Introduction Are services millennium-proof? Certainly not. At least not at this moment. There is no thorough research needed to derive that conclusion, simply ask around. The eviΒ dence is overwhelming. True horror stories exist of all types of services in all types of sectors. It is even becoming a business in itself. Television shows that are based on customer complaints about services are becoming more and more popular. As is the case in the millennium problem, management of service companies experiences a lot of problems in the hardware and the software of services. There are still probΒ lems in defining and developing the service, and problems in creating, realizing and managing weil defined services. Is there than no progress at all? We believe there iso The enormous attention for services has its advantages as weil. In various places innovations are realized, and what is more important are linked to theory. Only in this way learning becomes posΒ sible. Eventually innovative practice will reflect in the development of theory, and in turn good practice will be based on solid theory. This series tries to support this proΒ cess by presenting a number of innovative practices, and examples of testing theory in service quality marketing and management.
