Two faces of the same coin: how the interplay between organizational and territorial culture builds the concept of service culture

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the interplay of organizational and territorial culture, considering the two constructs together, and understanding how they shape different typologies of service culture. A theory building logic is followed and a grounded theory approach based on qualitative inquiry is adopted, drawing from in-depth interviews and using case vignettes to identify different service culture typologies. Findings show that a firm’s organizational culture leverages on the territorial culture of origin (of the company itself) and of destination (where the company is going to provide its services) in three different ways, which represent different typologies of service culture: a roots-based, an integrative and an adaptive service culture. Results are also relevant for service managers, for better understanding and formalizing their own service culture, and to develop future strategies, for entering new countries or approaching different cultural contexts