AbstractAlthough there has been increasing attention given to improving service productivity and quality, the focus has been spotty and fragmented, with the greatest emphasis in Europe. Productivity improvement is much more difficult to assess and promote in service industries than it is in manufacturing because of the lack of standards, targets, and measurable parameters, and the need to deal with service as viewed from the customer's perspective. New developments in service quality standards are helping to provide a standard base for improving service productivity.