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Brewing a service-identity: management controls in craft beer servitization

Julia Yonghua Wu (Department of Accounting and Information Systems, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand)
Chris Akroyd (Department of Accounting and Information Systems, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand)
Frederick Ng (Department of Accounting and Finance, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand)

Qualitative Research in Accounting & Management

ISSN: 1176-6093

Article publication date: 24 September 2024

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to examine the management controls that support (and fail to support) a craft brewery’s servitization journey from start-up, through growth, to maturity. It enriches our understanding of how management controls can facilitate the discovery of a service-identity that provides the foundation for servitization.

Design/methodology/approach

Drawing on in-depth interviews, fieldwork and secondary data analyses, this paper reports on a longitudinal case study of a craft brewery. The authors trace the case company’s servitization journey using a service-dominant logic theoretical perspective. This perspective focuses us on how the value of a product is cocreated with customers, rather than being created by the firm and then distributed.

Findings

The study found that many management controls emerged at the craft brewery from start-up to maturity. Some management controls supported a goods logic, while others supported a service logic. The findings highlight how people and cultural controls in particular enabled the company to move toward a service logic focused on servitization. These management controls informed the evolution of offerings, structure reconfiguration and resources at the craft brewery necessary to support servitization.

Originality/value

Studying a craft brewery contributes an alternative type of manufacturing context and shows how service-identity features such as craftiness, collectiveness, neolocalism and innovation affect a company’s servitization journey.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank everyone at Siris who was extremely generous with their time and supported this research project. The authors also express their appreciation to participants at the 2023 AFAANZ Conference for their comments and suggestions. Finally, the authors would like to thank the Special Issue Editors Professor Lino Cinquini and Professor Andrea Tenucci as well as the anonymous reviewers for their constructive feedback, guidance and support. The review process and your comments have helped to substantially improve the paper.

Citation

Wu, J.Y., Akroyd, C. and Ng, F. (2024), "Brewing a service-identity: management controls in craft beer servitization", Qualitative Research in Accounting & Management, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/QRAM-10-2022-0172

Publisher

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Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2024, Emerald Publishing Limited

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