Front-line Service Work Research Articles

Embodying Japanese Heritage: Consumer Experience and Social Contact at a Historical Themed Park

ABSTRACT This article analyses the experiential consumption of heritage that is staged for paying visitors to a historical themed park. Based on ethnographic fieldwork conducted at a Japanese historical themed park re-creating the Edo period (1603–1867), it examines the re-enactment of Japanese history through an experience with embodied and social elements. This historical themed park presents an immersive environment re-enacting the ‘everyday’ culture of ‘ordinary’ commoners, where Japanese and foreign visitors imaginatively role-play and engage the past in different ways. Frontline service workers and actors, who perform historical characters called Edo People (Edo-jin), project a warm and lively atmosphere that incorporates popular conceptions of Edo/Japanese culture and customer service. The past is also transformed into experience-based attractions where consumers participate in cultural activities while communicating with each other and the staff. Consumer participation ultimately brings the past as heritage into the present as embodied experience.

Access without fear in a borderland: impacts on frontline service workers

This study analyses interviews with frontline service workers employed in agencies in Windsor, Ontario, Canada who work with persons without immigration status. Through these interviews, frontline service workers provided insights into their work with persons without status, including the significant barriers to effective service provision requiring 'covert practices' as part of their work. The interview subjects ultimately conclude that an access without fear (AWF) policy would indeed bolster their efforts to work with persons without status, buttressing claims that an AWF policy can be a useful tool to support the basic needs of persons without status. However, the interviews also raise questions about how the law is understood by frontline service workers and the very real potential that AWF might be yet another unmet promise. Underlying these interviews were also questions of trust and relationship-building that re-emphasise both the need and limitations of policy.

Access without fear in a Borderland: impacts on frontline service workers

This study analyses interviews with frontline service workers employed in agencies in Windsor, Ontario, Canada who work with persons without immigration status. Through these interviews, frontline service workers provided insights into their work with persons without status, including the significant barriers to effective service provision requiring 'covert practices' as part of their work. The interview subjects ultimately conclude that an access without fear (AWF) policy would indeed bolster their efforts to work with persons without status, buttressing claims that an AWF policy can be a useful tool to support the basic needs of persons without status. However, the interviews also raise questions about how the law is understood by frontline service workers and the very real potential that AWF might be yet another unmet promise. Underlying these interviews were also questions of trust and relationship-building that re-emphasise both the need and limitations of policy.

Negotiating Tensions on the Front Line: Circuits of Accountability and Self-governance in Institutional Care of Adults with Intellectual Disability

This article explores how circuits of accountability impact front-line service work in an intermediate care facility for individuals with intellectual disability (ICF/IID). Institutional ethnography as a theory and methodology guided the data collection and analysis processes. Participant observation and interviews were completed, and text work was employed to make visible the ways staff enacted what they believed to be their roles and responsibilities. Results indicated the service criteria established by regulatory agencies were interpreted and executed in ways that negatively influenced staff’s moral care to residents and restricted their ability to self-govern and utilize their experiential knowledge. Additionally, the institution’s circuits of accountability reflected ideals of front-line work that were inconsistent with staff’s perception of their responsibilities. These findings have implications for management and implementation of direct care in ICFs/IID and underscore the importance of aligning moral care and self-governance to front-line service work.

Discourses of Professionalism in Front-Line Service Work: Insights from a Case Study in an Italian Bank

The article draws on the literature on the triangular employment relationship in the service industry, as well as on the debate on contemporary forms of professionalism, to explore the varied uses of the discourse of professionalism in a banking company. Methodologically, it is a single-case study based on 61 semi-structured interviews, company documents and observational data. The research results show how, in the company studied, the notion of professionalism was used both by individual employees and, at the collective level, by union organizations to advance front-line employees’ and customers’ interests vis-a-vis the management. Moreover, rather than a single discourse, several discourses of professionalism coexisted within the company, and they were subject to constant debate and contestation. The article thus advances extant research on both contemporary forms of service work and professionalism, while providing a bridge between these two streams of literature which, to date, have barely talked to each other.

The Impact of Consumers Witness Front-Line Service Employee Complaints on Corporate Brand Attitudes

In the past, the research on complaints mainly focused on employee-employer dichotomy, focusing on the impact of employee complaints on employee performance. But in the actual work, front-line service workers and consumers have a lot of service contacts. If consumers witness complaints from front-line service workers, what impact will it have on corporate brand attitude? Based on the third-party perception perspective and the theory of moral justice, with perception of corporate morality as the mediating variable, this paper verifies that perceived corporate controllability by first-line service employees’ complaints can significantly affect consumer brand attitude, and introduces the boundary condition of perceived employee complaints. When perceived employee complaints are health factors, the more controllable the first-line service employees’ complaints are perceived. The higher the perceived corporate ethics, the lower the consumer brand attitude. When perceived employee complaints are motivating factors, there is no difference in the impact of perceived corporate controllability and low perceived employee complaints on consumer brand attitude. The paper examines the impact of corporate controllability on consumers perceived by the complaints of front-line service employees witnessed by consumers. It also studies the spillover effect of employee complaints from the perspective of third-party perception, which has important guiding value for guiding the management of front-line service employees and sustainable development.

