Measuring service-dominant orientation (SDO): a firm-based approach

Purpose - For developing and testing service-dominant logic (SDL)-based midrange theories of marketing, the operationalization of SDL into the managerial concept of service-dominant orientation (SDO) and its measures is imperative. However, existing scales found in the literature are insufficient and incomplete. This study aims to develop and validate an alternative firm-based scale for measuring SDO. Design/methodology/approach - The established procedure for scale development was adopted which comprised three phases. First, a mix of qualitative study and literature deduction was applied to conceptualize and define SDO. Second, based on quantitative data (Study 1,N = 228 cases), scale development and refinement were undertaken. Finally, another data set (Study 2,N= 379 cases) was used to validate the scale. Findings - SDO is defined as a set of managerial principles that govern all marketing processes and activities of a firm at strategic and operational levels so that they conform to SDL tenets. It is a second-order construct comprising four dimensions: customer solution, customer interaction, customer co-creation and system-based orientation. The suggested scale consists of 15 reflective items in total. Originality/value - This SDO scale is viewed from and assessed by a firm’s strategic managers which covers all internal and external marketing aspects of the firm’s operation. It is different from a customer perspective or cultural perspective as used in the scales existing in the literature.