An assessment of how well a delivered service conforms to the client's expectations. Service business operators often assess the service quality provided to their customers in order to improve their service, to quickly identify problems, and to better assess client satisfaction.

What is service quality?

COMPONENTS OF SERVICE QUALITY

Tangibles: Appearance of physical elements

Reliability: Dependable and accurate performance

Responsiveness: Promptness; helpfulness

Assurance: Competence, courtesy, credibility,                              security

Empathy: Easy access, good communication,               understanding of customer

The Gaps Model was proposed by

THE GAPS MODEL

Professor A. Parasuraman

Dr. Valarie Zeithaml

Dr. Leonard L. Berry

Gap 1The Knowledge Gap 

Gap 2The policy Gap

Gap 5The  Perceptions Gap 

Gap 6The Service Quality Gap

Gap 4The Communication Gap

Gap 3The Delivery Gap

Expected Service

Perceived Service

Service Delivery

Translation of Perceptions into Service Quality Specs

Management Perceptions of Consumer Expectations

Service Firm

Consumer

Past ExperienceWord Of mouth Communications

Personal Needs

External Communications to Consumers

The Gaps Model In Service Design And Delivery

Customer’s expectations

Company’s perceptions of customer expectations

• Inadequate marketing research orientation

• Lack of upward communication

• Insufficient relationship focus

• Inadequate service recovery

Reasons for gap

I

Reasons for gap

I

Translation of perceptions into service quality specifications

Management perceptions of customer expectations

• Poor service design

• Absence of customer-defined service standards

• Inappropriate physical evidence and services cape

Reasons for gap

2

Reasons for gap

2

• Poor human resource policies• Failure to match supply and demand• Customer not fulfilling their roles• Problems with service intermediaries

Service delivery

Customer-driven service designs and standards

Reasons for gap

3

Reasons for gap

3

External communications to consumers

Service delivery

• Lack of integration of marketing communications

• Inadequate management of customer expectations

• Overpromising

• Inadequate horizontal communications

Reasons for gap 4

Reasons for gap 4

Closing the gaps

• Gap 1: Learn what customers expect• Gap 2: Establish the right service quality      standards

• Gap 3: Ensure that service performance meets standards

• Gap 4:  Ensure that delivery matches promises 

Closing gap 1: Learn what customers expect

• Use research, complaint analysis, customer panels 

• Increase direct interactions between managers and customers 

• Improve upward communications• Act on information and insights

listen to customers

Closing gap 2: Establish the right service quality standards

• Top management commitment to providing service quality

• Set, communicate, and reinforce customer-oriented service standards

• Establish challenging and realistic service quality goals

• Train managers to be service quality leaders• Be receptive to new ways to deliver service quality• Standardise repetitive tasks

• Prioritise tasks• Gain employee acceptance of goals and priorities

• Measure performance of service standards and provide regular feedback

• Reward managers and employees for achievement of quality goals

Service Quality Awards

Closing gap 3: Ensure that service performance meets standards

• Attract the best employees• Select the right employees• Develop and support employees– train employees – provide appropriate technology & equipment

– encourage and build teamwork– empower employees – internal marketing

Can I take your

order?

• Retain good employees– measure and reward service quality achievements

– develop equitable and simple reward systems 

You are a

Star Service

Provider

Closing gap 4: Ensure that service delivery matches promises

• Seek input from operations personnel on what can be done

• ‘Reality’ advertising– real employees, real customers, real situations

• Seek input from employees on advertising• Gain communications between sales, operations and customers

• Internal marketing programs

• Ensure consistent standards in multi-site operations

• In advertising, focus on service characteristics that are important to customers

• Manage customer’s expectations–What are realistic expectations?– Explain industry realities

• Tiered service options– Offer different levels of        service - user pays

Why do we always have to wait?

Measuring and Improving Service Quality

• Soft measures—not easily observed, must be collected by talking to customers, employees, or others– Provide direction, guidance, and feedback to employees on ways to achieve customer satisfaction 

– Can be quantified by measuring customer perceptions and beliefs • For example: SERVQUAL, surveys, and customer advisory panels

• Hard measures—can be counted, timed, or measured through audits– Typically operational processes or outcomes– Standards often set with reference to percentage of occasions on which a particular measure is achieved 

– Control charts are useful for displaying performance over time against specific quality standards

Soft Measures of Service Quality• Key customer-centric SQ measures include:– Total market surveys, annual surveys, transactional surveys

– Service feedback cards– Mystery shopping– Analysis of unsolicited feedback—complaints and compliments, focus group discussions, and service reviews

• Ongoing surveys of account holders to determine satisfaction in terms of broader relationship issues 

• Customer advisory panels offer feedback/advice on performance • Employee surveys and panels to determine:– Perceptions of the quality of service delivered to customers on specific dimensions

– Barriers to better service– Suggestions for improvement

Hard Measures of Service Quality• Control charts to monitor a single variable

– Offer a simple method of displaying performance over time against specific quality standards 

– Are only good if data on which they are based is accurate 

– Enable easy identification of trends • Service quality indexes

– Embrace key activities that have an impact on customers