Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Describing Service Performances: What Are the Challenges?

  • Conference paper
  • First Online:
Advances in The Human Side of Service Engineering

Part of the book series: Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing ((AISC,volume 494))

Abstract

To enhance operational sustainability of services, service quality is needed to be monitored. Expected and experienced service can be compared to evaluate service quality. Service performances involves a sequence of events with many details; describing performances can therefore be challenging. Several methods and tools supporting description of service performances have been introduced. However, there has been little attention on which methods or tools are used in practice and what are the challenges. We conducted an online-based survey with fifty-four people working in service design and development in Norway. We found that there is a need for standardised and consistent methods that can illustrate different communication channels in service delivery processes and support description of both the details and whole process in an intuitive manner. Having a standardised software tool and the guideline, which support illustration of service delivery processes, will be a possible way to overcome the challenges.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 129.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Lewis, R.C., Booms, B.H.: The marketing aspects of service quality. Emerg. Perspect. Serv. Mark. 65(4), 99–107 (1983)

    Google Scholar 

  2. Grönroos, C.: A service quality model and its marketing implications. Eur. J. Mark. 18(4), 36–44 (1984)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Goldstein, S.M., Johnston, R., Duffy, J., Rao, J.: The service concept: the missing link in service design research? J. Oper. Manag. 20(2), 121–134 (2002)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Cook, L.S., Bowen, D.E., Chase, R.B., Dasu, S., Stewart, D.M., Tansik, D.A.: Human issues in service design. J. Oper. Manag. 20(2), 159–174 (2002)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Anderson, M.C.: Aprimer in measuring outsourcing results. Natl. Product. Rev. 17(1), 33–41 (1997)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Developing Meaningful KPIs, https://www.intrafocus.com/services/developing-meaningful-kpis/

  7. Field services | KPI Library, http://kpilibrary.com/categories/field-services

  8. Reichheld, F.F., Markey, R.: The Ultimate Question 2.0: How Net Promoter Companies Thrive in a Customer-Driven World. Harvard Business Press, Boston (2011)

    Google Scholar 

  9. Polaine, A., Løvlie, L., Reason, B.: Service Design: From Insight to Implementation. Rosenfeld Media, Brooklyn (2013)

    Google Scholar 

  10. Berry, L.L., Parasuraman, A., Zeithaml, V.A.: SERVQUAL: a multiple-item scale for measuring consumer perceptions of service quality. J. Retail. 64(1), 12–40 (1988)

    Google Scholar 

  11. Yousapronpaiboon, K.: SERVQUAL: measuring higher education service quality in Thailand. In: 5th World Conference on Educational Sciences, pp. 1088–1095. Procedia—Soc. Behav. Sci. Elsevier, Rome (2014)

    Google Scholar 

  12. Gronroos, C.: Service Management and Marketing: Customer Management in Service Competition, 3rd edn. Wiley, Chichester (2007)

    Google Scholar 

  13. Bitner, M.J., Booms, B.H., Tetreault, M.S.: The service encounter: diagnosing favorable and unfavorable incidents. J. Mark. 54(1), 71–84 (1990)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Nyquist, J.D., Booms, B.H.: Measuring services value from the consumer perspective. Add Value Your Serv. 13–16 (1987)

    Google Scholar 

  15. Nyquist, J.D., Bitner, M.J., Booms, B.H.: Identifying communication difficulties in the service encounter: a critical incident approach. Serv. Encount. 195–212 (1985)

    Google Scholar 

  16. Bitner, M.J., Booms, B.H., Mohr, L.A.: Critical service encounters: the employee’s viewpoint. J. Mark. 58(4), 95–106 (1994)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Stauss, B., Weinlich, B.: Process-oriented measurement of service quality: applying the sequential incident technique. Eur. J. Mark. 31(1), 33–55 (1997)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Fisk, R., Grove, S., John, J.: Services Marketing An Interactive Approach, 4th edn. Cengage Learning, USA (2013)

    Google Scholar 

  19. Halvorsrud, R., Lee, E., Haugstveit, I.M., Følstad, A.: Components of a visual language for service design. In: 4th Service Design and Innovation Conference, pp. 291–300. Linköping University Electronic Press, Lancaster, UK (2014)

    Google Scholar 

  20. Lee, E., Karahasanović, A., Halvorsrud, R.: A visual language for the modelling of service delivery processes to support business processes management. Int. J. Adv. Softw. 8(3&4), 288–308 (2015)

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The research presented here has been conducted within the VISUAL project (project number 219606) funded by the Research Council of Norway. Thanks to Amela Karahasanović and Asbjørn Følstad for their advice on developing online survey questions for the case study. Above all, we thank all the survey participants.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. SINTEF ICT, P.O. Box 124, Blindern, 0373, Oslo, Norway

    Eunji Lee

Authors
  1. Eunji Lee
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Eunji Lee .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Central Florida , Orlando, Florida, USA

    Tareq Z. Ahram

  2. University of Central Florida , Orlando, USA

    Waldemar Karwowski

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2017 Springer International Publishing Switzerland

About this paper

Cite this paper

Lee, E. (2017). Describing Service Performances: What Are the Challenges?. In: Ahram, T., Karwowski, W. (eds) Advances in The Human Side of Service Engineering. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, vol 494. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-41947-3_25

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-41947-3_25

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-41946-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-41947-3

  • eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation