high-skilled labor in the disproportionate growth of the service sector. Empirically, the importance of skill-intensive services has risen during a period of increasing relative wages and quantities of high-skilled labor. We develop a theory in which demand shifts toward more skill-intensive output as productivity rises, increasing the importance of market services relative to home production. Consistent with the data, the theory predicts a rising level of skill, skill premium, and relative price of services that is linked to this skill premium.

The rise in the service economy has been fueled by breakthroughs in technology, globalization, and evolving consumer patterns. However, this sector faces various challenges, such as issues related to service quality, innovation, efficiency, and sustainability, as well as macro-level challenges such as globalization, geopolitical risks, failures of financial institutions, technological disruptions, climate change, demographic shifts, and regulatory changes. The impacts of these challenges on society and the economy can be both significant and unpredictable, potentially endangering sustainability. Therefore, it is crucial to comprehensively study services and service economies at both holistic and local levels. To this end, the objective of this study is to develop and validate an artificial-intelligence-based methodology to gain a comprehensive understanding of the service sector by identifying key parameters from the academic literature and public opinion. This methodology aims to provide in-depth insights into the creation of smarter, more sustainable services and economies, ultimately contributing to the development of sustainable future societies. A software tool is developed that employs a data-driven approach involving the use of word embeddings, dimensionality reduction, clustering, and word importance. A large dataset comprising 175 K research articles was created from the Scopus database, and after analysis, 29 distinct parameters related to the service sector were identified and grouped into 6 macro-parameters: smart society and infrastructure, digital transformation, service lifecycle management, and others. The analysis of over 112 K tweets collected from Saudi Arabia identified 11 parameters categorized into 2 macro-parameters: private sector services and government services. The software tool was used to generate a knowledge structure, taxonomy, and framework for the service sector, in addition to a detailed literature review based on over 300 research articles. The conclusions highlight the significant theoretical and practical implications of the presented study for autonomous capabilities in systems, which can contribute to the development of sustainable, responsible, and smarter economies and societies.

Purpose This study aims to assess the current state of service research in Africa, with the goal of identifying key areas for improvement. By examining both existing and emerging studies conducted by African researchers and those focused on Africa, the study seeks to advance research efforts that will benefit Africa’s service sector and its researchers. Design/methodology/approach This research combines a literature review of articles published in leading service journals by African-affiliated researchers with a qualitative study among African researchers conducting service research. Findings The findings highlight the micro-, meso- and macro-level implications for service research in Africa. The research develops a thoughtful reflection on service research and practice in Africa, considering both the unique challenges and opportunities of conducting service research in Africa, and offering insights for growth and development in the field. Research limitations/implications The focus was only on service research from the African perspective. This research has implications for how African-affiliated researchers can enhance their contributions to global service research, as well as how scholars worldwide can conduct service research within the African context. Practical implications This study highlights how advancing service research in Africa can drive economic and social growth and identify actionable pathways for sustainable development. By focusing on the contributions of African researchers, the study provides insights that can inform policy, industry practices and educational institutions and that are tailored to the region’s unique service landscape. Social implications The research highlights the importance of contextual grounding, inclusive collaboration and knowledge translation to deepen the understanding of localized challenges and solutions. Originality/value This article stands out by showcasing the distinctive perspectives of African scholars in service research, an area often underrepresented globally. It underscores the value of indigenous research in enhancing our understanding of Africa’s service economy and positions these insights as essential to advancing both local and global service research agendas.

Product Service Systems (PSS) and Smart Services are powerful means for deploying Circular Economy (CE) goals in industrial practices, through dematerialization, extension of product lifetime and efficiency increase by digitization. Within this article, approaches from PSS design, Smart Service design and Model-based Systems Engineering (MBSE) are combined to form a Methodology for Smart Service Architecture Definition (MESSIAH). First, analyses of present system modelling procedures and systems modelling notations in terms of their suitability for Smart Service development are presented. The results indicate that current notations and tools do not entirely fit the requirements of Smart Service development, but that they can be adapted in order to do so. The developed methodology includes a modelling language system, the MESSIAH Blueprinting framework, a systematic procedure and MESSIAH CE, which is specifically designed for addressing CE strategies and practices. The methodology was validated on the example of a Smart Sustainable Street Light System for Cycling Security (SHEILA). MESSIAH proved useful to help Smart Service design teams develop service-driven and robust Smart Services. By applying MESSIAH CE, a sustainable Smart Service, which addresses CE goals, has been developed.