The Service Science Program concerns service-based systems and how they are designed, automated, analysed, optimised and predictive. It reflects significant waves of IT – service-oriented architecture, cloud computing, and the Industrial Internet of Things – in which systems are closely related to the concept of service. Examples are software-as-a-service, APIs, microservices, consumer services, service outsourcing and corporate shared services.
Service Science is multidisciplinary, drawing on information systems, computer science, data science and management. With the expansion of systems into cyberphsyical settings, it focusses on Industry 5.0 applications, seen in energy, advanced manufacturing, building and infrastructure, agrifood and logistics sectors. These applications support multiple organisations and communities collaborating through human, device and intelligent robot interactions. They leverage sensor technologies, edge computing, blockchain, data analytics and enterprise systems.
Service Science Themes
Service systems behaviour
The study of user perceptions, adoption and utilisation of systems given different contexts (e.g., personal and organisational), utilities (e.g., decision-making) and commitments (e.g., privacy and trust). This includes the influential role groups and peers play on individual users adopting systems in open settings - where factors such as privacy, trust and confidence are less certain compared to controlled settings.Service systems analysis and design
The analysis and design of systems and their business and operating models. This involves developing new design principles, hypotheses, patterns and simulation modelling for emerging digital capabilities featuring the integration of digital processing and physical interactions.Service systems engineering and automation
The design, execution, optimisation and predictions involved in running enterprise systems across edge and cloud computing tiers to support both real-time responses to sensor events and end-to-end, “back-office” processing.Service intelligence
Design and analysis of models and algorithms underpinning explainable predictive analytics, and development of robust and trustworthy AI-enabled predictive systems, in a wide range of application contexts including data-driven enterprise, digital twins, industrial IoT, and deployment of trustworthy and explainable Medical Diagnostic Systems.
Global leaders in the field
QUT is regarded as a pioneer of Service Science in which technical, management and behavioural studies are blended to meet complex, multi-disciplinary systems challenges. The Service Science Program has contributed to theoretical and industrial research seen through its projects funded through the Smart Service CRC, Building 4.0 CRC, Food Agility CRC, iMove CRC, several ARC Discovery and Linkage projects, Department of Human Services, Bank of Queensland, Queensland Government and others.
The Service Science Program is based in the Information Systems School, an area that received a ‘well above world standard’ ranking (5/5) in the 2018 Excellence in Research for Australia assessment. Members of the program have authored influential articles in Service Computing which, e.g., Service Interaction Patterns, and microservice patterns and extraction techniques applied to monolithic enterprise systems.
QUT is one of the very few universities offering a state-of-the art range of topic areas linked to service-based systems in its undergraduate and postgraduate IT courses, featuring: web application development, enterprise systems, enterprise IoT, blockchain, business intelligence and enterprise architecture.
We are part of QUT School of Information Systems.
Find out more: