Service Management Literature Research Articles

Effects of Servicescapes on Interaction Quality, Service Quality, and Behavioral Intention in a Healthcare Setting.

This study develops a conceptual framework that encompasses servicescapes and customer perceptions and behaviors, and conducts an empirical investigation of healthcare service facilities. Structural equation modeling is performed using a sample of 271 patients who received treatment within one year at hospitals and clinics located in the metropolitan area of Seoul, South Korea. The results of the empirical analysis show that service quality improvements and patient revisits to healthcare facilities can be induced through servicescape improvements and interaction quality. These results make theoretical contributions to the service management literature and have practical implications for the operations of healthcare facilities.

Does service modularity enhance new service development performance in supply chains: an empirical study

PurposeCustomer firms and suppliers are valuable knowledge resources that can be used for achieving superior new service development (NSD) performance. This study aims to investigate how supply chain relationship quality (SCRQ) and knowledge sharing promote the success of NSD, and examines service modularity as an important contingency factor that enhances NSD performance in supply chains.Design/methodology/approachBased on service-dominant logic, this study builds a conceptual model to empirically explore the impacts of SCRQ and knowledge sharing on NSD performance, and highlights the moderating effect of service modularity by means of survey methodology of 295 Chinese service firms to test the research hypotheses.FindingsRegression analysis results show that SCRQ has significant positive effects on knowledge sharing and NSD performance; knowledge sharing plays a partial intermediary role between SCRQ and NSD performance; and service modularity partially moderates the relationships between SCRQ, knowledge sharing and NSD performance.Research limitations/implicationsGeneralizations here are limited to Chinese service firms. Service modularity in manufacturing firms experimenting with servitization has yet to be examined and provides a good avenue for future research.Originality/valueThis study contributes to service management literature by providing empirical understanding of how service modularity affects NSD performance in multiprovider contexts. Furthermore, this study offers novel insights on the impacts of inter-firm relationship quality and knowledge sharing in modular collaborative innovation.

A balancing act: Negotiating authenticity in luxury lodges

This study explores the negotiation process underpinning the creation of authentic experiences in luxury lodges. The findings of this study highlight how this is a balancing act performed by the hosts through the provision of an authentic experiential platform connecting guests with unique places and genuine people and is of a luxurious nature. Staged experiences are authenticated by the guests through their bodies and minds, activating, in turn, experiences of existential authenticity. Contributing to service marketing and management literature, the study departs from purely abstract authenticity conceptualisations by applying an experience design and management lens to understanding authentic experiences. Practically, our findings demonstrate how authenticity is operationalised in luxury lodges and how these experiences are understood and valued by tourism and hospitality consumers and providers, providing crucial implications for luxury accommodation marketers and managers.

Generating actionable insights from free-text care experience survey data using qualitative and computational text analysis: A study protocol.

Introduction:The National Care Experience Programme (NCEP) conducts national surveys that ask people about their experiences of care in order to improve the quality of health and social care services in Ireland. Each survey contains open-ended questions, which allow respondents to comment on their experiences. While these comments provide important and valuable information about what matters most to service users, there is to date no unified approach to the analysis and integration of this detailed feedback. The objectives of this study are to analyse qualitative responses to NCEP surveys to determine the key care activities, resources and contextual factors related to positive and negative experiences; to identify key areas for improvement, policy development, healthcare regulation and monitoring; and to provide a tool to access the results of qualitative analyses on an ongoing basis to provide actionable insights and drive targeted improvements. Methods:Computational text analytics methods will be used to analyse 93,135 comments received in response to the National Inpatient Experience Survey and National Maternity Experience Survey. A comprehensive analytical framework grounded in both service management literature and the NCEP data will be employed as a coding framework to underpin automated analyses of the data using text analytics and deep learning techniques. Scenario-based designs will be adopted to determine effective ways of presenting insights to knowledge users to address their key information and decision-making needs. Conclusion:This study aims to use the qualitative data collected as part of routine care experience surveys to their full potential, making this information easier to access and use by those involved in developing quality improvement initiatives. The study will include the development of a tool to facilitate more efficient and standardised analysis of care experience data on an ongoing basis, enhancing and accelerating the translation of patient experience data into quality improvement initiatives.

