Proactive Customer Service Performance Research Articles

How does leaders’ narcissistic rivalry impact employees’ service outcomes in the hospitality industry? A conservation of resources perspective

PurposeThis study examines how leaders’ narcissistic rivalry (LNR) affects the in-role performance (IRP) and proactive customer service performance (PCSP) of employees in the hospitality industry. Specifically, this study investigates the mediating role of psychological distress and the moderating role of locus of control (LOC) in the aforementioned relationships.Design/methodology/approachThis study administered a multi-wave, multi-source questionnaire survey with 323 employees working in 11 full-service hotels in China. Statistical analyses were performed using the PROCESS macro in SPSS 26 software and structural equation modeling using Mplus 8.3 software.FindingsThe authors' results suggest that LNR can negatively affect hospitality employees’ IRP and PCSP and that these relationships are mediated by psychological distress. Additionally, the impact of LNR on psychological distress can be lessened by internal LOC.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the literature on leader narcissism by investigating how LNR affects IRP and PCSP among hospitality employees. Drawing on conservation of resources theory, this study also identifies a novel mediating mechanism (psychological distress) connecting LNR to hospitality employees’ service outcomes. Furthermore, this study reveals the moderating role of LOC in the relationship between LNR and psychological distress.

Job Embeddedness in the Hospitality Industry: Developing a Model of Psychological Antecedents and Behavioral Consequences

ABSTRACT This study examines interpersonal psychological factors as antecedents and crisis/supportive behavior factors as consequences of organizational job embeddedness (OJE) in the hospitality industry. Workplace fun (WF) and humor (WH) as psychological factors, quitting intention (QI) as a crisis factor, and service recovery performance (SRP) and proactive customer service performance (PCSP) as supportive behavior factors were studied. Data from 333 hotel employees and 40 supervisors were collected through a questionnaire, analyzed using SEM-PLS3. WF and WH serve as a valuable framework for understanding OJE. WH influences WF, which positively impacts OJE. Increased OJE results in SRP and PCSP, reducing QI.

The effect of spiritual leadership on proactive customer service performance: The roles of psychological empowerment and power distance

Scholars have consistently demonstrated that spiritual leadership yields positive outcomes for employees. However, it is not clear how spiritual leadership influences proactive customer service performance. The purpose of this research is to develop a model, grounded in social cognitive theory, to identify why and when spiritual leadership promotes proactive customer service performance. Specifically, the focus is on how spiritual leadership through employee psychological empowerment facilitates proactive customer service performance under the condition of power distance. The empirical analysis, conducted through regression analysis using the PROCESS macro, is based on questionnaire data from 263 leaders and employees in the hospitality industry. Findings reveal that spiritual leadership has a positive effect on boosting employees’ psychological empowerment, subsequently nurturing their engagement in proactive customer service performance. Moreover, it is found that within an environment of low power distance, the favorable impact of spiritual leadership on proactive customer service performance is amplified, as employees are more inclined to challenge authority and norms and engage in proactively solving problems related to customer service. Key implications suggest scholars and managers ways to enhance proactive customer service performance.

Linking proactive personality to proactive customer-service performance: a moderated parallel mediation model

Drawing on the job demands-resources model and positive organizational scholarship, this study examines proactive personality as an antecedent of frontline employees’ proactive customer-service performance (PCSP). It also investigates the potential mediating role of positive psychological states on the relation between proactive personality and PCSP and the potential moderating role of the service-failure recovery climate (SFRC) on the relation between proactive personality and positive psychological states. To test our hypotheses, we used a moderated parallel mediation model and data obtained from 62 branch managers and 358 frontline branch employees of three well-known appliance households and 3C (computers, communications, and consumer electronics) chain stores in Taiwan. The results of multiple-regression and SPSS PROCESS macro analyses indicate that proactive personality was positively related to manager-rated PCSP via employees’ work engagement and perceptions that their work was meaningful. Further, the positive relationship between proactive personality and PCSP through both work engagement and meaningful work perceptions was moderated by SFRC. These findings shed light on the effect of frontline employees’ proactive personality as a personal resource driving their PCSP; the roles of positive psychological states as mediators that help explain the potential intermediary mechanisms; and a boundary condition of SFRC that may weaken the positive relationship between employees’ proactive personality and psychological states. The implications, limitations, and future research directions are included.

