Service enterprise productivity in action: measuring service productivity

© 2018, Emerald Publishing Limited. Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to measure service productivity using the Service Enterprise Productivity in Action (SEPIA) model. The research operationalises only one of the five stakeholder groups, the customer interface which incorporates service complexity (SC), customer interactions, customer channel, customer loyalty (CL) (new) as inputs, and CL (referred and repeat) and willingness to pay as output measures. Design/methodology/approach: The research extends our understanding of existing service productivity models with the development of the SEPIA model. Data were collected from 14 organisations operating in the Australian travel and tourism industry, which was analysed using a data envelopment analysis input oriented variable return to scale method as applied to the SEPIA model customer interface. Findings: Four key findings from the research include: customer choice and their ability to pay is a determinant of service productivity; service productivity is a two stage process when measured; SC is not categorical; and quality business systems do impact service productivity. Research limitations/implications: A limitation of this research is that only one (customer) of the five key stakeholders, customer, employee, manager, supplier and shareholder, was operationalised in this research paper. Practical implications: The operationalisation of the SEPIA customer interface using transactional data and measuring non-financial, intangible factors of productivity provide managers with insights on what services to offer, when to invest in or promote the use of technology and whether to spend marketing effort on customer acquisition or customer retention. Originality/value: The SEPIA model positions service firms within a social and service value network and provides a range of customer measures that extend the current capital (K), labour (L), energy (E), materials (M) and service (S), KLEMS measure of productivity and can be used to show the impact customers have on service productivity

Implementation plan of health and safety processes

An auditor was asked to review an organisation’s Health and Safety procedures to assess compliance with the new legislation imposed by The Health and Safety Act 2015. Then the organisation approached an internal source to conduct a strategic plan in order to target issues of health and safety risk. An implementation plan will be designed to achieve the auditors recommendations and improve the organisation’s Health and Safety practices. Research and audit of the current policies and procedures used at the organisation must be conducted in order to gain a better understanding of the current issues and from there develop action plans and a strategy on how to reach those action plans. Current documentation of policies and an interview with management will be analysed to detail the potential action plans.Once the research has been conducted, results will be used to determine conclusions

The implications of tax on a small business in New Zealand

Small businesses have little resources but must pay tax, so this investigation reports on the implications of tax on a small business. Literature is to be searched to identify the implications for small businesses

Rating system in Food delivery

A small business in food delivery has much competition. The organisation delivers food in food trucks at local markets. The aim of this research is to examine how a rating system will impact on the quality of goods and services and customer satisfaction levels. This research will accomplish the aim in three steps: examine the current state of food trucks, investigate the potential of a rating system, and identify further avenues to use rating systems efficiently. A survey of customers will be used to gather quantitative data and an interview to gather qualitative data

A strategy for a university cafe during holidays

With no existing strategy for a cafe business and a highly competitive market, the organisation requires a planned strategy. This research proposes to research a café to determine the best strategy for the organisation. A questionnaire will collect quantitative and qualitative data and the organisation will be observed to determine business strategies

Identifying successful sales and marketing strategies that affect customer loyalty in a coffee shop

.Most small businesses such as coffee shops are concerned with customer loyalty and satisfaction, and increasing profitability. Marketing strategy becomes important when customer loyalty is low. The aim of this research is to identify sales that affect customer loyalty in a small coffee shop and to investigate the relationship between effective marketing strategies and customer loyalty, using a survey of customers

Factors Affecting Employees Job Switching Intention of Bangladesh’s Ready Made Garments Employees: A Study on Regency Garments Ltd.

Now a days Bangladesh garments industry facing different kinds of problems, with in which the employees jobs switching tendency is the major concern. Its can hamper the organizations performance and profit. An Experienced employee can enhance productivity and can contribute more for organization’s development rather than a new employee. So the most challenging problem is the job switching intention of employees and there are some factors of job switching .The paper basically highlights the major factors related  to  job switching intention of employees in ready made garments industry. To achieve this objective, authors adopted a survey method by administration of questionnaires over 50 employees of ready made garments. After statistical analysis here we find six major factors of job switching tendency in RMG sector. These determinants are workplace facilities, workplace safety, employee recognition program, employees’ family life and others. It is possible for the company to reduce conscious about these factors then can reduces the job switching tendency of employees. Keywords: Job switching intention ,Ready Made Garments ,Turnover Intentio

Factors Affecting Employees Job Switching Intention of Bangladesh’s Ready Made Garments Employees: A Study on Regency Garments Ltd.

