Service Recovery Research Articles

Thirty Years of Service Failure and Recovery Research: Thematic Development and Future Research Opportunities From a Social Network Perspective

Service failure and recovery (SFR) is a well-established area of research that has made considerable progress over the past 30 years. In this study, we used a combination of text mining, co-word analysis, and social network analysis (SNA) to explore the relationships among keywords in SFR research. We analyzed a dataset of 533 SFR articles published between 1990 and 2020, extracting the most frequently used keywords using text-mining techniques. These keywords were then subjected to co-word analysis and SNA to understand the development of themes and topics in SFR research. By examining changes in network centrality measures, we gained insights into the evolution of research in this field. Furthermore, by identifying gaps or disconnections in the keyword networks, we identified future research opportunities related to the impact of service recovery strategies on customer reactions, employee reactions, and firm outcomes, as well as the relationship between customer and employee responses.

Do managerial communications improve customer satisfaction and eWOM? The moderating effect of response authenticity

As customer reviews are becoming increasingly valued in the hotel industry, hotel managers are actively responding to customer reviews, and many researchers are investigating the effects of managerial responses. Previous studies, however, have mainly focused on open communication that takes place on social platforms or online travel agency (OTA) websites. Considerations about interaction contexts and specific response styles are also lacking. These limitations raise research questions, such as whether private interactions between managers and customers would be effective, whether the effect would differ between dissatisfied and satisfied customers, and what role the authenticity of managerial responses would play in these interactions. To address these questions, we investigated the effect of private managerial interactions. The effect of a managerial apology on customers’ future satisfaction, the effect of a managerial “thank you” on customers’ future electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM), and the moderating effect of response style (i.e., personalization and length) were examined. We analyzed data from a customer satisfaction survey in which customers leave feedback after their stay and hotel managers respond to each customer personally via email. Our results reveal that a private managerial apology increases customers’ future satisfaction only when it is long or personalized. A private managerial “thank you” positively affects customers’ eWOM in the next period. This research provides empirical evidence for the effect of private managerial interactions, extending the existing discussions on the effect of managerial responses to the private digital communication context. This research contributes to the research areas of managerial response, service recovery, and digital communications.

WHAT MATTERS TO STUDENTS? A SCARF-BASED MODEL OF EDUCATIONAL SERVICE RECOVERY

ABSTRACT Universities found themselves unprepared for the dynamic disruption in their delivery of educational services caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The rapid transition by universities to move all classes to an online format posed unexpected challenges and highlighted the lack of preparation. One of these challenges was service failure in several university offerings while not addressing the students’ perceived expectations. Within this context, the authors use the SCARF model to examine how motivational factors impact service recovery and value co-recovery in the face of dynamic changes to the students’ learning experience. Stemming from its nature in facilitating and improving collaborations and interactions with others, the SCARF model is considered a successful framework for improving collaboration and engagement in academia. Using PLS-SEM, the data supported Status, Certainty, Relatedness, and Fairness as relevant to having a service recovery that rectified, amended, and restored the student’s interrupted classroom experience. Overall, the results have some essential initial implications for teaching faculty who want to be prepared to recover in case of another educational service delivery failure like the COVID-19 forced transition experienced.

The interactive effects of extrinsic and intrinsic motivations on service recovery performance: the mediating role of self-efficacy

In recent decades, interest has grown in understanding the mechanisms of service recovery performance (SRP) in the hospitality industry. This study introduces an interactive perspective incorporating both extrinsic and intrinsic factors, investigating the roles of inclusive leadership and job autonomy on employee self-efficacy, with self-efficacy mediating their relationships with SRP. Surface acting is proposed as a negative moderator. A sample of 83 supervisors and 350 frontline employees from 8 Chinese hotels completed questionnaires. Data analysis was conducted using PLS-SEM in Smart PLS 4 and regression analysis in SPSS 25. Results show that inclusive leadership and job autonomy contribute to strong self-efficacy and enhanced SRP. Surface acting moderates the relationship between inclusive leadership and self-efficacy but not between job autonomy and self-efficacy. This cross-sectional survey offers practical implications for hospitality managers, providing guidance on fostering environments that promote self-efficacy and enhance SRP. Limitations include reliance on self-reported measures and a cross-sectional design. Future research could explore other moderators and mediators, different industries, and use longitudinal or experimental designs to establish causality.