Going beyond the role: How employees' perception of corporate social responsibility fuels proactive customer service performance

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) and employees' proactive performance are essential in the hospitality industry, given their positive impact on corporate performance. However, little focus has been given to the influence of CSR on employees' proactive performance. This study utilizes the social information processing theory and proactive motivation model to examine the impact of employees' perceived CSR on their proactive customer service performance. We also investigate the employees' motivational states as mediators, including employees' organization-based self-esteem, felt obligation, and experienced meaningfulness. Empirical evidence is from 438 frontline employees in boutique hotels in China. Results indicate that employees' perceived CSR significantly influences their proactive customer service performance. Specifically, felt obligation and experienced meaningfulness play the mediating roles between employees' perceived CSR and their proactive customer service performance, while organization-based self-esteem does not. This study contributes to the growing body of literature on CSR and employee proactivity, offering practical implications for managers and policymakers who aim to improve employee performance through CSR programs.

Exploring the Impact of Ethical Leadership on Proactive Customer Service Performance

Exploring the Impact of Ethical Leadership on Proactive Customer Service Performance

Employees’ proactive customer service performance in hospitality: impacts of customer mistreatment and team performance pressure

ObjetivoEste estudio examina el impacto conjunto de los abusos de los clientez (estresor externo) y la presión sobre el rendimiento del equipo (estresor interno) en el rendimiento proactivo del servicio al cliente (PCSP) de los empleados utilizando el modelo estresor-emoción.Diseño/metodología/enfoqueNuestra muestra está formada por 220 empleados y 54 jefes de establecimientos pertenecientes a una gran cadena de restaurantes de China. Realizamos un diseño multitemporal y multifuente con Mplus 7.4 para examinar todas las hipótesis.ResultadosLos abusos de los clientes tienen un efecto positivo sobre el agotamiento emocional de los empleados, lo que reduce aún más la PCSP. La presión sobre el rendimiento del equipo refuerza el efecto disfuncional del abuso de los clientes sobre el agotamiento emocional, mientras que la presencia afectiva positiva de los líderes mitiga la relación negativa entre el agotamiento emocional y la PCSP.Originalidad/valorEste artículo contribuye a investigar cómo los factores estresantes internos y externos afectan conjuntamente a la PCSP de los empleados. Proporciona una perspectiva más completa de la gestión del estrés de los empleados y de la gestión activa de los servicios para los directivos de las organizaciones.

Vitalizing to Learn for Service Proactivity: Not All Forms of Organizational Support Are Equal

Addressing the association between proactive vitality management (PVM) and proactive customer service performance (PCSP), this study focuses on how informal field-based learning (IFBL) mediates the relationship between PVM and PCSP and examines how perceived organizational supports for strengths use (POS for strengths use) and perceived organizational support for deficit correction (POS for deficit correction) may moderate said relationship. Using a sample of 225 supervisor–subordinate matched data collected from Taiwanese travel agencies, IFBL was found to mediate the positive relationship between PVM and PCSP. POS for deficit correction also positively moderated the pathway of the mediated relationship. These findings offer novel research directions by integrating studies on proactivity and on both types of POS (i.e., for strengths use and deficit correction), thereby elucidating previously unexplored theoretical predictions.

Task stressors, team reflexivity, and proactive customer service performance

ABSTRACT This study integrates the transactional theory of stress with social media literature to produce novel theoretical insights into whether and how social media affordance affects the relationship between task stressors, team reflexivity, and team proactive customer service performance of teams working in the hotel industry. Empirical analysis on the data collected from 389 members of 85 service-related teams in China supports the hypothesized model of this study. Findings reveal that team task conflict and team task ambiguity are negatively related to proactive customer service performance and that these relationships are mediated by team reflexivity. Furthermore, social media affordance mitigates the direct and indirect negative effects of team task conflict and team task ambiguity on proactive customer service performance via team reflexivity. Theoretical contributions, practical implications, and limitations of this study are discussed in the later section.

Antecedents of proactive customer service performance in hospitality: a meta-analysis

