Employee’s Role in Service

Delivery
 Employees’ Roles
in Service Delivery
• The Critical Importance of Service Employees
• Boundary Spanning Roles
• Strategies for Closing Gap 3
 Provider GAP 3

CUSTOMER

Service Delivery
COMPANY
GAP 3
Customer-Driven
Service Designs and
Standards

Part 4 Opener
 Importance of service Employees
• People – Frontline employees and those supporting them from
behind the scenes are critical to the success of any service
organizations
• They are the service. Ex : Doctors, trainers
• They are the organization in the customer’s eyes.
• They are the brand. Ex : Financial institutes
• They are marketers. They act as walking billboard from promotional
point of view. Ex : Bank tellers cross sell bank products
 Service Employees
• Their importance is evident in:
– The Services Marketing Mix (People)
– The Service-Profit Chain
– The Services Triangle
 Boundary Spanning Roles
• Focus is on the frontline service employees who
interact directly with customers
• Boundary Spanners: Front line employees are referred
as Boundary spanners as they operate in the boundary
of the organization
• They perform functions in understanding, filtering and
interpreting information and resources to and from the
organization and its external constituencies
 Figure 11.4
Boundary Spanners Interact with Both
Internal and External Constituents
External Environment

Internal Environment
 Boundary Spanning Roles
Emotional Labor
• All the boundary spanners are characterized by Emotional
Labor.
• Emotional Labor is the labor that Goes beyond the physical
or mental skills needed to deliver quality service. Ex : Giving
Smile, Having Eye Contact, showing interest, friendly
conversation
• It often requires to suppress their true feelings to deliver
service
 Figure 11.5
Sources of Conflict for
Boundary-Spanning Workers

• Person vs. Role

• Organization vs. Client

• Client vs. Client

• Quality vs. Productivity

 Sources of Conflict for
Boundary-Spanning Workers
person/role conflict
• Boundary spanners feel conflicts between what they are asked to do and
their own personalities, orientations or values are.
• Ex: wearing of dress as per the job requirement
organization/client conflict
• Front line employees face the conflicts when te rules, regulations of the
organization are not customer centric.
• They Get in conflict when customers have excessive demands whether to
obey customers or follow the riles of organization
• Following the customer, might risk the job
• Following the organization may dissatisfy customer and so no tips.
 Sources of Conflict for
Boundary-Spanning Workers
Interclient conflict
• Conflict occurs for boundary spanners when incompatible
expectations and requirements arise from two or more
customers
• This occur when servicing customers in turn(Doctor), or
serving simultaneously(Teachers)
• Time rendered for each customer, the degree of interpersonal
relationship expected by customers
 Sources of Conflict for
Boundary-Spanning Workers
Quality/productivity conflict
• Front line workers are asked to be both effective and efficient
• Frontline employees are asked to deliver courteous service to employees
and also reach their target on time.
• This trade off between quality and quantity, and effectiveness and
efficiency put pressures on service employees
• Internal support from understanding managers and control over job task
can help employees to handle the quality/ productivity tradeoffs.
• Technology is used extensively to handle the quality and productivity
tradeoffs.
 Figure 11.6
Human Resource Strategies for Closing GAP 3
Hire for
Service
Competencies
and Service
Inclination

Hire the
Right People

Develop

Employees
Customer-

Empower
Employees

Customers

Retain the People to

Oriented
Treat

Deliver
as

Best Service
People Service
Delivery Quality

Provide
Needed Support
Systems

Provide
Supportive
Technology
and
Equipment
 Strategies for closing GAP 3
Hire the right people
• Compete for the best people
• Hire for service competencies and Service Inclination
• Be the preferred employer
Develop people to deliver Service Quality
• Train for Technical and Interactive Skills
• Empower Employees
• Promote team work
 Strategies for closing GAP 3
Provide Needed Support Systems
• Measure Internal Service Quality
• Provide Supportive Technology and Equipment
• Develop Service – Oriented Internal processes
Retain the Best People
• Include Employees in the Company’s vision
• Treat Employees as customers
• Measure and Reward strong service performers
Customer’s Role in Service
Delivery
 How Customers Widen Gap 3

• Lack of understanding of their roles

• Not being willing or able to perform their roles

• No rewards for “good performance”

• Interfering with other customers

• Incompatible, heterogeneous market segments

 Importance of Customer in Service
Delivery
• Services are produced and consumed simultaneously.
• Customer play role in efficient service delivery.
• Customers influence the service delivery in two ways
• Customer receiving the service :
– Customers can influence the widening or narrowing of the GAP3
– Depending on the Level of Customer participation in service
delivery influences the efficiency
– Level of Customer participation can be Low, Medium or High
 Importance of Customers in Service
Delivery
Fellow Customers
• Other customers can detract from satisfaction:
– disruptive behaviors
– excessive crowding
– incompatible needs

• Other customers can enhance satisfaction:

– mere presence
– socialization/friendships
– roles: assistants, teachers, supporters
 Figure 12.2
Customer Roles in Service Delivery

Productive Resources

Contributors to
Quality and
Satisfaction

Competitors
Customer’s role in Service Delivery
Customers as Productive Resources

• “partial employees”
– contributing effort, time, or other resources to the production process

– In B to B, the support of client ensures efficient service delivery

• customer inputs can affect organization’s productivity

• Customers avoid in cocreation of service if they don’t benefit from it

• key issue:
– should customers’ roles be expanded? reduced?

