A vigorous approach to customer service

PPG Industries, Inc. is the world's largest supplier of automotive original coatings. Its business-to-business customers require individualized service based on specific requirements. The company has solidified these relationships by establishing satellite supply facilities, applying the quality process to problem solving, and providing a variety of outlets for customer feedback.     

A latent structure factor analytic approach for customer satisfaction measurement

The linkage of customer satisfaction, customer retention, and firm profitability has been well established in the marketing literature, and provides ample justification as to why customer satisfaction measurement (CSM) has been a focal point in marketing decision making. Although aggregate market level research on understanding the determinants of customer satisfaction is abundant, CSM decisions at segment level are possible only if the individual or market segment differences in the formation of overall satisfaction judgments and subsequent heterogeneity in the role these various determinants play are understood. Based on expectancy-disconfirmation theory in customer satisfaction, we propose a maximum likelihood based latent structure factor analytic methodology which visually depicts customer heterogeneity regarding the various major determinants of customer satisfaction judgments involving multiple attributes, and provides directions for segment-specific CSM decisions. We first describe the proposed model framework including the technical aspects of the model structure and subsequent maximum likelihood estimation. In an application to a consumer trade show, we then demonstrate how our proposed methodology can be gainfully employed to uncover the nature of such heterogeneity. We also empirically demonstrate the superiority of the proposed model over a number of different model specifications in this application. Finally, limitations and directions for future research are discussed.     

FMEA-based portfolio approach to service productivity improvement

The conceptual approach has contributed significantly to service productivity, but it should be complemented by practical deliverable methods. This paper proposes a systematic framework for improving service productivity by employing the failure mode and effect analysis-based portfolio approach. By structuring and decomposing a service into a set of sub-processes, failure and innovation modes are identified and evaluated using different constituents, such as the severity and occurrence of failure mode, and the impacts and feasibilities of innovation modes. Innovation and failure portfolios are constructed, clarifying the values of opportunities. To illustrate the function of the proposed approach, hospital service is used as an example.     

Using fuzzy analytic hierarchy process to evaluate service performance of a travel intermediary

This study applies a fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (AHP) to evaluate service performance of a foreign travel intermediary (destination tour operator, DTO) through the host travel agency's vision. Service performance is a composite of various attributes, including many intangible attributes difficult to measure. Therefore, the present research adopts an AHP method and further integrates a fuzzy set theory into the service performance measurement to overcome the problem. This work collected evaluation criteria from 36 senior travel managers’ opinions, using the critical incident technique, and 56 general managers from different travel agencies to weight and rank the overall criteria by applying fuzzy AHP. Research results could help DTOs increase service performance and quality, and provide Asian travel agencies with objective standards to evaluate the most suitable business cooperators.     

Psychological comfort in service relationships: A mixed-method approach

Psychological comfort reflects the customer's peace of mind and a sense of ease during a service encounter that helps in maintaining strong relationships. However, the role of psychological comfort (PC) in retail service relationships is not fully explored. To fill this research gap, this study presents a unique conceptual model grounded in the stimulus organism response (S–O-R) framework to empirically explore the stimulating effect of customer experience on psychological comfort (PC), which influences relationships quality and customer retention as the response. To evaluate the model a quantitative survey was administered on 432 bank customers followed by in depth interviews of 10 bank employees. It was found that customer experience stimulates customer's PC that leads to relationship quality and retention as the response. It was also found that relationship duration influences the customer experience-PC relationship. The theoretical and managerial implications of the findings are discussed.     

An approach to prioritize customer-based,cost-effective service enhancements

Service firms routinely enhance their offerings to satisfy and retain current customers and to attract new customers. We show theoretically that service improvements can be prioritized by simultaneously taking into account the likely incremental revenue (through increased customer value) and the incremental cost of making the improvement. The customer values obtained from a sample of respondents, and cost estimates obtained from managers of the service providing organization are combined to prioritize improvements using a ‘bang for the buck’ (i.e. value/cost) rule. Such a prioritization would be helpful to come up with a ‘short list’ of service improvements. The items on the short list can be evaluated in detail for their ‘Return on Quality’. The approach for prioritization is illustrated in the context of improving passenger train service between a pair of cities in India. An adaptive self-explicated approach is used for obtaining customer values and cost estimates. The customer values so elicited display substantial cross-validity.     

Entrepreneurial applications of the lean approach to service industries

Service industries have grown significantly in recent years, especially in the advanced economies. The applicability of the Toyota system for manufacturing excellence to other industries has been widely studied. This paper seeks to contribute to this growing body of research by exploring the applications of the Toyota approach, particularly the lean system in the service sector. The paper examines the information systems that have enabled benefit in the service industries, to include vendor-managed inventory systems and variants, and then compares the benefits from information systems in support of supply chains. We also review why enterprise systems provide more opportunities in aiding the implementation of the lean systems. We present a case study of a South Korean supply chain system to demonstrate the entrepreneurial application of such approaches.     

