CHAPTER 12:

CUSTOMERS’ ROLES IN SERVICE DELIVERY

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

6. Discuss the customer’s role as a productive resource for the firm. Describe a time when you
played this role. What did you do and how did you feel? Did the firm help you to perform your role
effectively? How?

In serving as productive resources, customers can be viewed as “partial employees” of the organization
They contribute time, effort, information, and other resources to facilitate delivery of the service. When
customers perform effectively as productive resources, their labors can cut costs for the organization
which may be passed on in the form of lower prices for customers. Total self-service is the extreme case
of using customers as productive resources.

Last year I played the role of an employer as a productive resource for a hospital. My mom was admitted
into a hospital. Doctor said that she need to stay on there for that night, she needed 24 hour
supervision. So, I decided to stay on that night with her. I didn’t sleep on that night sitting beside her
bed and provided what she needed in the midst of that night, This time I played the role of a nurse
there. Doctor on duty permitted me to do so as its natural for daughter to be more concern about
taking care of her mom than any other people even the nurses!

7. Discuss the customer’s role as a contributor to service quality and satisfaction. Describe a time when
you played this role. What did you do and how did you feel? Did the firm help you to perform your
role effectively? How?

Customer in many situations may play the role as a contributor to service quality and satisfaction. Last
month I did this type of performance. I went to a restaurant early for having coffee, as I was early there I
had to wait some time there. The restaurant had a musical coffee shop attached to it. I went there and
found pleasure for my time passing there in a musical world. Thus I made myself satisfied. Oh, one thing
the coffee was awesome and it was beyond my expectation.

8. Discuss the customer’s role as a potential competitor. Describe a time when you chose to provide a
service for yourself rather than pay someone to provide the service for you. Why did you decide to
 perform the service yourself? What could have changed your mind, causing you to contract with
someone else to provide the service?

In some situations customer may become the competitor of a service firm because of availability of
information, efficiency or other things needed to have the service to be done.

Last month I decided to go for a travel to Sylhet for tour with some of my friends. I talked to a tour
agency which provides tour packages to customers. But one of my friends informed me that as I have
my own car I can visit there without the help of tour agency and he gave me a tour booklet in which all
directions and information were available. So I changed my decision to go with that travel agency and
we made that tour successful ourselves.