Service operation strategy: a developing country perspective

Abstract

This article aims to give insights into service sector operating strategy for corporate, business and the functional levels. It is focused on service sector customers’ perceptions and response regarding complaint management, recovery process to create competitive advantage. It compares and recommends factors important for the service recovery strategy implementation among the health care, financial and personal care sectors for gaining higher satisfaction, trust and loyalty. This study finds that both the cost and differentiation can be achieved by the inclusion of service failure recovery strategies in the service operations. This article is empirical and involves data from 150 respondents from India. This study found conclusive results on complaint management and recovery strategies to create the competitive advantage of the three sectors in the Indian context. This article is also helpful in designing policies and procedures to proactively eliminate hurdles and the effective implementation of service recovery process.