The Application of a Service Ecosystems Lens to Public Policy Analysis and Design: Exploring the Frontiers

Abstract

The relevance of marketing for public policy has been questioned because its focus on dyadic exchanges does not consider the dynamism and complexity of public problems. Public service-dominant logic, as a new lens for public policy and management, does not address this limitation, because its focus remains on delivering services to the end user. Integrating recent developments in service-dominant logic and related research, this article proposes applying a service ecosystems lens to public policy. Five propositions guide the application of this lens to public policy analysis and design. Public policy is conceptualized as a means to enable service by coordinating multiple actors’ value cocreation activities to address public problems. Inherent in this conceptualization is the multilevel nature of policy analysis, which includes the users’ value creation process (micro level), the context (meso level), and the broader value constellation (macro level). Policy design, in turn, includes the identification and support of emergent solutions driven by different actors. Policy makers therefore need to consider problem–conditions–solution combinations across the value constellation and the effect of public interventions on these constellations. The article concludes by presenting policy makers with marketing and design practices that can assist in the analysis of service ecosystems and engage relevant stakeholders in change initiatives.