Reframing Customer Value through Lifecycle Responsibility in Circular Product-Service Systems

DOI

10.2991/978-94-6239-787-3_13How to use a DOI?

Keywords

circular Product-Service Systems; lifecycle responsibility; value transformation; sustainability

Abstract

This study examines how lifecycle responsibility within circular Product-Service Systems (PSS) reshapes customer value. Existing research has paid limited attention to the role of lifecycle responsibility in shaping customer value perception. To address this gap, the study develops a conceptual framework that positions lifecycle responsibility as the key mechanism linking circular PSS to changes in customer value. Drawing on a comparative analysis of Philips Lighting and Hilti, the findings show that customer value is not directly transformed by adopting PSS models but emerges through the extent to which firms assume responsibility across the product lifecycle. As firms extend their role into maintenance, optimisation, and end-of-life management, value shifts from product ownership to continuous service. This results in a more multidimensional form of value, including improved performance reliability, more predictable costs, stronger customer relationships, and enhanced sustainability outcomes. Despite differences in industry context and service structure, both cases reveal a consistent pattern in which the redistribution of responsibility underpins value transformation. This study contributes by identifying lifecycle responsibility as a central mechanism of value creation in circular business models and by integrating insights from servitization and customer value theory. It further shows that sustainability objectives and customer value creation can be jointly advanced through lifecycle responsibility.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Xiaofei Zhang
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/29
TI  - Reframing Customer Value through Lifecycle Responsibility in Circular Product-Service Systems
BT  - Proceedings of the 2026 4th International Conference on Management Innovation and Economy Development (MIED 2026)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 100
EP  - 111
SN  - 2352-5428
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6239-787-3_13
DO  - 10.2991/978-94-6239-787-3_13
ID  - Zhang2026
ER  -