Influence of informal institutions on commitment to customer service in Confucian Asia

PurposeResearch on the commitment to customer service (CCS) typically considers either trainable behavior or external stimuli such as financial incentives vital to CCS. Utilizing the cultural context of Confucian Asia, this study proposes a novel approach that shifts the focus towards the antecedents of the informal institutional environment.Design/methodology/approachThis research considers four informal institutions typical for Confucian Asia about their influence on CCS: power distance, perceived individual independence, openness to change, and informal network ties. Hypotheses are tested in a structural equation model using data obtained from a South Korean subject pool.FindingsResults show that informal institutions like power distance and network ties, and mediators like perceived individual independence and openness to change are positively related to CCS. Power distance and network ties also have a direct positive effect on openness to change. Moreover, power distance negatively affects perceived individual independence.Research limitations/implicationsThe authors' findings contribute to the service management literature by showing that a given CCS of service employees can be explained by antecedents of the company's informal institutional environment.Practical implicationsFrom a human resource perspective, the informal institutional environment should be taken into account when establishing a supporting organizational culture and designing management training programs.Originality/valueThis research introduces the institutional view to services management research, focusing on the role that informal institutions play. In particular, factors like power distance and network ties that influence CCS are tested for the first time.

Digital transformation for crisis preparedness: service employees’ perspective

PurposeDigital transformation (DT) has had a profound impact on how services are delivered, but its effects on service frontline employees in crisis have yet to be examined. Using conservation of resources theory, the purpose of this study is to empirically test the overall effects of DT within service organisations on service employees’ beliefs with respect to crisis preparedness, life satisfaction and customer orientation. It also examines the moderating effects of crisis-related anxiety and job experience on these relationships.Design/methodology/approachThis study’s hypotheses were tested quantitatively with an online survey of N = 592 frontline service employees working in hospitality and retail services organisation during the crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic. Structural equation modelling was used to analyse the data. A post-hoc study of customer-facing supervisors (N = 268) was conducted to validate the study findings and establish generalisability.FindingsDT predicts service employees’ beliefs regarding crisis preparedness. In turn, crisis preparedness increases life satisfaction and customer orientation. Moreover, crisis-related anxiety negatively moderates the relationship between DT and crisis preparedness. Post hoc analyses validate the results derived from service employees’ data. Surprisingly, there is no significant relationship between crisis preparedness and life satisfaction for supervisors/managers with low job experience.Originality/valueThis study makes an empirical contribution to the service management literature by examining the impact of DT on service employees’ beliefs with respect to crisis preparedness that subsequently influences their life satisfaction and ability to remain customer oriented during a crisis. It highlights an important intersection between technology and service work in terms of a transformative impact of DT on service employee outcomes during crises.

The mediating role of organizational learning capability and resilience in the error management culture-service innovation link and the contingent effect of error frequency

ABSTRACT Error management culture (EMC) has received a significant interest in the service management literature. However, there remains a lack of studies investigating the underlying mechanisms (mediating variables) where EMC affects service innovation within the boundary condition of its moderating variables. This study investigates how EMC influences service innovation through organizational learning capability (OLC) and organizational resilience mechanisms. In addition, this study empirically examines the moderating role of error frequency on the relationship between EMC and OLC and organizational resilience. By investigating 300 service firms, this study empirically reveals that (a) EMC positively relates to OLC and organizational resilience; (b) OLC positively relates to organizational resilience; and (c) OLC plays a mediating role in the relationship between EMC and service innovation. This study also demonstrates that error frequency weakens the relationship between EMC and OLC in service firms.

Development of a Novel Coding Scheme to Explore Interactions in the Co-Production of Public Services with Priority Populations

This study focuses on the development of a reliable coding scheme (CP-CODER) for studying interaction dynamics during the co-production of a public service involving priority communities. CP-CODER addresses the need to involve priority populations in the development of public services, an approach that has been recognized as difficult because of the high possibility of their experiencing negative health, social, and economic outcomes. The coding scheme was designed to capture group dynamics and forms of public engagement by adopting and integrating existing theoretical frameworks in the public service management and qualitative method literature. Coding was conducted on the transcripts of four co-production workshops, which included 26 family caregivers, three local health and social care service provider representatives, and five researchers involved in the co-production of new community-based services. One category was added to the two theoretical frameworks. The kappa ranged from 0.70–1.00 for the eight variables and the 26 individual items. The overall kappa was 0.91, while the overall percentage of agreement was 91.16%. The results of the pilot test showed the importance of integrating and managing three dimensions in co-producing with a priority population: the turn-taking, the content, and the level of abstraction of the discussion. The findings of this study have enhanced and supported both practitioners and researchers in co-producing services, ensuring the equal contribution of all participants, even those whose voices are rarely heard.

