Return on Investment of Complaint Management: A Review and Research Agenda

Abstract

This article presents a systematic literature review which synthesises current knowledge to advance a more sophisticated conceptual framework to measure the return on investment (ROI) in complaints management. Literature is examined from searches of ProQuest, EBSCO, Emerald Plus and Google Scholar to create a road map of extant knowledge published from 1987 to 2021 in marketing and consumer related fields. Five themes associated with ROI measurement research are identified across four time periods: Cost reduction, Organisational learning, Reputational effect, Current customer focus and Social benefits. Few studies develop a comprehensive conceptual framework for the calculation of the ROI. The current literature is then extended, with the development of a framework to assist complaint management researchers and practitioners to evaluate Customer Complaint Management practices. The framework also informs the necessary data collection. Finally, new research directions are outlined to guide scholarly enquiry.