| Author: | Kwok, Vency |
| Title: | Study of success and failure incidents of customer services in apparel section of Hong Kong department store : a case approach |
| Degree: | M.A. |
| Year: | 2000 |
| Subject: | Department stores -- China -- Hong Kong Customer services -- China -- Hong Kong Hong Kong Polytechnic University -- Dissertations |
| Department: | Multi-disciplinary Studies Institute of Textiles and Clothing |
| Pages: | ix, 70, [32] leaves : col. ill. ; 30 cm |
| Language: | English |
| Abstract: | Nowadays the economic recession and competitive environment make retailers more significant to stress the importance of customer service as improved service can become a competitive advantage enabling companies to move forward. This research aims at identifying and analyzing the critical success and failure incidents of customer service in apparel section of Hong Kong department stores. By using Critical Incident Technique developed by Flanagan (1954), the customers' satisfied and dissatisfied incidents were identified and categorized. A sample population of one hundred and twelve customers patronizing at the apparel section of a department store was selected randomly for structured interviews with an open-ended questionnaire. The incidents were then classified into categories according to similarities in the reported experiences through an analytic induction process. The results revealed that the main causes of satisfied and dissatisfied incidents were referring to aspects of "physical environment", "merchandise related", "non-core services", "interpersonal", "process" and "price". Beyond the classified incidents, analysis and examination was made by investigating each category among the total number of incidents; by ranking the satisfying and dissatisfying incidents separately; and by comparing the satisfying and dissatisfying incidents for each category. According to the concept of quality as the gap between expectations and performance, exploration from the view of expectation and performance bad been focused. From the dissatisfied incidents, managerial implications had been highlighted in recognizing the importance of "interpersonal"; developing the "process" dimension; concerning the "price"; understanding the customer; and providing the "non-core" service. Furthermore the Critical Incident Technique showed to be a useful tool for gathering customers' past experiences to identify customer's needs and expectations on quality aspect. By analyzing and evaluating the satisfied and dissatisfied incidents, the researcher can identify strategies to minimize service quality delivery failures and thus improve service quality delivery process. |
| Rights: | All rights reserved |
| Access: | restricted access |
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| File | Description | Size | Format | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| b1569057x.pdf | For All Users (off-campus access for PolyU Staff & Students only) | 5.06 MB | Adobe PDF | View/Open |
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