The services field: A cornucopia filled with potential management topics

A primary aim of management research is to develop knowledge about the management of organizations. Many countries’ long-trend shift towards a service economy and the concomitant increase in the number of service organizations have stimulated advancements in service management research. However, some blind spots remain. In this article, we focus on product market stakeholders and organizational stakeholders and discuss research questions (or blind spots) that map to different areas of management literature, especially those of service management literature. We believe that attaining answers to those research questions can yield important insights that have the potential to advance management research.

Collective empowerment of an online patient community: conceptualizing process dynamics using a multi-method qualitative approach

BackgroundOnline communities for patients with chronic conditions are becoming healthcare providers. They gather to offer support and services, and to become a collective oppositional force. We found, however, that these communities and their collective power are rarely studied in the health services management literature, which focuses more on the empowering practices of healthcare professionals or patient participation. The aim of this study is thus to build a better understanding of the nature of patients’ collective empowerment and the processes underlying it. We carry out two exploratory qualitative studies to examine the motivations that drive chronically ill patients to engage in an individual and then collective empowerment process.MethodsThe first qualitative study involves four semi-structured interviews with experts. The second is a netnographic study carried out over a year on an online forum for people with thyroid disease. The latter has two phases: an immersion phase followed by one that traces the path of 21 forum members from their first message to their recognition as active members or even forum moderators. The data are analyzed through thematic and lexical content analyses.ResultsWe were able to identify the different stages of the collective patient empowerment process and the criteria for progression though this process. Specifically, the first study sheds light on the unmet individual and collective needs of the patients. The second emphasizes the essential role of active contributors and their impact on the growth and power of the community.ConclusionsThis study looks at patient communities as a self-contained system and identifies the stages of collective empowerment that match the organization’s declared priorities: community, collaborative, productive, and societal. These results should help health professionals better take these online communities into account in patient care, improving their practices, and carrying out their policies. We call for future research into collective empowerment and its influence on patient behavior, the transformation of healthcare institutions, and the health services market.

The service triad: an empirical study of service robots, customers and frontline employees

PurposeRecent service studies suggest focusing on the service triad consisting of technology-customer-frontline employee (FLE). This study empirically investigates the role of service robots in this service triad, with the aim to understand the augmentation or substitution role of service robots in driving utilitarian and hedonic value and ultimately customer repatronage.Design/methodology/approachIn study 1, field data are collected from customers (n = 108) who interacted with a service robot and FLE in a fast casual dining restaurant. Structural equation modeling (SEM) is used to test hypotheses about the impact of service robots' anthropomorphism, social presence, value perceptions and augmentation opportunities in the service triad. In study 2, empirical data from a scenario-based experimental design (n = 361) complement the field study by further scrutinizing the interplay between the service robot and FLEs within the service triad.FindingsThe study provides three important contributions. First, the authors provide empirical evidence for the interplay between different actors in the “customer-FLE-technology” service triad resulting in customer repatronage. Second, the empirical findings advance the service management literature by unraveling the relationship between anthropomorphism and social presence and their effect on perceived value in the service triad. And third, the study identifies utilitarian value of service robots as a driver of customer repatronage in fast casual dining restaurants.Practical implicationsThe results help service managers, service robot engineers and designers, and policy makers to better understand the implications of anthropomorphism, and how the utilitarian value of service robots can offer the potential for augmentation or substitution roles in the service triad.Originality/valueBuilding on existing conceptual and laboratory studies on service robots, this is one of the first field studies on the service triad consisting of service robots – customers – frontline employees. The empirical study on service triads provides evidence for the potential of FLEs to augment service robots that exhibit lower levels of functional performance to achieve customer repatronage. FLEs can do this by demonstrating a high willingness to help and having excellent interactions with customers. This finding advocates the joint service delivery by FLE – service robot teams in situations where service robot technology is not fully optimized.

Reinterpreting museums’ intended experience during the COVID-19 pandemic: insights from Italian University Museums

ABSTRACT This paper explores whether and how University Museums reinterpreted their intended experience during the COVID-19 pandemic shock. To this end, theoretical insights from the service management literature are used. Adopting an interpretative approach, this paper relies on legislative documents and a survey of Italian University Museums during the COVID-19 lockdown. Results highlight how digital technologies enabled Italian University Museums to design service offerings and value co-creation practices. Particularly, digital technologies have led Italian University Museums, as experience-centric service organisations, to reinterpret their intended experience. This research sheds light on how museums can adapt their traditional interpretation of design areas by redefining content and the interaction with their visitors through digital technologies, ultimately building a virtual interpretation of their intended experience. This allows building a conceptual model that emphasises the differentiation between synchronous (online) and asynchronous (offline) value co-creation practices. Finally, this paper adds practical insights for managing museums’ co-creation practices virtually.

