Gap Model Approach Towards Measuring Customer Satisfaction

The Gaps Model of Service Quality was originally developed for application in the financial service sector. The model was

Effective service delivery (include: delivering service on time, delivering service on budject, dealing with difficult customers, handling and resolving complaints)

Carman, J. M. (1990). Consumer perceptions of service quality: An assessment of the SERVQUAL dimensions. Journal of Retailing, 66 (1), 33-55.

* The difference between expectations of service for a given organization and perceived quality of delivery by the service provider

The gaps model is one framework that can help the service organisation maintain service quality (Zeithaml & Bitner 1996, cited McColl-Kennedy & Kiel 2000). The core concept of this model is the fifth ‘customer gap’. The key to success in the management of service quality is to eliminate the customer gap. In order to do this the organisation must firstly eliminate four prior organisational gaps; (1) not knowing what customers expect (2) Not selecting the right service designs and standards (3) Not delivering to service standards (4) not matching service to promises made. McColl-Kennedy & Kiel (2000) propose that if gaps one to four can be kept closed, then the fifth gap, which is the customer gap, can be bridged.

5. Describe the five gaps identified in the gap model of service quality that can cause problems in service delivery and influence customer evaluations of service quality. Discuss ways that marketers can close each gap. (Points : 0.

The second Provider Gap, The Service Design and Standards Gap, is finding the middle ground, or understanding, of the customers’ expectations and meeting that with service quality specifications that employees can execute (Zeithaml et al, 2009). Virgin Mobile USA had to be able to provide uninterrupted phone service and tangible items that provided recognition of their brand to customers. Their phone service should be reviewed and compared with competitors’ services to ensure relevancy of their services to potential customers.

This chapter discusses literature review of theories and models and conceptual framework which is evidence of the study variables - Quality of service and customer satisfaction. The definition of Service, quality, customer satisfaction, the concept of quality of service, and the relationship between service quality and customer satisfaction is briefly discussed.

Dimensions of service quality include tangibles (facilities, equipment, and tools fit for the task), reliability (desired results every time), responsiveness (quick and accurate responses), assurance (capability and competency), and empathy (caring service and individualized attention). Each constraint is classified under one of six categories: market, material, capacity, logistical, managerial, and behavioral (Bramoraski, 1997). Market constraints deal with geographic and socioeconomic factors. Material constraints deal with shortages of office supplies, such as forms. Capacity constraints deal with inadequate labor and equipment. Logistical constraints are related to the movement of material, such as processing paperwork. Managerial constraints deal with strategies and policies that affect system performance. Behavioral constraints involve employee actions aimed at pleasing management that adversely affect customers.

Patients’ satisfaction and their perceived quality of care given by healthcare providers is increasingly becoming a standard yardstick for the performance of hospitals. However, there is no direct tool and means to measure all the fibers that goes into patients’ satisfaction and perception. This is because the construct is created based

The objective of the methodology is to utilize the qualitative data for explanatory purposes and to generalize findings in support of theory based on a distillation of the various respondent comments. The clustering of issues into logical categories helps draw inferences from the data collected. Thus the goal is to better understand categories of service failures and identify the service failures that result in customer defection.

This report describes a dissatisfying service incident and analyses the incident helping to develop recommendations for the serviced provider. The report integrates the description of an incident, a critical analysis of the incident, including and examinations of the service quality gaps model. Customer gap: dimensions, types of encounters and sources of displeasure and Providers Gaps 1, 3 and 4. The objective of this report is to analyse the critical incident description and provide a comprehensive service marketers’ analysis of the critical incident. Through this report recommendations have been made for the firm in order to reduce eliminate and or/ better manage the factors that led to

The modified Delone & McLean model includes user satisfaction (Wang & Liao, 2008). The user satisfaction is influenced by the system, information, and service quality. Increases in quality tend to increase the user satisfaction. The user satisfaction also has an influence on the intention to use the system. Furthermore, the modified model adds user technical capabilities as an aspect related to user satisfaction. Individuals who have greater technical capabilities are more likely to be satisfied with well-designed systems (Petter, DeLone & McLean, 2013).

A customer (sometimes known as a client, buyer, or purchaser) is the recipient of a Good or a service, or a product, or an idea, obtained from a seller, vendor, or supplier via a financial transaction or exchange for money or some other valuable consideration.[1][2] Etymologically, a client is someone merely inclined to do business, whereas a purchaser procures goods or services on occasion but a customer customarily or habitually engages in transactions.

Sureshchandra, Rajendran and Anantharaman (2002) identified five critical aspects of service quality from the customers point of view namely core service/service product, human element of service delivery, systematisation of service delivery, tangibles of service and lastly social responsibility in order to conceptualise service quality. Table 1 will further provide an explanation to the five critical aspects of service quality as outlined by Sureshchandra et al (2002).