Service Recovery via Twitter: An Exploration of Responses to Consumer Complaints*

AbstractThe online response to customer complaints (i.e., service recovery) is a central feature of modern organizations' customer‐focused performance management systems. Motivated by the lack of descriptive information related to complaint handling that can be used in assessing managerial performance, we collect organizations' responses to consumer complaints via Twitter and apply Zemke and Schaaf's (1990) traditional service recovery model to explore these. We collected 10,305 tweets that describe the use of Twitter for service recovery by organizations across four industries: airlines, casual dining chain restaurants, hotels, and fast‐food restaurants. The findings show that in our sample, the traditional service recovery model with five service recovery elements (apology, urgent reinstatement, empathy, symbolic atonement, and follow‐up) is implemented to various degrees. Furthermore, we identify three additional service recovery elements not previously discussed by prior research: channel transfer, feedback acknowledgment, and information request. Our findings have research implications and highlight the importance of incorporating online customer complaints into managerial performance systems.

Critical Care Length of Stay and Support Requirements for Patients Postpancreas Transplant.

Introduction: Pancreas transplant is one of the UK's less commonly done solid abdominal organ transplants. The transplant is reputed for its high-risk postsurgical complications due to multiple patients, procedures, and immunological factors. For this reason, patients are habitually admitted to the intensive care unit for postlaparotomy care, physiological support, and graft function monitoring during their immediate postoperative course. Project Aim: This program evaluation analyzed the trend in critical care length of stay and organ support requirements for patients following whole pancreas transplantation. The aim was to use these baseline data as performance metrics to enable a safer transition and Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycles in improving the delivery of enhanced recovery service. Design: A retrospective chart review was performed using records from Phillips IntelliSpace Critical Care and Anaesthesia system to evaluate the institutional outcomes of patients < 18 years admitted to intensive care following pancreas transplantation between January 1, 2018, and December 31, 2021. Islet-cell transplant recipients were excluded as there is a different postoperative recovery. Results: The data suggested that although patients require a higher level of observations, blood pressure management, blood gas, and glucose monitoring during their first week of transplant, these patients did not routinely require the full range of critical care support. Conclusion: The present evaluation reported the organ support requirements for these transplant recipients. The results will generate further interest in enhanced recovery and service evaluation projects to streamline the postoperative care of these patients from the operating theatre back to the transplant wards.

Keeping warm: racial disparities of warmth judgments in the service industry

PurposePeople develop general stereotypes and beliefs about how people look and behave, and discrepancies in perceptions of warmth and competence can lead to incongruence in expected behaviors during service interactions. These perceptions can contribute to negative outcomes for employees; therefore, this study aims to examine how perceptions of warmth affect both customer reactions to employees who are Asian and the work stress, strain and attitudes of employees who are Asian toward their jobs.Design/methodology/approachTo investigate the phenomenon, the authors conducted three studies. The first study examined whether occupational-racial stereotypes influence customers’ evaluation of employees’ service recovery performance. The second study temporally examined whether employees who are Asian engage in more emotional labor strategies to counter these occupational-racial stereotypes and as a result experience more negative outcomes. And a third study investigated the cumulative effects of negative perceptions on employee outcomes.FindingsThe results suggest employees in the hospitality industry who are Asian are perceived as less warm during service failure interactions and, thus, must work harder to regulate their emotions. As a result, employees who are Asian reported experiencing more negative outcomes, supporting the notion that occupational-racial stereotypes contribute to racial disparity and act as challenges and barriers for employees in the service industry.Research limitations/implicationsThese findings emphasize the need to understand and address occupational-racial stereotypes for employees who are Asian to mitigate racial disparities in the service industry. Organizations can promote diverse work climates, provide emotional support and foster high-quality relationships to support employee well-being and satisfaction.Originality/valueThe results provide insight into how stereotypical warmth perceptions of employees who are Asian may affect the demands they face when engaging in service recovery, and how these increased demands may reduce the quality of their work experiences.

Dynamics of user-generated content and service failure recovery: evidence from millennials

PurposeThere is considerable interest in the value of user-generated content (UGC) and its antecedents. Despite its growing importance, existing studies have largely ignored the effects of UGC on customers’ responses to recovery efforts in the fashion industry. The aim of this paper is to examine the extent to which UGC influences customers’ responses to providers’ service failure and recovery efforts, particularly how millennials’ interactions impact recovery efforts.Design/methodology/approachThe study uses a phenomenological hermeneutics and adopts theoretical sampling to collect empirical data from three European countries (France, Italy and the UK). The authors interviewed 60 millennials who had online service failure experiences in online fashion. This methodological framework was designed to illustrate the close relationships between subject and object as well as identify that data analysis and collection are undertaken in relation to consistent iterative interpretations in an evolving process of study. Drawing on multi-theoretical lenses, using actor–network and social influence theories, this study advances understanding through the development of a new conceptual model relating to individual characteristics.FindingsUsing actor–network theory and social influence theory, this study developed a conceptual model of four customer groups’ responses to service failure based on the severity of service failure and the level of customers’ online response following service failure.Originality/valueThe authors suggest some pragmatic implications of their conceptual model and explain how awareness of different customer groups can lead to effective decision-making for marketers. This study provides a set of practical insights that brand managers can use to recover service failures.

