Exploring SME perceptions of sustainable product service systems

This paper explores the perception of a group of Colombian small and medium enterprises (SMEs) towards sustainable product service systems (PSS) development. There is currently much interest in the area of PSS; however, studies of sustainable PSS involving SMEs are lacking. The purpose of this research was to identify those organizational aspects that can contribute to develop sustainable PSS in SMEs. Four main areas were explored: sustainable awareness, use of information and communication technologies (ICTs), design process, and business strategy. This study was carried out in cooperation with the Colombian Ministry of ICTs and highlights their desire to find new routes to encourage transformation of companies toward competitive and sustainable industrial sectors. A significant finding is that the integration between design process and ICTs appears to be a key mechanism in developing sustainable PSS in SMEs. Finally, further work in this field of research is discussed and highlighted.