Hierarchy of customer goals: conceptual framework and new insights

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to: (1) better understand the structure (hierarchy) of customer goals providing conceptual clarity; and (2) propose a hierarchy of customer goals conceptual framework that explicates how healthcare customer goals are linked to drivers and outcomes, thus building theory and informing practice.Design/methodology/approachThe research draws on 21 in-depth interviews of patients with a chronic disease. Drawing principally on construal-level theory and using manual thematic analysis and Leximancer, this article provides new insights into customer goals.FindingsIn a first, the authors identify a two-dimensional structure for each of the three main goal types, which previously had been viewed as unidimensional. The authors develop a conceptual framework linking drivers of goal setting (promotion/prevention focus world view and perceived role) with goal type (life goals, focal goals and action plan goals and their respective subgoals) and outcomes (four forms of subjective well-being). Visual concept maps illustrate the relative importance of certain health-related goals over others.Research limitations/implicationsThe usefulness of the authors’ conceptual framework is demonstrated through the application of their framework to goal setting among healthcare customers, showing links between the structure of goals (life goals, focal goals and action plan goals) to drivers (promotion/prevention focus world view and perceived role) and outcomes (subjective well-being) and the framework's potential application to other service settings.Originality/valueThis study contributes to healthcare marketing and service management literature by providing new insights into goal setting and proposing a novel hierarchy of customer goals conceptual framework linking drivers, goal types and outcomes.

An IT Service Management Literature Review: Challenges, Benefits, Opportunities and Implementation Practices

Information technology (IT) service management is considered a collection of frameworks that support organizations managing services. The implementation of these kinds of frameworks is constantly increasing in the IT service provider domain. The main objective is to define and manage IT services through its life cycle. However, from observing the literature, scarcely any research exists describing the main concepts of ITSM. Many organizations still struggle in several contexts in this domain, mainly during implementation. This research aims to develop a reference study detailing the main concepts related with ITSM. Thus, a systematic literature review is performed. In total, 47 articles were selected from top journals and conferences. The benefits, challenges, opportunities, and practices for ITSM implementation were extracted, critically analysed, and then discussed.

Value–Based Guiding Principles for Managing Cognitive Computing Systems in the Public Sector

Cognitive Computing Systems (CCSs) are increasing in prominence in the public sector. This paper develops a framework drawing on public value and information technology service management literature to guide the management of CCSs in the public sector. We draw on academic literature, gray literature, legislation and government reports, and examples on CCS initiatives in the public sector to develop insights for research and practice. We then outline the themes and present the insights in the form of guiding principles and specific (detailed) recommendations. These include guiding principles and recommendations for establishing legitimacy, understanding the required capabilities, executing capabilities, creating and measuring public value.

Service-profit chain: literature review and recommendations for future research within the restaurant industry

Increasing pressure has been placed on the restaurant industry concerning the employee-employer relationship and organisations struggle to implement strategies that successfully address workforce concerns while continuing to optimise financial performance. Service management and service-profit chain literature have offered initial support for a framework in which employee perceptions influence customer perceptions of service, which in turn affect financial results. The following paper examines the growing body of service-profit chain literature and provides suggestions for future research within the industry including evaluating employee engagement as the employee perceptions' construct within the chain.

UNDERSTANDING SERVICE EXCLUSION THROUGH VALUE CO-CREATION PARADIGM

Given the emerging demographics of ageing populations, changing family structures, global migration and social recognition of various disabilities, the phenomenon ‘service exclusion’ remains a serious problem that is rarely discussed in service management literature. Though the transformative service research (TSR) stream calls for in-depth understanding of how services can create uplifting changes and improvements to the wellbeing of individuals and collectives (Ostrom, Parasuraman, Bowen, Patricio, & Voss, 2015), the detrimental effects of service exclusion on wellbeing, especially for the deprived consumers remains a barely investigated issue. To mitigate the unequal division of service resources and to achieve the goals of TSR, a better understanding of factors impacting the access and utilization of services by deprived individuals is needed. Service exclusion is a useful vantage from which to gain such understanding, as it can be deliberately driven by service exchange logics put in place by organizations to serve one type of customer to the exclusion of others. However, at times service exclusion is unintentional and overly perceived by victimized customers. Such service exclusion is a wicked problem in service management and is rarely discussed in the service literature.

