Exploring overlaps and differences in service-dominant logic and design thinking

Design tradition takes the user as a starting point and focuses on his or her needs, wants and expectations. Recently, within the service marketing/management area, the user has been highlighted not only as “the king”, but as the only one to determine value. This new logic is termed Service Dominant Logic. Some of the key principles underlying Service Dominant Logic (SDL) and Design Thinking (DT) are strikingly similar. Even if the two concepts stem from different backgrounds, both are deeply concerned with the creation of value and the importance of understanding the users/customers. This similarity could be a fruitful ground for further intellectual discussion concerning the development of the service concept. This paper presents the characteristics of SDL to the design community and compares SDL with the central characteristics of DT. The aim of this paper is to explore possible connections and overlaps between SDL and DT. The paper suggests the connections to be complementary, and some practical implications of the use of SDL for design thinking and service design practice are proposed.

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