A theatrical perspective on service performance evaluation: The customer-critic approach

Abstract

In this article, the customer-critic approach is presented as a complementary approach to existing service performance evaluation. It is based on methods, derived originally by Patrice Pavis, that have a distinguished pedigree in the evaluation of theatrical performances. An adaptation of Pavis's evaluation framework is illustrated in the context of a restaurant service performance. A focus on the work of Pavis directs attention to the mise-en-scène or metatext of a performance as a vehicle for consumer analysis, and explicitly acknowledges the value of nurturing and enhancing the critical capacity of an audience. Although an audience should be made aware of the main components of a performance, most importantly they should be encouraged to take a holistic, rather than fragmented, view of what is being presented. In addition, unlike other research approaches, the customer-critic process involves customers before, during, and after the performance, and builds in the opportunity for both reporting and reconstruction. It is an approach to data collection and analysis more closely aligned to the Service-Dominant Logic of marketing than methods currently adopted by service managers, recognising consumers as operant resources and the ‘value in use’ of the performance from a consumer experience perspective.     

A service innovation framework for start-up firms by integrating service experience engineering approach and capability maturity model

The service sector contributes more than 70 % to the GDP of many countries in which their services should continually be innovated to improve customer satisfaction. This study reviews the literature from 1995 to 2014 in the field of service innovation, service experience and engineering, and maturity model. Results show that the existing service innovation frameworks lack a focus on business process improvement, particularly for start-up firms. It causes the startups not ready enough to deal with inevitable challenges that may be encountered in the future. Accordingly, this study proposes a novel framework that combines the service experience engineering method and capability maturity model of integration for service to develop a new innovative service and improve service quality process for start-up firms. A practical case is implemented by applying the proposed framework. A service innovation prototype system is developed on the basis of the case study to deliver a mobile campus merchandise purchasing service.     

A Stackelberg game-based approach for interactions among Internet service providers and content providers

NETNOMICS: Economic Research and Electronic Networking - This paper studies non-neutral market share where Internet service providers (ISPs) charge content providers (CPs) for the content delivery....     

A network approach to strategy

The task of environmental analysis has a key role to play in formulating strategy and the strategic management process. How the process should be organised, however, depends largely on the theoretical perspective applied to both the nature of the business environment, and a corresponding understanding of strategic action within that environment. The objective of this paper is to develop a strategic analysis framework which incorporates the theoretical propositions in the markets-as-network model. The Swiss energy industry is used to provide the context to illustrate the framework's application. Finally we examine what it contributes to moving the markets-as-network model towards the explanatory level of inquiry.     

A four-step approach to 1992

Here's a four-step process to help you analyze both the opportunities and potential hazards of 1992. Even if you've already made your plans, it's a way to make sure you've considered all the implications of a Single Europe.     

A Buddhist approach to consumption

ABSTRACT

Typically we think of consumption in terms of material objects however consumption can be understood on many levels. In the vijananavada or Mind Only school of Buddhist Psychology, which underpins much of the currently popular practice of ‘mindfulness’, consumption is considered within a much broader framework of material objects, sensory input, motivation – as well as consciousness itself. Once a basic understanding of these four aspects of consumption is achieved, we begin to notice how we nurture certain states of being within ourselves and others and become cognizant of the capacity to be able to selectively choose what to nurture. This understanding is then a concrete and transformative mindfulness method.     

A generalization of the Barone‐Adesi and Whaley approach for the analytic approximation of American options

This article introduces a general quadratic approximation scheme for pricing American options based on stochastic volatility and double jump processes. This quadratic approximation scheme is a generalization of the Barone‐Adesi and Whaley approach and nests several option models. Numerical results show that this quadratic approximation scheme is efficient and useful in pricing American options. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Jrl Fut Mark 29:478–493, 2009     

A membership pricing policy to facilitate service scale-expansion

This paper proposes a multi-year membership pricing policy for a service business like a gym chain. In the pricing policy, the equivalent membership price per year is relatively low to attract customers, and the multi-year membership fees must be prepaid in full. The prepaid cash provides resources for scale-expansion by opening new stores. We develop a nonlinear mixed integer programming model to formulate the pricing decisions. Numerical experiments reveal that the multi-year membership pricing policy, from a long-term perspective, is substantially better than the business-as-usual pricing policy (1-year membership) in cash balance, profit, and market share. Yet, the performances of the two pricing policies do not differ much from a short-term perspective. These findings indicate that the multi-year pricing policy may be a good strategy, because it initially attracts less attention of competitors; suddenly it emerges and substantially outperforms its competitors in cash balance, profit, and market share.     

A systems approach to business intelligence

As one company found to its cost, there's more to business intelligence than the mere accumulation of data. Here's how one firm went about converting raw data to useful intelligence by setting targets and priorities and developing procedures for the evaluation, storage, and dissemination of information.