– Customers can bring in uncertain expectations

Customer’s role in Service Delivery
Customers as Contributors to Service Quality and Satisfaction

• Customers can contribute to

– their own satisfaction with the service
• by performing their role effectively. Ex: Health Care, Fitness Programs

• by working with the service provider

– the quality of the service they receive

• by asking questions

• by taking responsibility for their own satisfaction

• IKEA wants its customers to understand that their role is not to consume value
but to create it.

• by complaining when there is a service failure

 Customer’s role in Service Delivery
Customers as Competitors
• customers may “compete” with the service provider
• “internal exchange”(produce the service themselves) vs. “external
exchange”(someone else provide service for them)
• internal/external decision often based on:
– Expertise capacity
– Resources capacity
– Time capacity
– economic rewards
– psychic rewards
– trust
– control
 Figure 12.4
Strategies for Enhancing Customer
Participation

Effective
Recruit, Educate,
Define Customer Customer and Reward
Jobs
Participation Customers

Manage the
Customer
Mix
 Strategies for Enhancing
Customer Participation
Define customers’ jobs

The level of Customer participation depends on the nature of the

service.

• helping himself Ex: Land Records Kiosk

• helping others

• promoting the company. Ex: word of mouth

• Individual differences:
– not everyone wants to participate

– Few have the need for human interaction and so avoid self services.
 Strategies for Enhancing
Customer Participation
Strategies for Recruiting, Educating, and Rewarding Customers
• Recruit the right customers

– Attracting the right customers through advertising or personal selling.

– To this customer can “self select” into or out of service.

• Educate and train customers to perform effectively

– Need to educate skill and knowledge to interact with employees and other customers

– Orientation programs are Given for certain Services

– Orientations can be Place orientation or Function Orientation. Signage can help

educating customers.

– Customers learn through observing the other customers. Companies hire customers to

demonstrate the behavior.

 Strategies for Enhancing
Customer Participation
• Reward customers for their contribution
– Rewards can be monetary savings, psychological and
physical benefits, control over delivery process and time
savings

– Not all customers are motivated by same type of rewards

• Avoid negative outcomes of inappropriate customer

participation
 Strategies for Enhancing
Customer Participation
Manage the Customer Mix

• Customers frequently interact with each other in the process of service

delivery

• It is necessary to handle the mix of customers who can be incompatible.

• The process of managing multiple and sometimes conflicting segments is

known as Compatibility Management

• Need to attract homogeneous customers

• Attract heterogeneous customers differently or at different time

 Delivering Service through
Intermediaries and Electronic
Channels
 Service Provider Participants
• service principal (originator)
– creates the service concept
• (like a manufacturer)

• service deliverer (intermediary)

– entity that interacts with the customer in the
execution of the service
• (like a distributor/wholesaler)
 Services Intermediaries
Franchisees

– e.g., Jiffy Lube, H&R Block, McDonald’s

Agents and Brokers

• Agent is an service intermediary who acts on behalf of a service principal

• Agents can be selling agents and purchase agents

– e.g., travel agents, independent insurance agents

• Principal pays in the form of commission and not as salaries

• Broker is an intermediary who brings buyers and sellers together while assisting in

negotiations

Electronic channels

– e.g., ATMs, university video courses, TaxCut software

 Table 13.1
Benefits and Challenges for
Franchisers of Service
Benefits Challenges
• Leveraged business • Difficulty in maintaining and
format for greater motivating franchisees
expansion and revenues • Highly publicized disputes
• Consistency in outlets and conflict
• Knowledge of local • Inconsistent quality
markets • Control of customer
• Shared financial risk and relationship by intermediary
more working capital
 Table 13.1 (Continued)
Benefits and Challenges for
Franchisees of Service
Benefits Challenges
• An established business • Encroachment
format • Disappointing profits and
• National or regional revenues
brand marketing • Lack of perceived control
• Minimized risk of over operations
starting a business • High fees
 Table 13.2
Benefits and Challenges in Distributing
Services through Agents and Brokers
Benefits Challenges
• Reduced selling and • Loss of control over
distribution costs pricing and other
• Intermediary’s aspects of marketing
possession of special • Representation of
skills and knowledge multiple service
• Wide representation principals
• Knowledge of local
markets
• Customer choice
 Table 13.3
Benefits and Challenges in Electronic
Distribution of Services
Benefits Challenges
• Consistent delivery for • Customers are active, not passive
standardized services • Lack of control of electronic environment
• Price competition
• Low cost • Inability to customize with highly
• Customer convenience standardized services
• Lack of consistency with customer
• Wide distribution involvement
• Customer choice and • Requires changes in consumer behavior
ability to customize • Security concerns
• Competition from widening geographies
• Quick customer feedback
• Computer literacy is essential
 Strategies for Effective Service
Delivery through Intermediaries
Control Strategies Empowerment Strategies
• Measurement : Appropriate • Help the intermediary
rewards are Given for top develop customer-
performers
oriented service
• Review : Terminations, non processes
renewals, quotas are done.
Expansion and encroachment • Provide needed support
are used to control systems
Partnering Strategies • Develop intermediaries
to deliver service quality
• Alignment of goals • Change to a cooperative
• Consultation and management structure
cooperation