Uncertainty profiles in engineering-service development: exploring supplier co-creation

PurposeEngineering service (ES) development, particularly with supplier co-creation, is nontrivial, and the literature has acknowledged the high relevance of uncertainty in this context. This study aims to investigate the relationship between different supplier co-creation modes (operationally independent [OI] and operationally dependent [OD]) and uncertainty criticality arising during ES development.Design/methodology/approachThis study develops a conceptual framework of five uncertainty types by synthesizing the relevant literature from service management and new product development. This framework guided the empirical work of two in-depth case studies, describing uncertainty criticality in OI and OD supplier co-creation.FindingsThe findings show that environmental and organizational uncertainty were generally of high criticality for ES development independently of the supplier co-creation mode. Moreover, uncertainty criticality varied between the two cases, with higher criticality of technical and relational uncertainty as well as less resource uncertainty experienced by the focal organization in the OD case. This suggests that supplier co-creation constitutes an uncertainty reallocation.Research limitations/implicationsFurther research is needed to test the generalizability of the qualitative results through quantitative studies.Originality/valueThis research contributes to the service management literature by showing the varying uncertainty profiles manufacturing organizations face when engaging in different supplier co-creation modes. Furthermore, this research provides novel insights on ES development to the broader discussion on ES management.

Co-production in health policy and management: a comprehensive bibliometric review

BackgroundDue to an increasingly elderly population, a higher incidence of chronic diseases and higher expectations regarding public service provision, healthcare services are under increasing strain to cut costs while maintaining quality. The importance of promoting systems of co-produced health between stakeholders has gained considerable traction both in the literature and in public sector policy debates. This study provides a comprehensive map of the extant literature and identifies the main themes and future research needs.MethodsA quantitative bibliometric analysis was carried out consisting of a performance analysis, science mapping, and a scientific collaboration analysis. Web of Science (WoS) was chosen to extract the dataset; the search was refined by language, i.e. English, and type of publication, i.e. journal academic articles and reviews. No time limitation was selected.ResultsThe dataset is made up of 295 papers ranging from 1994 to May 2019. The analysis highlighted an annual percentage growth rate in the topic of co-production of about 25%. The articles retrieved are split between 1225 authors and 148 sources. This fragmentation was confirmed by the collaboration analysis, which revealed very few long-lasting collaborations. The scientific production is geographically polarised within the EU and Anglo-Saxon countries, with the United Kingdom playing a central role. The intellectual structure consists of three main areas: public administration and management, service management and knowledge translation literature. The co-word analysis confirms the relatively low scientific maturity of co-production applied to health services. It shows few well-developed and central terms, which refer to traditional areas of co-production (e.g. public health, social care), and some emerging themes related to social and health phenomena (e.g. the elderly and chronic diseases), the use of technologies, and the recent patient-centred approach to care (patient involvement/engagement).ConclusionsThe field is still far from being mature. Empirical practices, especially regarding co-delivery and co-management as well as the evaluation of their real impacts on providers and on patients are lacking and should be more widely investigated.

Leveraging stakeholders’ knowledge in new service development: a dynamic approach

PurposeThis study aims to shed lights on the dynamics of involving and sharing knowledge with stakeholders in the process of new service development (NSD) over time.Design/methodology/approachThe paper is based on a paradigmatic case focused on the development of the digital MBA program by the School of Management of Politecnico di Milano. Primary and secondary data have been largely collected and analyzed, involving multiple stakeholders of the development process.FindingsThis study describes how several stakeholders have been involved during the phase of the NSD process, showing two variables that ruled their involvement: the level of control exerted by the School on the stakeholders and the level of flexibility of the stakeholders.Research limitations/implicationsThis research offers insights to the understanding of the dynamics of involving and sharing knowledge with multiple-stakeholders in NSD. From a theoretical perspective, it contributes to stakeholder theory linking it with the service management literature, highlighting the role of cyclical fluctuations in the involvement activities.Practical implicationsThis research offers insights to managers dealing with the development of new services, offering them a novel view on how various stakeholders may be involved over time, in different moment and in different ways, to properly enhance the development process thanks to their knowledge sharing.Originality/valueThis paper contributes to the service management literature emphasizing the role of multiple stakeholders while providing insights and suggestions to manage the complex relationships created by their involvement and their knowledge.