Now a days Bangladesh garments industry facing different kinds of problems, with in which the employees jobs switching tendency is the major concern. Its can hamper the organizations performance and profit. An Experienced employee can enhance productivity and can contribute more for organization’s development rather than a new employee. So the most challenging problem is the job switching intention of employees and there are some factors of job switching .The paper basically highlights the major factors related  to  job switching intention of employees in ready    made garments industry. To achieve this objective, authors adopted a survey method by administration of questionnaires over 50 employees of ready made garments. After statistical analysis here we find six major factors of job switching tendency in RMG sector. These determinants are workplace facilities, workplace safety, employee recognition program, employees’ family life and others. It is possible for the company to reduce conscious about these factors then can reduces the job switching tendency of employees. Keywords: Job switching intention ,Ready Made Garments ,Turnover Intentio

Consumer attitudes towards new underlying concepts in autonomous driving cars : instrumental versus experiential activity potentials

Autonomous driving is one of four major trends that will substantially shape the future automotive industry. The increasing importance of software-driven products in this sector, may drive technology companies to enter the market of autonomous vehicles. As the vehicle drives itself, drivers will gain additional free time that may be used otherwise. This additional free time is the basis for new in-car activities which will provide the opportunity to spend the commute time meaningfully. This empirical study investigates consumers’ attitudes towards such in-car activities. Therefore, various possibilities were clustered into experiential, such as entertainment or sleeping, and instrumental, such as communication or productivity, in-car activities. Findings indicated a general consumer interest and a higher rating of instrumental activities compared to experiential activities. Furthermore, it was found that with increasing free time the interest in instrumental activities decreases. The study revealed that consumers with a high willingness to adopt new technologies stated a higher receptiveness for instrumental activities. Similarly, persons with a higher willingness of technology adaptation consider purchasing an autonomous driving car from technology companies entering the market. Traditional car brands need to consider changing market structures and consumer needs to defend their position which might be threatened by new market players. Considering the increasing importance of technology experiences within the vehicle, such in-car activities may represent a crucial driver for success and customer satisfaction.A condução autónoma é uma das quatro tendências principais que irão definir substancialmente a industria automóvel. A crescente importância de produtos baseados em software neste setor pode levar as empresas de tecnologia a entrar no mercado de veículos autónomos. À medida que o veículo se movimenta, os condutores ganham tempo livre que pode ser usado de outra forma. Esse tempo livre adicional é a base para novas atividades no carro que proporcionarão a oportunidade de gastar o tempo de viagem de maneira significativa. Este estudo empírico investiga as atitudes dos consumidores em relação a tais atividades no carro. Deste modo, várias possibilidades foram agrupadas em experiência, como entretenimento ou sono, e instrumental, como comunicação ou produtividade, atividades no carro. Os resultados indicaram um interesse geral do consumidor e uma classificação mais alta de atividades instrumentais em comparação com atividades experienciais. Além disso, constatou-se que, com o aumento do tempo livre, o interesse pelas atividades instrumentais diminui. O estudo revelou que os consumidores com maior disposição para adotar novas tecnologias apresentaram maior receptividade para atividades instrumentais. Da mesma forma, pessoas com maior disposição de adaptação tecnológica consideram a compra de um carro de condução autónoma de empresas de tecnologia que entraram no mercado. As marcas de carros tradicionais precisam de reconsiderar a possibilidade de mudar as estruturas de mercado e as necessidades dos consumidores para defender sua posição, que pode ser ameaçada pelos novos participantes do mercado. Considerando a crescente importância das experiências tecnológicas no veículo, essas atividades no carro podem representar um fator crucial para o sucesso e a satisfação do cliente

RELATIONSHIP MARKETING MODEL FOR HAIR SALONS IN THE FREE STATE PROVINCE

Published ThesisThe increasing rate of the establishment of hair salons in the Free State province has led to fierce competition in hair salons’ businesses. With increased competition, it is hoped that a framework to support competitive activities that meet and exceed customer preferences and requirements could be helpful. This study develops and presents relationship marketing framework that provides support for hair salons competitiveness and growth. The study applied both qualitative and quantitative research method. The quantitative phase used survey data collection method, to collect data from 145 respondents, randomly selected owner/managers of hair salons and customers from Bloemfontein in the Free State Province of South Africa. These responses were supported with personal interview (i.e. qualitative) to improve generalizability of research finding. The empirical findings show evidence of lack of awareness and importance of relationship marketing activities in the hair salons for competitiveness. Despite the lack of awareness, a positive relationship between relationship marketing framework and hair salon competitiveness and growth was found. The relationship marketing model adopted would provide strategic support and adequate information on small business performance which would prove useful for their marketing planning