Consumer-directed care and the relational triangle

PurposeFollowing a recent government initiated change to a consumer-directed care model across the Australian community aged care sector, the purpose of this paper is to explore frontline home support workers’ perceptions of relational changes with clients in power and subordination within the triadic relationship between employer, employee and client.Design/methodology/approachContextual interviews were held with managers (n=4), coordinators (n=10) and semi-structured face-to-face interviews with support workers (n=17) in three organizations. Interview transcripts were analyzed.FindingsSome workers did not perceive a power change in their relationships with clients. Others perceived minimal change but were concerned about the incoming client generation (baby boomers) that were more aware of their rights. Others felt subordinated to the client, perceived a loss of control or that felt treated like an employee of the client. Consistent with the philosophy of consumer-directed care, senior staff encouraged clients to treat workers in this way.Research limitations/implicationsFurther research is recommended on worker and client perceptions of relationships within the context of a consumer or client focused model.Practical implicationsA clear and realistic understanding of the locus of power within a triadic relationship by all actors is important for positive workplace outcomes.Social implicationsThe increasing ageing population makes it essential that workers’ relationships with clients and with their organization are unambiguous.Originality/valueThis study makes a contribution to theories about change and power transfer in the implementation of consumer-directed care through the perceptions of support workers. Examination of power and subordination transfer through the perceptions of the actors of rather than through the prism of organizational policy deepens the understanding of frontline service work and relationships.

Discourses of professionalism in front-line service work:insights from a case study in a bank

The article draws on the literature on the triangular employment relationship in the service industry, as well as on the debate on contemporary forms of professionalism, to explore the varied uses of the discourse of professionalism in a banking company. Methodologically, it is a single-case study based on 61 semi-structured interviews, company documents and observational data. The research results show how, in the company studied, the notion of professionalism was used both by individual employees and, at the collective level, by union organizations to advance front-line employees' and customers' interests vis-a-vis the management. Moreover, rather than a single discourse, several discourses of professionalism coexisted within the company, and they were subject to constant debate and contestation. The article thus advances extant research on both contemporary forms of service work and professionalism, while providing a bridge between these two streams of literature which, to date, have barely talked to each other.

Investigation of flashing and intensity characteristics for vehicle-mounted warning beacons

Reducing the potential for crashes involving front line service workers and passing vehicles is important for increasing worker safety in work zones and similar locations. Flashing yellow warning beacons are often used to protect, delineate, and provide visual information to drivers within and approaching work zones. A nighttime field study using simulated workers, with and without reflective vests, present outside trucks was conducted to evaluate the effects of different warning beacon intensities and flash frequencies. Interactions between intensity and flash frequency were also analyzed. This study determined that intensitiesof 25/2.5 cd and 150/15 cd (peak/trough intensity) provided the farthest detection distances of the simulated worker. Mean detection distances in response to a flash frequency of 1 Hz were not statistically different from those in response to 4 Hz flashing. Simulated workers wearing reflective vests were seen the farthest distances away from the trucks for all combinations of intensity and flash frequency.

The non‐professionally affiliated (NPA) worker as co‐producer of public services: how is the role experienced in UK mental health services?

AbstractRecent workforce reforms have led to the widespread expansion of non‐professionally affiliated (NPA) support and assistant roles within UK public services. Research into these roles has been confined to a limited range of settings, with a focus on the consequence of change for professional workers. This article explores the emergence of ‘co‐production’, whereby NPA workers contribute alongside the professional in a distinct, complementary way. Findings are drawn from semi‐structured interviews with frontline workers and managers within the context of mental health workforce reform. The results build a picture of NPA working life characterised in part by autonomy and responsibility. At the same time, NPA workers rely on colleagues for support and are subject to being used indirectly by professionals. Contextual influences are considered. The conceptual implications of the analysis are brought out, both for the NPA role itself and for the broader issues involved in front line service work.

A neglected pool of labour? Frontline service work and hotel recruitment in Glasgow

The paper presented considers soft skills in the hospitality sector and explores how managers in four hotels in Glasgow, Scotland enact recruitment and selection processes. Empirically, the analysis is based on a rich cross case comparison including interviews, observations, attendance at training events and analysis of hotels’ recruitment and selection policies. Conceptually, the analysis draws on the work of Pierre Bourdieu and Andrew Sayer, portraying an understanding of social class as a social, economic, and cultural category and people's agency as shaped by their habitus and lay normativity. Crucially, the paper reveals the pivotal role individual managers play in enabling and constraining opportunities for employment in the enactment of hotel recruitment policy and engagement with job applicants and new recruits. Overall, the analysis suggests that, despite many deterministic analyses of class, an organization's recruitment, learning and development strategies, plus management's commitment to make a difference, can positively impact on those who might otherwise be part of a neglected pool of labour.

