ISS 2020 Vision Future of Service Management | Seite 68

Interviewed subject-matter experts support this notion, claiming:
Next to the empowerment of people, I think that common retail-like skills are very
important. Of course your employees will also need to be able to perform certain
technical skills, but these are things that can be learned by most people with the
right leadership. That’s a matter of training. If employees are able to communicate
well with the end-user, that is where you can have an impact and really make a
difference in service. So, the social and communication skills of your employee are
very important and will be even more so, in the future. 92
At the same time, service employees will also be increasingly expected to be comfortable
using different, more technologically advanced systems and digital tools. As the services
industry transitions to one that leverages more sophisticated technologies, employees will
“need to be able to manage this technology.” 93 This will be increasingly important for Service
Managers, along with their ability to build partnerships and anticipate change, as outlined
in figure 31.
Ability to build partnerships, network and collaborate
19%
Ability to anticipate and create change
16%
Ability to adapt technologies
16%
11%
Ability to think global, but act local
9%
Ability to drive innovation
Ability to embody organizational values and culture 8%
Ability to manage cross-cultural intelligence 8%
5%
Ability to create interpersonal relationships
Ability to share leadership responsibilities
Ability to drive profits
4%
3%
Figure 31: What are the most important skills future managers will be required to have in order to achieve
continued success? (Source: CIFS, ISS, IFMA, CoreNet Global Survey, 2016)
92 Van Der Weerd., ISS 2020 Vision: Future of Service Management, 2016.
93 Grönroos, C., ISS 2020 Vision: Future of Service Management, 2016.
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