Published on 27/01/2025
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Professor Ali Bigdelli
  • Professor Ali Bigdeli is a renowned expert in servitization and co-director of the Advanced Services Group at Aston University
  • He will explore how servitization is being adopted across diverse industries, from large multinationals like Goodyear offering tyre-as-a-service to SMEs supporting the NHS through disinfection-as-a-service during the COVID-19 pandemic
  • The event will take place at the Susan Cadbury Lecture Theatre in Aston Business School on Wednesday 12 February at 1800 hrs.

The transformative potential of servitization in reshaping traditional business models will be explored in a public lecture at Aston University on Wednesday 12 February at 1800 hrs.

Drawing on cutting-edge research and real-world examples, Professor Ali Bigdeli will explore how servitization is being adopted across diverse industries, from large multinationals like Goodyear offering tyre-as-a-service to SMEs supporting the NHS through disinfection-as-a-service during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Professor Bigdeli is a renowned expert in servitization and co-director of the Advanced Services Group at Aston University. His research focuses on the transformation of manufacturing firms through the adoption of advanced services and outcome-based business models.

He will also address the significant organisational, technological, and cultural changes required to embrace servitization, as well as the strategic trade-offs and external impacts often overlooked in existing research.

Professor Bigdeli said:

“In an era marked by economic challenges, environmental imperatives and rapid technological advancements, traditional product-centric business models are increasingly insufficient.

“To thrive sustainably, businesses must pivot towards understanding and delivering what customers truly value.

“Servitization, the transformation of industrial firms to compete through services rather than products alone, has emerged as a powerful strategy to create value beyond the factory gate.

“By offering products-as-a-service and generating recurring revenues tied to customer outcomes, servitization provides a pathway to enhanced customer intimacy, productivity and resource efficiency, delivering both economic and environmental benefits.”

The Power of Servitization: Redefining the Business Models of the Future! will take place at the Susan Cadbury Lecture Theatre in Aston Business School and will also be available to watch online.

This lecture is part of Aston University's inaugural lecture series, which provides professors the opportunity to showcase their research and achievements. All inaugural lectures are hybrid, allowing attendees to join on campus or online.

To book your place for this event, please visit Aston University's events page.

Notes to Editors

More about Advanced Services Group

The Advanced Services Group, founded in 2011 at Aston Business School, is the world’s primary research centre focused exclusively on the adoption of servitization and outcome-based business models. Its mission is to transform global manufacturers and technology innovators by developing models and frameworks that enable them to innovate and implement services-led strategies.

About Aston University

For over a century, Aston University’s enduring purpose has been to make our world a better place through education, research and innovation, by enabling our students to succeed in work and life, and by supporting our communities to thrive economically, socially and culturally.

Aston University’s history has been intertwined with the history of Birmingham, a remarkable city that once was the heartland of the Industrial Revolution and the manufacturing powerhouse of the world.

Born out of the First Industrial Revolution, Aston University has a proud and distinct heritage.

This year (2025) marks 130 years since the foundation of Birmingham Municipal Technical School. The institution contributed to the evolution of Aston University which received its Royal Charter in 1966. Aston University was named University of the Year for Student Success 2025 by the Daily Mail University Guide and in 2020 was named Guardian University of the Year.

Building on our outstanding past, we are now defining our place and role in the Fourth Industrial Revolution (and beyond) within a rapidly changing world.

For media inquiries in relation to this release, contact Sam Cook, Press and Communications Manager, on (+44) 7446 910063 or email: s.cook2@aston.ac.uk

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