Exploring cross-national differences in service innovation process and strategy in developing and developed nations

Purpose - Few research studies have been conducted to investigate the issue of new service development (NSD) across nations and geographical regions. To address this critique of the literature, the purpose of this paper is to conduct a comparative study of NSD process and strategy in a developed country, Australia and a developing country, India. Design/methodology/approach - The paper conducted surveys of 102 Australian firms and 97 Indian firms operating in the business-to-business financial services industry. Findings - The findings suggest that significant differences exist between the Australian and Indian firms. Service firms in both countries use different strategies to compete in the industry and emphasize different sets of development stages, in developing new services. Research limitations/implications - The analysis has been restricted to two countries: India and Australia. This suggests the need for further comparative studies of NSD in other cultures/countries. Practical implications The findings of this research validate the initial contention that NSD varies from country to country and thus there cannot be a "one-size-fits-all" approach to NSD. The insights from this study can help service managers from India, Australia and other countries to better understand and manage their NSD programs in a cross-national context. Originality/value - To the best of the author's knowledge, this research represents the first attempt to empirically test the similarities and differences in NSD practices of Australian and Indian firms.