Service Management (Strategy and Leadership in Service Organizations - 3rd Edition)

Author: Norman, written by, Fan Xiucheng, translated by Lu Li
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-06-01
Features: Most people believe that the service industry requires more labor than the manufacturing industry—personnel management is the key to the success of service enterprises. However, although this may sometimes be true, it is wrong to assume that the service industry is more labor-intensive or people-intensive, or at least it does not capture the essence of service. In fact, many service enterprises are becoming capital-intensive. In addition to airlines, which traditionally rely on a large amount of fixed assets and equipment, the security industry and banking are also increasingly dependent on advanced technology and equipment. Moreover, direct human interaction remains an important service element for these enterprises. Additionally, in other service industries, the logic of the "critical moment" also applies even if customers do not have face-to-face contact with service staff. For example, when people dine at a famous restaurant or take a large jet, although they may not see the chefs or pilots, they can truly feel their presence. Classifying service enterprises as "personality-intensive enterprises" rather than capital-intensive or labor-intensive enterprises may be more appropriate. Since customer perception of service quality depends on the performance of service staff in specific situations, most service enterprises are personality-intensive enterprises (regardless of whether they have a large amount of capital and equipment). The performance of service staff determines the service quality and performance of the enterprise, so companies should give them greater autonomy. Even highly standardized service enterprises like McDonald's rely heavily on employee performance. When buying a car, you don't care whether the workers on the assembly line smile at you or are proud of their work, nor do you care about their appearance or character; but when buying a hamburger from McDonald's' "assembly line," it's different—all of the above factors will affect you. Employee personal performance greatly impacts the daily service quality of the enterprise, and the quality of each employee's work immediately affects customer perception of service quality. Once employees lack enthusiasm or perform poorly in service, the consequences and negative impact will quickly become apparent and difficult to remedy. My research with colleagues, titled "Effective Service Enterprises Based on Social Innovation," is based on the foundation of "personality-intensive enterprises." Designing suitable positions for employees, finding ways to unleash their intelligence, motivate them, help them quickly master work skills, and maintain enthusiasm and passion for career development all fall under social innovation. Social innovation is a method that can both improve quality and reduce costs. In the following chapters, we will also see some examples of social innovation that can help unleash employee potential.