High-involvement innovation: views from frontline service workers and managers

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the experience of call centre employees who have been involved in high-involvement innovation (HII) activities to understand what frontline and managerial employees think of these involvement activities.Design/methodology/approachA qualitative case study approach is utilised, drawing on evidence from seven UK call centres. Various sources of data are examined, i.e. interviews, observation, call listening and documentary.FindingsFrom the analysis of the testimonies, it is found that job design, the mechanisms and practices as well as other people’s perceptions of involvement influence the experience of frontline and managerial employees. The findings highlight that HII has the potential to intensify jobs (both frontline and managerial employees) when the quantity of ideas submitted becomes a component of the employee performance appraisal system.Research limitations/implicationsThis research has shown that the heightened targets used in many of the cases have reduced the ability of employees to be involved in any innovation activities. What is not clear from the findings is that if performance measures can be used in a more participative way with employees so that they can have less time pressure allowing them to become more involved in innovation activities. Thus, an interesting direction for future research would be to consider the effects of performance measurement systems in the role they play in facilitating HII activities.Practical implicationsThe findings show that HII has the potential to enrich frontline employees’ jobs, making them feel more valued and giving them some variety and challenge in their job. Therefore, practitioners should approach employee involvement in the innovation process as something potentially fruitful and not just wasted time away from the phones.Originality/valueThis research is important as it explores what effects these involvement initiatives have on the employees and managers involved in them. This is valuable since there is no real consensus across human resource management, labour process and critical management fields resulting in a limited conceptualisation of the relationship between management practices, employee experiences and the outcomes. This research makes a contribution through the elaboration of current theory to understand the complexities and subtleties that exist between the high involvement management practices and the experience of workers and their managers.

Poverty, Material Hardship, and Mental Health among Workers in Three Front-Line Service Occupations

ABSTRACTMany studies document links between income poverty, material hardship, and mental health; however, we know less about the mental health consequences of within-person changes in income poverty and material hardship, particularly for low-income workers. The authors examine these relationships with longitudinal data from a sample of frontline service workers interviewed in two cities (one each in the United States and Canada). Mixed-effects regression models show between- and within-person differences in income poverty are associated with changes in material hardship, and between- and within-person differences in material hardship are associated with poorer mental health and depression.

Stuck in the middle: The emotional labours of case managers in the personal injury compensation system.

Case managers within injury compensation systems are confronted with various emotional demands. Employing the concept of emotional labour, this paper explores distinctive aspects of these demands. The findings are drawn from focus groups with 21 Australian case managers. Case managers work was characterised by extra-role commitments, emotional control, stress and balancing tensions arising from differing stakeholder expectations about outcomes related to compensation and return to work. By examining the experiences of case managers, the findings add to the literature on the emotional labour of front line service workers, especially with respect to the demands involved in managing the conflicting demands of work.

Toward performance specifications for flashing warning beacons

Yellow flashing warning beacons help protect front line service workers, including those in transportation, utility and construction sectors. To safeguard these workers, beacons should be readily detected and should provide veridical information about their relative movement. Two psychophysical laboratory experiments were conducted to provide empirical foundations for two aspects of warning beacon performance, detection and judgments of relative movement. In the first experiment reaction times were measured to the onset of flashing warning beacons varying in peak intensity while observers viewed different scene conditions. Observers also judged the visibility of nearby low-contrast targets in the presence of the flashing warning beacons. Asymptotic response times to the onset of beacons occurred when their peak intensity was at least 750cd during daytime. Visibility of low contrast targets during nighttime, when glare is most critical, did not decrease substantially when the peak intensity was below 2000cd. In the second experiment response times were measured to warning beacons of different flash-sequence patterns as they approached the observer. Judgments of gap closure were improved, relative to fully-on/fully-off flashing, with flash sequences where the minimum beacon intensity was at least 10% of the peak intensity and with two synchronized flashing beacons rather than one. With regard to performance specifications, the minimum value for the peak intensity of warning beacons should be 750cd, with a maximum value of 2000cd for detection. Fully-on/fully-off flash sequences should be changed to fully-on/partial-off to enhance judgments of gap closure on moving vehicles. Moreover, two flashing warning beacons, rather than one, should be mounted on service vehicles to improve gap closure judgments.

