scholarly journals What goes on between customers? A cross-industry study of customer-to-customer interaction (CCI)

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 123-147 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Nicholls

PurposeThis study aims to provide service managers and researchers with a deeper understanding of the direct on-site interactions taking place between customers.Design/methodology/approachUsing the Critical Incident Technique (CIT), 284 incidents are analysed to develop a typology of how service customers experience direct on-site CCI.FindingsThe research reveals a wide range of CCI. A typology consisting of nine distinct categories of CCI emerged: (1) shared use space, (2) assigned space and possessions, (3) information provision, (4) assistance, (5) social conversations, (6) disrespectful attitude, (7) queuing discipline, (8) transaction efficiency and (9) undesired customers and ‘camouflaged customers’. These categories can accommodate a multitude of customer behaviours that impact, negatively or positively, on the service experience of other customers.Research limitations/implicationsFuture studies could be conducted following a more inclusive research design capable of gaining CCI insights from employees and managers.Practical implicationsPractitioners can use the typology to systematically identify the full range of specific CCI behaviours affecting their businesses. It also assists them in the analysis and understanding of individual C2C (customer-to-customer) interactions. For academics the typology makes available a comprehensive framework to guide future research into CCI.Originality/valueThe study constitutes the first systematic attempt to classify direct on-site CCI across a wide range of services. The typology, unrestricted by any single-industry bias, is robust and conceptually broad, and therefore highly portable across service industries.

2020 ◽  
Vol 34 (4) ◽  
pp. 499-511 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica L. Pallant ◽  
Sean Sands ◽  
Ingo Oswald Karpen

Purpose Increasingly, customers are demanding products that fit their individual needs. Many firms respond by cultivating product individualization via mass customization, often integrating this capability via interactive platforms that connect them with customers. Despite such customization, research to date has lacked cohesion, often taking the organizational, rather than customer, view. The purpose of this paper is to provide inconclusive theorizing in regard to customization from the consumers’ perspective. Design/methodology/approach The review and synthesis of the literature revealed that co-configuration is an underexplored domain of mass customization. Consequently, an initial conceptualization of co-configuration is developed and compared with current customization strategies. Specifically, the definition and boundary conditions of co-configuration are compared with three domains of mass customization, namely, co-production, co-construction and co-design. This led to the development of research priority areas to establish an agenda for future research on mass customization and its role in customer’ firm relationships. Findings This paper provides the delineation of four distinct consumer customization strategies, conceptualized in a matrix, and proposes separate customer journey visualizations. In advancing the theoretical understanding by means of a unifying typology, this paper identifies three existing Cs of mass customization (co-production, co-construction and co-design) and focuses specifically on a fourth (co-configuration), identified as an understudied mass customization strategy. Originality/value This paper extends the previous conceptualizations of mass customization comprising co-production, co-design and co-construction. The proposed typology establishes a foundation for four research priority areas that can improve both academic rigor and practical application.


2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 1062-1076 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca Nicolaides ◽  
Richard Trafford ◽  
Russell Craig

Purpose This paper reviews an array of psycholinguistic techniques that auditors can deploy to explore written and oral language for signs of deception. The review is drawn upon to propose some elements of a forward research agenda. Design/methodology/approach Relevant literature across several disciplines is identified through keyword searches of major bibliographic databases. Findings The techniques highlighted have considerable potential for use by auditors to identify audit contexts which merit closer audit investigation. However, the techniques need further contextual empirical investigation in audit contexts. Seven specific propositions are presented for empirical testing. Originality/value This paper assembles literature on deceptive communication from a wide range of disciplines and relates it to the audit context. Auditors’ attention is directed to potential linguistic signals of fraud risk, and opportunities for future research are suggested. The paper is consciousness-raising, has pedagogic purpose and suggests critical elements for a future research agenda.


2016 ◽  
Vol 30 (6) ◽  
pp. 643-658 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jackie L.M. Tam ◽  
Piyush Sharma ◽  
Namwoon Kim

Purpose This paper aims to examine the role that personal cultural orientations play in customer attributions in intercultural service encounters. Design/methodology/approach A conceptual model was developed depicting the relationships between service delivery outcome, personal cultural orientations and customer attributions. Data were collected from 640 Chinese and Western customers using scenario-based experiments in a restaurant context to assess the hypothesized relationships in the model. Findings The findings show that compared to service delivery success, customers tend to hold service employee and firm responsible for service delivery failure rather than themselves and cultural differences. Moreover, personal cultural orientations partially moderated the influence of the service delivery outcome on customer attributions. Research limitations/implications Future research could adopt different methodologies such as critical incident techniques and surveys to replicate the study. Practical implications Service firms are recommended to design programs to influence customer attributions such as “customer education programs” and “customer appreciation programs” to achieve high customer satisfaction. Originality/value This study examines the differences in customer attributions between successful vs unsuccessful service delivery. It also sheds light on the potential moderating role of personal cultural orientations on the relationship between service delivery outcome and customer attributions.