ABSTRACT As an emerging construct, proactive customer service performance (PCSP) has been largely explored in recent years. However, previous research focusing on PCSP has been fragmented, each investigating the associations between a single or few selected antecedents and PCSP in the hospitality industry. The present study aims to meta-analytically examine the direction and magnitude of effect sizes of the relationships between PCSP and its main antecedents as well as the moderating effect of national culture in the hospitality context. A quantitative meta-analysis was conducted to test the hypotheses based on 17 antecedents and 42 independent studies (N=13,333). The antecedents of PCSP can be categorized into job attitudes, job strain, leader behaviors, performance, family context factor, workplace factors, positive psychological states, emotional labor and individual determinants. The results demonstrated that empowering leadership had the strongest impact on PCSP, followed by mindfulness and thriving at work. The results also indicated that national culture was a key moderator in the analysis. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first meta-analysis to collect, synthesize and analyze the theoretical links between PCSP and its antecedents and moderator has also been verified. What’s more, this study has discussed future research directions for PCSP in hospitality. 作为一种新兴的构念, 主动性顾客服务绩效 (PCSP) 近年来得到了广泛的研究。然而, 以往对PCSP的研究一直是碎片化的, 每一项研究都调查了酒店业中单个或几个选定的前因变量与PCSP之间的关联。本研究旨在用元分析的方法检验酒店业背景下的PCSP与其主要前因变量之间关系的效应量的方向和大小, 以及国家文化的调节作用。基于17个前因变量和42项独立研究 (N=13333), 本文进行了定量元分析以检验假设。PCSP的前因变量可分为工作态度、工作压力、领导行为、绩效、家庭背景因素、工作场所因素、积极心理状态、情绪劳动和个人因素。 结果表明, 授权领导力对PCSP的影响最大, 其次是正念和工作繁荣。 结果还表明, 国家文化是重要的调节变量。 据作者所知, 这是第一个收集、综合和分析PCSP与其前因变量之间理论联系的元分析。此外, 本研究还探讨了PCSP在酒店业的未来研究方向。

Family incivility, emotional exhaustion, and hotel employees’ outcomes: a moderated mediation model

Purpose This study aims to analyze the impact of family incivility (FI) on in-role performance (IRP) and proactive customer service performance (PCSP) via the mediating effect of emotional exhaustion (EE) and the moderating roles of emotional intelligence (EI) and mindfulness. Design/methodology/approach Hypotheses were verified using multisource and multiwave data collected from 337 valid hotel employee–supervisor dyads in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Data were analyzed using SPSS 24.0, AMOS 24.0 and PROCESS (version 3.4). Findings FI intensified frontline employees’ (FLEs) EE, which subsequently impeded their IRP and PCSP. EI and mindfulness moderated the direct influence of FI on EE, IRP and PCSP and moderated the indirect influence of FI on the two aforementioned outcomes through EE. Practical implications Managers should observe FLEs’ indicators of FI and deter its emergence by implementing care programs for FLEs suffering from FI. In addition, human resource managers should preferentially recruit employees with high EI through related tests. Hotels can invite reputable psychologists to provide psychotherapy interventions for FLEs, such as mindfulness-based psychological lectures and therapy. Originality/value The hospitality literature lacks an understanding of the underlying process through which FI affects FLEs’ job outcomes. This study incorporates EE as a mediator of the FI’s impact on IRP and PCSP, and to the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to assess whether EI and mindfulness moderate the direct impact of FI on IRP and PCSP and the indirect impact of FI on two aforementioned outcomes via EE.

The Effect of Emotional Labor on Citizenship Fatigue and Proactive Customer Service Performance in Travel Agencies

The Effect of Emotional Labor on Citizenship Fatigue and Proactive Customer Service Performance in Travel Agencies

How and when does leader humility promote followers’ proactive customer service performance?

PurposeThis study aims to examine how and when leader humility influences subordinates’ proactive customer service performance (PCSP). Drawing upon the conservation of resources theory, this study theorizes a moderated mediation model with relational energy as the mediator and person–supervisor fit (P-S fit) as the moderator.Design/methodology/approachThis study conducted a three-wave survey in 20 hotels in China, collecting 467 valid questionnaires from frontline employees and supervisors. Hierarchical regression analysis and the PROCESS procedure were adopted for data analyses.FindingsLeader humility can facilitate followers’ PCSP, and relational energy mediates this relationship. Furthermore, P-S fit amplifies leader humility’s direct influence on relational energy, as well as magnifies leader humility’s indirect effect on PCSP through relational energy.Research limitations/implicationsCompanies need to be more concerned about selecting qualified candidates for management positions and fostering their humility via training, focus on employees’ relational energy and P-S fit and attempt to encourage PCSP in multiple ways.Originality/valueResearch on PCSP has largely neglected the influence of leader humility, which has the potential to be particularly effective in today’s hospitality industry, characterized by high dynamics. This study extends the literature on PCSP by connecting it with leader humility. It also provides new insights into the mechanism and boundary condition from a relational and resource perspective.