Agreement on service performance ratings between frontline employees and their supervisor

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine whether agreement between frontline employee self-ratings and supervisory ratings of service performance functions as an indicator of healthy supervisor-subordination relationships above and beyond what might be indicated simply by either supervisory ratings or self-ratings.Design/methodology/approachResearch hypotheses were tested using a sample of 220 matched pairs of frontline service workers and their immediate supervisors from nine full service hotels in the USA.FindingsThe results show that higher levels of agreement in service performance ratings between employees and supervisors is associated with higher levels of leader-member exchange (LMX) and organizational commitment.Practical implicationsSenior managers can refer to the level of performance rating agreement between customer service employees and their supervisors in assessing supervisors’ competency to manage their work relationship with their subordinates.Originality/valueThis study examined rating agreement in a service performance context and found rating agreement between subordinates and their supervisor may have a unique effect on service worker effectiveness, producing a unique incremental effect on LMX and organizational commitment. This is important given that few attempts have been made to examine service performance from both subordinates’ and supervisors’ perspectives and the implication that rating agreement may have for improving employee service performance.

Controlling routine front line service workers: an Australian retail supermarket case

Food retail is known for its use of flexible labour and for the centralisation of functions at head office, resulting in a reduction of managerial autonomy at store level. This article employs a typology of controls developed from labour process scholarship to explore how retail managers negotiate the control of their predominantly part-time workforce. Using an Australian supermarket chain as a case, and mixed methods, the article demonstrates that supermarkets use a multiplicity of forms of control across their workforce. For front line service workers, the article identifies a new configuration of controls which intersects with employment status and acts differentially for checkout operators on different employment contracts.

Exploring the relationship between compressed work hours satisfaction and absenteeism in front-line service work

There has been an upsurge of interest in compressed workweek schedules because of the opportunities they provide for enhanced organizational efficiency and more balanced work and life roles for employees. This study tested a moderated mediation model of the effects of compressed work hours satisfaction on absenteeism with the purpose of exploring both the mediation effects of emotional exhaustion and physical health and the moderating effects of sex on this relationship. It utilized data drawn from a sample of 236 contact-centre service workers linked to absenteeism data collected for a period of 12 months following the survey. Results indicated that compressed work hours satisfaction was associated with lower absenteeism and that this relationship was mediated sequentially through emotional exhaustion and physical health. Although the indirect effect of compressed work hours satisfaction on absenteeism through emotional exhaustion and physical health was not significantly different between women and men, the relationship between compressed work hours satisfaction and physical health was positive for women but not for men. The implications of these findings are discussed.

Geysers or Bubbling Hot Springs? A Cross-Cultural Examination of Customer Rage From Eastern and Western Perspectives

There is compelling evidence that incidents of customer rage are on the rise and not just in Western, individualistic societies. Changing social and economic conditions in collectivist societies (e.g., emerging consumerism and rising wealth in China) have spawned the emergence of customer rage in Eastern countries. To this end, we examine how customer rage–associated emotions, expressions, and outcomes differ across Eastern and Western cultures. Results drawn from 982 frontline service customers from two Eastern (China and Thailand) and two Western (Australia and United States) countries show that although consumers from Western cultures are more likely to exhibit rage emotions, consumers from Eastern cultures are more likely to report a desire for revenge and express their emotions in both overt and more subtle ways. That is, customers from Eastern cultures, while slow to display anger, once initiated, their rage expressions toward frontline service workers tend to be physical and vengeful. This result contradicts generally held beliefs that Eastern consumers are reticent to express negative emotions. With these findings in mind, and to minimize damaging customer rage incidents, firms regularly engaged in cross-cultural service encounters need to provide intercultural awareness and communications training that equip frontline employees to understand customs, manners, etiquette, and expectations of Eastern and Western cultures in general and even specific cultural segments.

How does customer orientation influence authentic emotional display?

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine how customer orientation affects frontline service workers’ deep acting and to what extent the effect is moderated by the severity of dysfunctional customer behavior (DCB). Service organizations usually want their employees to demonstrate sincere emotions during customer encounters.Design/methodology/approachThe study employed a mixed method design using measured variables (e.g. customer orientation) and a scenario-based manipulated variable (i.e. DCB severity). Data from 237 service workers were used to investigate the theoretical model.FindingsResults showed that perspective taking and emotional sensitivity mediate the positive effect of customer orientation on deep acting. Furthermore, the influence of emotional sensitivity on deep acting is positive when DCB is less severe, but becomes non-significant when DCB becomes severe.Research limitations/implicationsBecause the DCB severity is manipulated as a single event, future research can examine its influence based on employees’ experiences. Also, future studies may investigate other mechanisms to explain customer orientation’s effects on deep acting.Practical implicationsThis paper provides service organizations an understanding of the key roles of emotional sensitivity and perspective taking in driving deep acting as well as the importance of monitoring DCB severity.Originality/valueThe study is one of the first in marketing to examine the different influences of DCB severity on important employee outcomes. This study also identifies two important mediators to explain how customer orientation drives deep acting.