2014 ◽  
Vol 25 (8) ◽  
pp. 1135-1147 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joao Quariguasi-Frota-Neto ◽  
Andrew Reade ◽  
Azadeh Dindarian ◽  
Andrew Gibson

Purpose – In 2011, a governmental initiative driven by the Department for Business Innovation and Skills invited the British Standards Institute (BSI) to write and publish a publicly available specification (PAS) for the reuse of waste electrical and electronic equipment entitled PAS 141. The specification's ambitious goals, chief among them to reduce the amount of e-waste generated in the UK, has prompted debate as to whether they are realistic and the extent to which they can be influenced by the certification. The purpose of this paper is to propose a comprehensive framework that can be used in future research to enhance understanding of the mechanisms by which the introduction of PAS 141 certification could lead to the fulfillment of its goals, that is, successful uptake. The authors believe this framework can serve as a roadmap for those interested in the investigation of this novel certification and its effect on the market for reusable electrical and electronic products. Design/methodology/approach – This paper is based on interviews with reuse organizations and first hand experience as a participant in the steering group that elaborated the certification being investigated, i.e. PAS 141. Findings – It is uncertain whether PAS 141 will fulfill its promises, which are, in the view of the authors, rather ambitious, e.g. reduce e-waste. Furthermore, more research is needed to examine the effect that the introduction of the certification has on the materialization of its goals, and on the complex inter-relationship that exist between the goals and what the authors define as intermediary necessary conditions. Research limitations/implications – This is the first attempt the outline the research needs that arise from the introduction of PAS-141, and the authors believe that there are other equally important questions that are yet to be presented and examined. Practical implications – This paper proposes 28 hypotheses which will help future work to empirically establish: the possibility of PAS-141 attaining its goals and the main necessary conditions for that to happen. This information is pivotal to determine whether the certification is working and to pinpoint opportunities for improvement. Social implications – This works contributes to the understanding of the role of certification on the market of reused products, which employs a large number of people, and in particular, whose coming from disadvantaged backgrounds. Originality/value – Although certification in general has been widely investigated in prior research, scant attention has been paid to certification in the context of electronic products. To the best of the knowledge, this is the first paper of its kind, as it is the first to examine certification in that context.


Author(s):  
G. E. Burnett

A wide range of in-car computing systems are either already in existence or under development which aim to improve the safety, efficiency and the comfort/pleasure of the driving experience. Several unique forces act on the design process for this technology which must be understood by HCI researchers. In particular, this is an area in which safety concerns dominate perspectives. In this position paper, I have used a case study system (vehicle navigation) to illustrate the evolution of some key HCI design issues that have arisen in the last twenty years as this in-car technology has matured. Fundamentally, I argue that, whilst HCI research has had an influence on current designs for vehicle navigation systems, this has not always been in a wholly positive direction. Future research must take a holistic viewpoint and consider the full range of impacts that in-car computing systems can have on the driving task.


2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 23-25

Purpose The purpose of this study is to present a unified model of organizational effectiveness bringing together the disparate elements put forward by previous researchers to provide a comprehensive framework which can be used to guide future research taking the organizational context into account. Design/methodology/approach The existing literature on research into organization is reviewed and a critique given. Findings A unified model is put forward which is holistic, comprehensive and integrated incorporating systems thinking. It consists of three components – goals, measures and participant/stakeholder satisfaction - and can be customized by practitioners and researchers to specific contexts in a range of organizations. Practical implications The framework can be used to help managers select balanced, appropriate measures to assess organizational effectiveness which are context specific and to provide a more holistic approach to guide research. Originality/value This paper has an original approach as it provides a unified model and framework for organizational effectiveness.


2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (8) ◽  
pp. 615-626
Author(s):  
Makoto Matsuo

Purpose Although positive psychology emphasizes the importance of reflecting on success in promoting strengths use and self-efficacy, no research has developed a measure of reflection on success. The purpose of this study is to develop and validate the scales for reflection on success and failures. Design/methodology/approach Study 1 was conducted to extract the dimensions of reflection on success and failures using survey data from nurses (n = 298), whereas Study 2 involved validation of the scales using a two-wave survey of physical therapists (n = 291). Findings In Study 1, the factors of “reflection on success” and “reflection on failures” were extracted by exploratory factor analysis. In Study 2, the discriminant validity of the two scales was established via confirmatory factor analyses. The structural equation modeling results indicated that reflection on success promoted work authenticity, work engagement and strengths use, while reflection on failures only promoted work engagement, indicating the convergent validity of the scales. Research limitations/implications As the research subjects were medical professionals in Japan, the scales need to be validated with samples from a wide range of occupations and cultural backgrounds, in future research. Originality/value The present research expands the literature on reflection and strengths-based approach by introducing the “success–failures” dimension based on positive psychology, broaden-and-build theory and job demands–resources theory.


