Page 108 - DMGT206_PRODUCTION_AND_OPERATIONS_MANAGEMENT

Unit 5: Quality Management

5.6 Service Quality Model Notes

Due to the nature of the product, the line managers and employees in a service organization are
typically responsible for quality control. This is in keeping with the new philosophy that the
responsibilities of quality control departments should be given to employees who produce the
products. But this system is established in many service industries for other reasons, namely
because the product is often produced before the customer. The organization as a system has to
interact externally with customers who specify and affect quality at the boundaries of the firm.
Quality control in service firms has to be organized in ways distinctly different from that in
manufacturing firms. This is because unlike manufacturing, it often becomes a challenge to
design service systems metrics that quantify quality levels in service-oriented companies.
Generally, service characteristics are more complex than product characteristics. Customers’
desires are generally the basis for quality objectives in service organizations. The characteristics
that determine customer acceptance are often intangible. Parameters of service quality include
complex customer perceptions such as timeliness, employee’s attitudes towards customers, the
physical environment where the service is delivered, etc. These requirements, again, can vary
widely from individual to individual. Consequently, measuring and controlling quality is
more difficult.

Example: in the case of Jet Airways, their research indicated that excellence in the
following areas was of vital importance for their airline to be considered an ideal airline:
punctuality; safety; seating comfort; large network; friendly and caring; professional and efficient
staff/crew service; quality of food served; cleanliness of aircraft; quick baggage clearance; ease
in booking tickets; easy check-in.
Though many areas are very difficult to measure, Jet Airways has been able put in place standards
for virtually every customer contact. These have been categorized as hard (quantifiable) to soft
(intangible) standards.
Hard Standards have been developed in the following areas:

 Appearance
 Customer-contact areas
 Lounges

 Reservations
 Sales
 Check-in
 System reliability

 Baggage handling
 Punctuality
 Delay handling

 Aircraft cleaning
 Maintenance
Soft Standards are applied to all customer-contact areas. They are designed to present the airline
an opportunity to turn ordinary experiences into exceptional services.

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