Enhancing performance through the introduction of customer orientation into the building components industry

Purpose: This paper aims to describe an investigation into how company performance can be improved by integrating internal and external customers and technology. The approach was developed, implemented and evaluated in the operations of the building components industry. The research was carried out in the precast concrete division of a Singapore company. Design/methodology/ approach: For the purpose of undertaking the investigation an exploratory case study approach was used. This was divided into conceptual and action research stages. The action research was also used to implement the changes in the company. Questionnaire surveys were carried out among company employees and external customers to assess the effect of these changes. Results of the investigation were derived using content and statistical analysis. Triangulation between three sources was used for validating the data. Findings: The exploratory case study strategy resulted in rich research data, which provided evidence of the changes taking place and integration happening, leading to improved performance. The action research approach proved a powerful tool where the uncertainty of outcomes makes it near impossible to make accurate forecasts. Another output of the research was the development of an "integrated customer orientation" (ICO) model. Research limitations/implications: The research in this paper used a single site action research investigation so should be interpreted within the specific company and industry context. There are implications for theory and practice in a number of areas of production and marketing as well as contributions to understanding about productivity improvement and organisational development. The investigation also fulfils the dual objectives of action research by contributing to both knowledge and practice. Originality/value: The paper describes a unique approach towards improving productivity, quality and service through the use of action research to implement changes, as well as providing the research evidence to evaluate both the process of implementation and results achieved. © Emerald Group Publishing Limited.

The application of physiological observation methods to emotion research

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to examine consumer emotions and the social science and observation measures that can be utilised to capture the emotional experiences of consumers. The paper is not setting out to solve the theoretical debate surrounding emotion research, rather to provide an assessment of methodological options available to researchers to aid their investigation into both the structure and content of the consumer emotional experience, acknowledging both the conscious and subconscious elements of that experience. Design/methodology/approach - A review of a wide range of prior research from the fields of marketing, consumer behaviour, psychology and neuroscience are examined to identify the different observation methods available to marketing researchers in the study of consumer emotion. This review also considers the self report measures available to researchers and identifies the main theoretical debates concerning emotion to provide a comprehensive overview of the issues surrounding the capture of emotional responses in a marketing context and to highlight the benefits that observation methods offer this area of research. Findings - This paper evaluates three observation methods and four widely used self report measures of emotion used in a marketing context. Whilst it is recognised that marketers have shown preference for the use of self report measures in prior research, mainly due to ease of implementation, it is posited that the benefits of observation methodology and the wealth of data that can be obtained using such methods can compliment prior research. In addition, the use of observation methods cannot only enhance our understanding of the consumer emotion experience but also enable us to collaborate with researchers from other fields in order to make progress in understanding emotion. Originality/value - This paper brings perspectives and methods together to provide an up to date consideration of emotion research for marketers. In order to generate valuable research in this area there is an identified need for discussion and implementation of the observation techniques available to marketing researchers working in this field. An evaluation of a variety of methods is undertaken as a point to start discussion or consideration of different observation techniques and how they can be utilised.

Innovation in healthcare services: a customer focused approach

Although the various tools and techniques of quality management are routinely deployed in order to improve healthcare quality, an integrated approach is lacking, which combines the customer focus to identify quality issues, analytical techniques for prioritising improvement measures and a project management approach to plan, implement and evaluate the improvement projects. This study develops an innovative framework using Quality Function Deployment (QFD) and a logical framework in order to address this issue, and demonstrates its effectiveness using a case study on the intensive care unit of a hospital.

Optimization of facility location-allocation problem in customer-driven supply chain

This paper develops and applies an integrated multiple criteria decision making approach to optimize the facility location-allocation problem in the contemporary customer-driven supply chain. Unlike the traditional optimization techniques, the proposed approach, combining the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and the goal programming (GP) model, considers both quantitative and qualitative factors, and also aims at maximizing the benefits of deliverer and customers. In the integrated approach, the AHP is used first to determine the relative importance weightings or priorities of alternative locations with respect to both deliverer oriented and customer oriented criteria. Then, the GP model, incorporating the constraints of system, resource, and AHP priority is formulated to select the best locations for setting up the warehouses without exceeding the limited available resources. In this paper, a real case study is used to demonstrate how the integrated approach can be applied to deal with the facility location-allocation problem, and it is proved that the integrated approach outperforms the traditional costbased approach.

Trade-offs in customer-employee focus:Implications on boundary-spanning capabilities

In pursuing their particular strategic goals, organisations place differential emphasis in their activities on employees and customers. Those who focus predominantly on employees see them as key resources contributing to successful achievement of goals, while those who focus on customers believe that customer commitment is the prime source of financial prosperity and competitive advantage. In all firms, there is potential for conflict and subsequent trade-offs in the emphasis placed on employee resources and customers. This paper investigates the implications of these potential trade-offs on firms' boundary-spanning capabilities (those capabilities that enable firms to interact effectively with their customers, their suppliers, their strategic allies and others in their business networks) in European and Australasian markets. The results suggest that those companies which achieve a strong but balanced focus on both employees and customers have heightened boundary-spanning capabilities. The comparison between UK and Australian businesses indicates that the balance is more highly developed in Australasian than European (UK) markets. © 2004 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.