A Comparative Analysis of High Availability for Linux Container Infrastructures

In the current era of prevailing information technology, the requirement for high availability and reliability of various types of services is critical. This paper focusses on the comparison and analysis of different high-availability solutions for Linux container environments. The objective was to identify the strengths and weaknesses of each solution and to determine the optimal container approach for common use cases. Through a series of structured experiments, basic performance metrics were collected, including average service recovery time, average transfer rate, and total number of failed calls. The container platforms tested included Docker, Kubernetes, and Proxmox. On the basis of a comprehensive evaluation, it can be concluded that Docker with Docker Swarm is generally the most effective high-availability solution for commonly used Linux containers. Nevertheless, there are specific scenarios in which Proxmox stands out, for example, when fast data transfer is a priority or when load balancing is not a critical requirement.

The Impact of Service Recovery on Customer Satisfaction at PT Andalas Citra Elektrindo Medan

The goal of service recovery is to address customer complaints, restore customer satisfaction and prevent customer exits. A successful service recovery has a positive impact on the overall satisfaction towards the company which ultimately leads to positive word-of-mouth and repeat purchase behaviour. After the service failure, service recovery should be done by the company in order to avoid the negative impacts of service failure on the customers. The process of service recovery is a part of quality management that intends to maintain business relationships with the customer. The process of service delivery has high chances to fail due to the presence of human element in it especially for company. The purpose of this research is to know whether service recovery has impact on customer satisfaction at PT Andalas Citra Elektrindo Medan. Research design used in this research is descriptive research design and correlational research design. Research methods which used are descriptive statistic analysis, validity and reliability test, normality test, coefficient correlation, coefficient of determinant, simple linear regression analysis and Z testing. The result of this research is the service recovery has impact on customer satisfaction at PT Andalas Citra Elektrindo. From Z test, it can be known that Zcount &gt; Ztable. The coefficient of correlation value is 0.879. There is strong and positive relationship between service recovery and customer satisfaction in PT Andalas Citra Elektrindo. The coefficient of determination value is 77.2%. It means that 77.2% of customer satisfaction can be explained by service recovery in PT Andalas Citra Elektrindo. From result of regression analysis, it can obtain linear regression equation Y = 2.196 + 0.837 X. The increasing of 1 unit of the service recovery can make increasing of 0.837 unit of customer satisfaction. Most of respondent is disagree about the service recovery dimension in PT Andalas Citra Elektrindo. Most of respondent is disagree about the customer satisfaction dimension in PT Andalas Citra Elektrindo.

Houston, we have a problem!: The use of ChatGPT in responding to customer complaints

This study aims to explore the use of ChatGPT-4 in generating management responses to customer reviews or complaints posted on Tripadvisor. Customer reviews and management responses are viewed as information sources for holidaymakers when they are making their decisions. A negative customer review about a hotel accommodation experience from TripAdvisor together with the response made by hotel management to this review, and the ChatGPT-4 generated management response to the same customer review were evaluated by 40 industry experts based on six dimensions of a service recovery model and three dimensions of justice that are frequently used by researchers. The findings suggest several practical implications mainly that the ChatGPT-4 generated management response satisfies the requirements of an efficient and effective management response. The quality of ChatGPT-4 generated management responses tends to be extremely high and they may be generated within seconds and with little effort. In addition to the several above practical implications, as ChatGPT-4 can measure the severity of service failures based on customer complaints the study has important implications for service failures and recovery literature.

The Impact of Airline Responds to Service Failure towards Customers’ Satisfaction and Loyalty in the Airline Industry

This study explores the relationship between airline responses to service failures and customer’s satisfaction and loyalty in the airline industry. Using a framework that includes various airline response categories derived from a service blueprint such as overbooking, flight delays, cancellations, lost or damaged luggage, in-flight service issues, customer service failures, and security issues, this study investigates the relationship between these factors and customer satisfaction, as well as the resulting impact on customer loyalty. A qualitative approach has been used alongside by using non-probability sampling that will be use in this study includes snowball sampling and convenience sampling. Upon collected data through survey, the result is then being regressed linearly in SPSS. The analysis of data reveals that effective and timely handling of service failures, as well as considerate handling of complaints, play a significant role in determining customer satisfaction. In addition, customer satisfaction influences customer loyalty positively, highlighting the significance of service recovery in nurturing long-term customer relationships. The findings emphasize the need for airlines to prioritize efficient service recovery processes, such as transparent communication and adequate compensation for service failures. Future research recommendations include investigating the role of technology in service recovery efforts and other service failure scenarios. This study contributes to the existing body of knowledge on service recovery in the airline industry and offers insights for marketing strategies to increase customer satisfaction and loyalty.