Killing the service fire: leader aggressive humour undermines hospitality employees’ proactive customer service performance

PurposeDrawing on research on organisation-based self-esteem (OBSE) and self-consistency theory, this study aims to investigate whether, how and when leader aggressive humour (LAH) impacts hospitality employees’ proactive customer service performance (PCSP).Design/methodology/approachA total of 294 supervisor–employee dyads from eight hotels in China participated in the survey. The data were analysed by hierarchical multiple regression and PROCESS macro in SPSS.FindingsLAH undermines hospitality employees’ PCSP by threatening their OBSE, and this effect is significant only for highly entitled employees.Practical implicationsOrganisations could improve leaders’ awareness of the dark side of aggressive humour, especially for those who supervise highly entitled employees. Organisations could also cultivate positive leader–member relationships to improve employees’ OBSE and provide training for highly entitled employees to cope with leaders’ LAH.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the LAH literature by examining its influence on hospitality employees’ PCSP and identifying the mechanism and boundary conditions underlying this effect.

Do illegitimate tasks undermine hospitality employees’ proactive customer service performance? A moderated dual-path model

ABSTRACT As hospitality firms face labor shortages, employees are asked to perform a greater range of tasks than ever before. However, employees may view certain tasks as outside the acceptable boundaries of their role, and consider them illegitimate. Illegitimate tasks can have a range of negative outcomes, yet we still do not understand how such tasks affect hospitality employees. Drawing on the cognitive-affective processing system framework, we investigate the effects of illegitimate tasks on proactive customer service performance (PCSP) of hospitality employees. In addition, we examine the intervening roles of harmonious work passion and perceived insider status, and the buffering role of traditionality. The results of two studies, using mixed methods, show that illegitimate tasks negatively affected proactive customer service performance (PCSP), and that perceived insider status and harmonious work passion mediate this relationship. Moreover, traditionality moderated these effects. These findings offer several theoretical and practical implications.

The impact of exploitative leadership on hospitality employees’ proactive customer service performance: a self-determination perspective

PurposeBased on self-determination theory, this research paper aims to explore the implication of exploitative leadership for hospitality employees’ proactive customer service performance (PCSP) via harmonious passion for work (HPFW) and the moderating mechanism of power distance.Design/methodology/approachThe authors’ sample included a total of 207 leader–follower dyads from three Chinese hotels. Hierarchical multiple regression and the PROCESS macro were used to analyze the data.FindingsThe results indicated that exploitative leadership has a negative indirect relationship with hospitality employees’ PCSP through decreased HPFW, and power distance plays a protective role of alleviating the negative implications of exploitative leadership for hospitality employees’ HPFW and PCSP.Practical implicationsHotels are suggested to develop strict codes of conduct and adopt zero-tolerance policies for exploitative leadership. Additionally, hotels should also act to improve employees’ HPFW and pay attention to low-power-distance employees.Originality/valueThis research enriches exploitative leadership literature by investigating its effect on PCSP. Further, this research investigates HPFW as a mechanism linking exploitative leadership to PCSP. Finally, this research establishes the relationships among exploitative leadership, HPFW and PCSP by investigating the contingent impact of power distance.

Adding Insult to Injury: The Interactive Effect of Internal and External Stressor on Employee Service

Drawing on the stressors-emotion model, the present study examines how customer mistreatment behavior (internal stressor) and team performance pressure (external stressor) work together to influence employees’ proactive customer service performance. We propose that customer mistreatment results in employees’ emotional exhaustion, and in turn reduces proactive customer service performance. In addition, team performance pressure interacts with customer mistreatment behavior to influence employees’ emotional exhaustion, such that team performance pressure strengthens the dysfunctional effect of customer mistreatment behavior on employees’ emotional exhaustion. To mitigate this negative effect, we introduce leader positive affective presence as another moderator that attenuates the negative effect of employees’ emotional exhaustion on their proactive customer service performance. Based on time-lagged data collected from 220 employees and 54 branch leaders from a large catering group in China, the results generally supported our hypotheses. The findings advance our knowledge of how internal and external stressors influence employees’ proactive behaviors and provide insights for organizational managers.