2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 205395171986054 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heike Felzmann ◽  
Eduard Fosch Villaronga ◽  
Christoph Lutz ◽  
Aurelia Tamò-Larrieux

Transparency is now a fundamental principle for data processing under the General Data Protection Regulation. We explore what this requirement entails for artificial intelligence and automated decision-making systems. We address the topic of transparency in artificial intelligence by integrating legal, social, and ethical aspects. We first investigate the ratio legis of the transparency requirement in the General Data Protection Regulation and its ethical underpinnings, showing its focus on the provision of information and explanation. We then discuss the pitfalls with respect to this requirement by focusing on the significance of contextual and performative factors in the implementation of transparency. We show that human–computer interaction and human-robot interaction literature do not provide clear results with respect to the benefits of transparency for users of artificial intelligence technologies due to the impact of a wide range of contextual factors, including performative aspects. We conclude by integrating the information- and explanation-based approach to transparency with the critical contextual approach, proposing that transparency as required by the General Data Protection Regulation in itself may be insufficient to achieve the positive goals associated with transparency. Instead, we propose to understand transparency relationally, where information provision is conceptualized as communication between technology providers and users, and where assessments of trustworthiness based on contextual factors mediate the value of transparency communications. This relational concept of transparency points to future research directions for the study of transparency in artificial intelligence systems and should be taken into account in policymaking.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 479-494
Author(s):  
Benjamin Appiah Osei ◽  
Neethiahnanthan Ari Ragavan ◽  
Henry Kofi Mensah

Purpose The economy of today has moved toward the fourth industrial revolution (FIR), which is characterized by the adoption of technologies such as cyber-physical systems, internet of things, big data, artificial intelligence and robotics. Globally, there is a lot of awareness created on the influence of the FIR on all industries, including hospitality and tourism. A plethora of studies on FIR have been conducted in the setting of manufacturing industries. Nonetheless, there seems to be in-exhaustive and non-consensual agreement among researchers as to the development and prospects of the FIR for service industries. Therefore, the aim of this paper was to comprehensively review the prospects of the FIR for the hospitality and tourism industry. Design/methodology/approach As a result of the novelty and gaps associated with the FIR in the hospitality literature, the authors explored the concept of FIR using a comprehensive literature review approach. Specifically, this paper reviews existing literature from diverse academic backgrounds, and annotates issues with regard to the evolution and prospects of the FIR for the hospitality industry. Findings Emphatically, the development and principles of FIR were expatiated. Additionally, an exegesis was carried out on the prospects (positives and challenges) of FIR for the hospitality industry. Finally, practical and social implications were also discussed. Originality/value It still remains a discourse among scholars and industry stakeholders as to the prospects of the FIR. This paper clarifies the confusion among researchers and bridges the literature gaps. Moreover, this review serves as a theoretical foundation for future research on the impact of FIR on the hospitality industry.


Author(s):  
Liz Sharples

Purpose This study aims to apply the relatively new concept of customer experience management (CXM) to the pre-consumptive stage within a cruise tourist’s journey. Design/methodology/approach The work will apply CXM to the tourism sector and, in particular to the cruise market. Academics have noted how CXM needs to takes a holistic integrated approach and focus on the complete customer experience. The cruise sector has been selected for this research because, it is the fastest growing tourism sector globally and the pre-consumption stage for cruise passengers is longer than for other vacation types. Findings This study has shown how CXM has emerged from the more traditional marketing concept of relationship marketing and has highlighted its relevance within the tourism industry, in particular, the cruise sector. In addition, the work has shown how adapting CXM to the pre-consumptive phase more fully will enhance consumer relationships and improve business performance. Research limitations/implications This work is conceptual. It is proposed that the research propositions should be verified within the pre-consumptive stage of cruise passenger journeys. Another limitation is that the focus has been solely on the cruise sector and future research could be extended to other tourism service industries. Practical implications This work will provide tourism and other service industry managers with a new strategy to enhance consumer experience and improve business performance in the pre-consumptive stage and extend academic understanding within this stage of a cruise tourist’s vacation. Originality/value This research is significant because CXM is a model, which has been used within service businesses, but had a limited application to the cruise sector and to the pre-consumption timeframe. It is important to understand cruise passengers in this time-frame to encourage positive relationships, to potentially increase revenue opportunities and provide an overall improved consumer experience.


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