How do acid or alkaline soil environments affect soil organic carbon stocks in a post-abandonment secondary succession process in Mediterranean mountain areas?

Farmland abandonment has become one of the most important land use and land cover (LULC) changes threatening mountain areas in the Mediterranean. The concomitant natural revegetation process brings with it a series of ecosystem services and disservices for these marginal areas. Secondary succession can improve soil environment properties; however, its effects can be influenced by the specific characteristics of the site (topography, climate, vegetation, etc.). Thus, the main objective of this research was to study how soil quality and carbon sequestration are affected by post-abandonment secondary succession depending on the environment (delimited from the bedrock and the typical vegetation communities of the area. Soil sampling was carried out in a representative area of the Mediterranean mid-mountains (Leza Valley, Spain) for two soil environments (acid and alkaline), at different depths (0–40 cm) and in 5 stages of the abandonment process: cropland (CRL); shrubland (SH); bushland (BS); young forest (YF); and old forest (OF). Soil physico-chemical parameters were analysed and data analysis carried out with the following results: (i) significant differences were detected between environments for most LULCs; (ii) LULC, depth and soil environment significantly affected most of the soil variables studied; (iii) alkaline soil environments showed a progressive increase of soil organic carbon (SOC) and total nitrogen (N) stocks as the revegetation process and age of abandonment advanced (from 101.16 Mg ha−1 SOC (CRL) to 181.68 Mg ha−1 SOC (OF); (iv) in acid soil environments, the highest stocks were observed in the YF (161.56 Mg ha−1 SOC) with an irregular evolution pattern.Our study showed that secondary succession can improve soil quality and SOC sequestration. However, factors such as soil environment may be of great importance in selecting the best post-abandonment management strategy in a bid to gain recovery of ecosystem services and mitigate the effects of Global Change.

SAMHSA awards $18.9 million for services to youth and families

This month the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) announced the award of $18.9 million to 35 community organizations for the Enhancement and Expansion of Treatment and Recovery Services for Adolescents, Transitional Aged Youth, and their Families, otherwise known as the “Youth and Family TREE” program. According to SAMHSA, this program enhances “comprehensive treatment, early intervention and recovery support services for adolescents, ages 12 to 18, and transitional aged youth, ages 16 to 25, with substance use disorders and/or co‐occurring substance use and mental disorders, and their families and primary caregivers.”

La evolución reciente de las exportaciones españolas de servicios no turísticos

RationaleThe strong growth in exports of non-travel services following the pandemic has contributed significantly to Spain’s economic recovery. It is therefore useful to analyse recent developments in these exports.Takeaways•The cumulative growth of real exports of non-travel services between 2020 and 2022 amounted to practically 50%. In 2022, they thus stood almost 20% above their 2019 level, a significantly larger gap than for other final demand components.•The recovery in non-travel services exports following the pandemic has boosted this item’s sustained growth of recent decades and has been mainly underpinned by exports of business, transport and IT services, especially to the euro area and North America.•The competitiveness of large Spanish exporting firms, which generally form part of corporate groups, might explain, at least in part, the robust growth in non-travel services exports after the pandemic.

Examining the role of social media influencers in service failure and recovery strategies: an empirical investigation of millennials' views

PurposePrior research has advanced several explanations for social media influencers' (SMIs’) success in the burgeoning computer-mediated marketing environments but leaves one key topic unexplored: the moderating role of SMIs in service failure and recovery strategies.Design/methodology/approachDrawing on a social constructivist perspective and an inductive approach, 59 in-depth interviews were conducted with millennials from three European countries (Italy, France and the United Kingdom). Building on social influence theory and commitment-trust theory, this study conceptualises four distinct pathways unifying SMIs' efforts in the service failure recovery process.FindingsThe emergent model illustrates how source credibility and message content moderate service failure severity and speed of recovery. The insights gained from this study model contribute to research on the pivotal uniqueness of SMIs in service failure recovery processes and offer practical explanations of variations in the implementation of influencer marketing. This study examines a perspective of SMIs that considers the cycle of their influence on customers through service failure and recovery.Originality/valueThe study suggests that negative reactions towards service failure and recovery are reduced if customers have a relationship with influencers prior to the service failure and recovery compared with the reactions of customers who do not have a relationship with the influencer.

