How Servitization Enables—And Constrains—Sustainable Value Creation: An Empirical Analysis Among Manufacturing Firms

In recent years, manufacturing companies have been operating in an increasingly complex environment shaped by two concurrent drivers: the evolution of business models and the ecological transition. The diffusion of servitization and Product–Service Systems (PSS), has been accompanied by growing pressure to reduce environmental impacts throughout the entire product life cycle. The relationship between servitization and sustainability has attracted increasing attention in the literature, leading to the emergence of concepts such as sustainable servitization and sustainable PSS. While prior studies highlight the potential sustainability benefits of servitized business models, they also reveal ambiguities and inconsistent evidence, suggesting that servitization cannot be considered inherently sustainable. Building on this literature, this study explores how the barriers hindering the practical implementation of sustainable servitization manifest in practice through qualitative evidence from nine manufacturing companies characterized by different levels of servitization maturity. The findings identify key challenges faced by firms when integrating sustainability into PSS and highlight practices that can help address them. The study contributes to the literature by providing empirical insights into sustainable value creation in manufacturing and by identifying best practices that can support companies in advancing their sustainable servitization strategies.