From shared leadership to proactive customer service performance: a multilevel investigation

PurposeThis study aims to develop and examine a cross-level model of the link between shared leadership and hotel employees’ proactive customer service performance (PCSP) by investigating employees’ harmonious passion as a mediator and employees’ traditionality as a moderator.Design/methodology/approachThe hypotheses were tested using hierarchical linear modeling based on multilevel data from 353 frontline service employees in 148 teams across 10 Chinese hotels.FindingsThe results revealed that shared leadership promoted frontline service employees’ PCSP by enhancing their harmonious passion. Moreover, when employees traditionality was high, harmonious passion was less influenced by shared leadership. When employees traditionality was low, shared leadership exerted a more positive influence on harmonious passion. In addition, harmonious passion mediated the interactive effect of shared leadership and traditionality on frontline service employees’ PCSP.Practical implicationsThe findings suggest that organizations should cultivate shared leadership to promote frontline service employees’ PCSP. Organizations should also seek to enhance employees’ harmonious passion and foster a low-traditionality environment with the aim of maximizing the positive influence of shared leadership.Originality/valueFirst, this research expands the leadership-PCSP literature by shifting the research focus from vertical leadership to shared leadership. Second, it offers a novel framework based on self-determination theory to clarify the influence of shared leadership on PCSP. Finally, the focus on the moderating impact of traditionality identifies a new contextual factor that influences the effectiveness of shared leadership.

How organizational justice in the hospitality industry influences proactive customer service performance through general self-efficacy

PurposeBased on social exchange theory (SET) and conservation of resources (COR) theory, this study aims to examine the unique combined impact of procedural justice (PJ) and distributive justice (DJ) on proactive customer service performance (PCSP) and general self-efficacy (GSE) in the hospitality industry. It also estimates these variables’ joint effect on PCSP controlling GSE.Design/methodology/approachThe study’s results were derived from a sample of 380 frontline supervisor–subordinate dyads, placed in 18 five-star hotels, through three-wave data collection. The hypotheses and construct validity were generated through structural equation modeling.FindingsThe combined impact of DJ and PJ on GSE and PCSP was significantly positive, and GSE mediated the relationships between DJ and PCSP as well as PJ and PCSP.Practical implicationsTo improve service employees’ GSE and PCSP, hospitality management should guide and encourage managers to highlight and maintain organizational justice (OJ) in all their strategies and operations. DJ and PJ are advised to appreciate service employees’ GSE and extra-role behaviors (e.g. PCSP) through providing organizational resources.Originality/valueThis paper offers unique practical and theoretical contributions to the hospitality industry and associated literature by implementing SET and COR theory with OJ, GSE and PCSP constructs.

The effect of customer-initiated support on employee service performance: The Self-verification theory perspective

<p id="p00005">With the service industry growing rapidly to contribute to about 60% of the world’s GDP, improving customer service quality with high service performance (in-role performance and proactive customer service performance) is critical for service organizational development. Previous research has linked employee service performance with a variety of potential antecedents, such as individual difference factors and organizational factors from resource, identification, and motivation perspectives. Surprisingly, we know little about how customer positive behaviors (e.g., customer-initiated support) might affect employees’ service performance. This is a critical gap to fill because customers have substantial power and impact on front-line service employees through frequent direct interactions with them during service delivery. Drawing on the self-verification theory, the present study aimed to examine the effect of customer-initiated support on employee service performance (in-role performance and proactive customer service performance) and explore the mediating role of organization-based self-esteem and the moderating roles of promotion focus and internal locus of control. <break/>We collected three-wave time-lagged data from 652 nurses nested within 139 department supervisors. In the first-wave survey (T1), employees reported perceived customer-initiated support, their promotion focus, internal locus of control, proactive personality, and demographic variables. In the second-wave survey (T2), employees who had completed first wave questionnaires were asked to rate their organizational-based self-esteem. In the third wave survey (T3), employees’ supervisors were asked to report the employees’ service performance, including in-role performance and proactive customer service performance. <break/>Results from multilevel modeling analysis showed that: (1) customer-initiated support was positively related to employee organization-based self-esteem; (2) organization-based self-esteem was positively related to employee in-role performance and proactive customer service performance; (3) employee organization-based self-esteem mediated the relation between customer-initiated support and employee in-role performance and proactive customer service performance; (4) promotion focus strengthened the positive relationship between customer-initiated support and organization-based self-esteem, such that the positive relationship between customer-initiated support and organization-based self-esteem is stronger for employees with higher promotion focus; (5) internal locus of control weakened the relationship between customer-initiated support and organization-based self-esteem, such that the positive relationship between customer-initiated support and organization-based self-esteem is weaker for employees with higher internal locus of control. <break/>Our findings contribute to literature in several ways. First, we contribute to the service performance literature by identifying customer-initiated support as a potential antecedent. Second, this study uncovers the potential mechanism of customer-initiated support’s impact on employee service performance from the self- verification perspective, which broadens previous research from resources, identification, and motivation perspectives. Third, this study confirms the moderating roles of promotion focus and internal locus of control, which contributes to the understanding of under what conditions the effect of customer-initiated support will be stronger.