Although they probably know better, many executives still think of the service sector in terms of people making hamburgers or shining shoes. These images belie the complexity, power, technical sophistication, and economic value of activities that now account for more than 68% of the nation’s GNP and 71% of its employment. Worse, they help perpetuate a set of myths about service industries that lead managers and policymakers to ignore their full potential. Worse still, such inattention and complacency threaten to undermine the competitive ability of these industries at a time when their importance to the national economy has never been greater.
A version of this article appeared in the November 1986 issue of Harvard Business Review.