Leveraging Policy Changes Made in Response to COVID-19 to Advance Telehealth and Novel Treatment Approaches for People Who Use Opioids: Qualitative Perspectives From Two Rural North Carolina Counties.

The COVID-19 pandemic has been a catalyst for telehealth services for people who use opioids; however, the data show dramatic increases in opioid overdose deaths and ongoing lack of treatment options in North Carolina, particularly among rural residents. We conducted a listening session and qualitative interviews with 10 health care professionals, administrators, and community partners providing services for individuals who use opioids in Granville and Vance counties. Data were analyzed with an applied thematic approach. Participants described several benefits of rapid expansion of telehealth services during the pandemic. Continued improvements in access to high-speed internet will be critical to maintain progress in rural areas. Participants advocated for integrated, co-located ser-vices and improved referral processes to minimize cost and burden of attending multiple appointments across sites. Integrated services could include medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD), mental/behavioral health support, primary medical care, and harm reduction services. Participants supported novel community-based strategies, such as mobile clinics, and described a need for after-hours and crisis services for opioid recovery in the region. The study was exploratory in nature and elicited the perspectives of providers serving two rural counties in North Carolina, which may not be generalizable to broader populations. We did not include the perspectives of people who use opioids in this study but will do so in upcoming research. Participants were strong proponents of the benefits of telehealth and identified strategies for continuing recent progress in rural access to opioid treatment through novel integrated and community-based approaches.

PEMAP: An intelligence-based framework for post-event management of transportation systems

In recent years, transportation systems and communities have faced major disruptions, such as heavy traffic, accidents, natural disasters, and malicious acts. Managing these disruptions and their impact on transportation systems is crucial. This paper proposes PEMAP, Post-Event MAnagement of transPortation systems, an intelligence-based framework for redirecting traffic after disturbances. PEMAP aims to ensure the swift recovery of network services despite various disruptions, benefiting transportation systems and communities. It is composed of four phases: indices selection and evaluation, criticality index calculation, diversion route decision making, and decision application. Relevant indices are evaluated and calculated into one criticality index using microscopic simulation. An intelligent model for vehicular re-routing, considering the criticality index, is then introduced. In the last phase, Vehicular ad-hoc networks (VANETs) is used to facilitate communication and implementation of rerouting decisions. The proposed implementation uses the Veins framework along with Python and C++ programming languages.

Proactive Service Recovery Performance in Emerging (vs. Developed) Market-Based Firms: The Role of Clients’ Cultural Orientation

Though service recovery plays a key role in industrial clients’ post-recovery supplier evaluations, the impact of customers’ cultural orientation on the effectiveness of supplier-instigated proactive recovery (i.e., a supplier’s recovery efforts before clients notice/complain) remains tenuous, particularly in emerging (vs. developed) markets. Addressing this gap, we develop a model that examines (a) the moderating role of clients’ cultural orientation on the association of supplier-instigated proactive recovery and client-perceived recovery-related justice, and (b) the impact of customer-perceived justice on relationship quality in the emerging (vs. developed) market context. To test the model, we deploy a cross-cultural scenario-based experiment using 117 Danish industrial clients (i.e., developed market) and 109 Iranian industrial clients (i.e., emerging market). The results suggest that customers’ cultural orientation partially moderates the relationship of suppliers’ proactive recovery and customer-perceived justice, in turn boosting relationship quality in the emerging/developed market context.

Factors influencing consumer forgiveness: a systematic literature review and directions for future research

PurposeConsumer forgiveness is an important concept in service failure and recovery research. To advance knowledge and develop future research agenda in this domain, this paper provides a systematic review of the literature on factors influencing consumer forgiveness while adopting the customer journey perspective.Design/methodology/approachUsing the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) protocol, a systematic literature review (SLR) was conducted of 102 peer-reviewed journal articles, on factors influencing consumer forgiveness, published between January 2000 and December 2020.FindingsThe authors' analysis offers a detailed account of the factors influencing consumer forgiveness across the three stages of the service journey: pre-transgression, transgression and recovery. From the review, the authors identified significant gaps relating to the interactions between the relevant factors influencing forgiveness throughout the various stages of the consumer service journey. Based on the findings, the authors offer several research questions to help managers optimize customer forgiveness following a service failure throughout each stage of consumer service journey.Originality/valueThe authors' review synthesizes the literature on factors contributing to consumer forgiveness and integrates these factors into the customer service journey. The authors' findings inform directions for future research and provide insights regarding the measures that service providers should take to understand and encourage consumer forgiveness.