Response-based segmentation using Finite Mixture Partial Least Squares: theoretical foundations and an application to American Customer Satisfaction Index Data

When applying multivariate analysis techniques in information systems and social science disciplines, such as management information systems (MIS) and marketing, the assumption that the empirical data originate from a single homogeneous population is often unrealistic. When applying a causal modeling approach, such as partial least squares (PLS) path modeling, segmentation is a key issue in coping with the problem of heterogeneity in estimated cause-and-effect relationships. This chapter presents a new PLS path modeling approach which classifies units on the basis of the heterogeneity of the estimates in the inner model. If unobserved heterogeneity significantly affects the estimated path model relationships on the aggregate data level, the methodology will allow homogenous groups of observations to be created that exhibit distinctive path model estimates. The approach will, thus, provide differentiated analytical outcomes that permit more precise interpretations of each segment formed. An application on a large data set in an example of the American customer satisfaction index (ACSI) substantiates the methodology’s effectiveness in evaluating PLS path modeling results.

Customer orientation and innovativeness:differing roles in new and old Europe

Burgess and Steenkamp [Burgess, S. M., & Steenkamp, J. (2006). Marketing renaissance: How research in emerging markets advances marketing science and practice. International Journal of Research in Marketing, 23(4), 337-356.] have pointed out that marketing knowledge derives almost exclusively from research conducted in high income, industrialized countries. However, the generalizability of marketing knowledge should also be tested in emerging markets. We demonstrate that returns on customer orientation and organizational innovativeness play out differently in New versus Old Europe. Contrary to previous research, we find that customer focus is at least as important in New Europe as in our Old European country, while organizational innovativeness appears more important in New Europe to drive both customer service and financial performance.

Facial emotion recognition and alexithymia in adults with somatoform disorders

The primary aim of this study was to investigate facial emotion recognition (FER) in patients with somatoform disorders (SFD). Also of interest was the extent to which concurrent alexithymia contributed to any changes in emotion recognition accuracy. Twenty patients with SFD and 20 healthy, age, sex and education matched, controls were assessed with the Facially Expressed Emotion Labelling Test of FER and the 26-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale. Patients withSFD exhibited elevated alexithymia symptoms relative to healthy controls.Patients with SFD also recognized significantly fewer emotional expressions than did the healthy controls. However, the group difference in emotion recognition accuracy became nonsignificant once the influence of alexithymia was controlled for statistically. This suggests that the deficit in FER observed in the patients with SFD was most likely a consequence of concurrent alexithymia. It should be noted that neither depression nor anxiety was significantly related to emotion recognition accuracy, suggesting that these variables did not contribute the emotion recognition deficit. Impaired FER observed in the patients with SFD could plausibly have a negative influence on these individuals’ social functioning.

Evaluating service quality and customer satisfaction evaluation in an emerging markets

Developing economies offer tremendous potential for future growth and organizations appreciating these consumers’ requirements stand to reap considerable returns. However, compared with more developed economies published consumer studies are few. In particular, there is a dearth of service quality research and hardly any from Africa. Furthermore, the little available research tends to apply Western methodologies, which may not be entirely appropriate. This research investigates East African consumer perceptions of retail banking using an approach that takes account of the research context. Qualitative research was undertaken to define the relevant service attributes. Performance along these was then investigated through a survey with over 2000 respondents. Principal component analysis identifies 13 core service dimensions and multinomial logistic regression reveals which are the key drivers of customer satisfaction. Comparison of the results with studies from other regions confirms that established standardized research instruments are likely to miss or under-represent service attributes important in developing countries.

An investigation of the relationships between service quality, customer satisfaction, perceived value and behavioural intentions

Customer satisfaction and service quality are two important concepts in the marketing literature. However, there has been some confusion about the conceptualisation and measurement of these two concepts and the nature of the relationship between them. The primary objective of this research was to develop a more thorough understanding of these concepts, and a model that could help to explain the links between them and their relationships with post-purchase behaviour. A preliminary theoretical model was developed, based on an exhaustive review of the literature. Following exploratory research, the model was revised by incorporating "Perceived Value" and "Perceived Sacrifice" to help explain customer's post-purchase behaviour. A longitudinal survey was conducted in the context of the restaurant industry, and the data were analysed using structural equation modelling. The results provided evidence to support the main research hypotheses. However, the effect of "Normative Expectations" on "Encounter Quality" was insignificant, and "Perceived Value" had a direct effect on "Behavioural Intentions" despite expectations that such an effect would be mediated through "Customer Satisfaction". It was also found that "Normative Expectations" were relatively more stable than "Predictive Expectations". It is argued that the present research significantly contributes to the marketing literature, and in particular the role of perceived value in the formation of customers' post-purchase behaviour. Further research efforts in this area are warranted.