A system approach to service quality for hospitality leaders | Academic Journal Example
Summary of article 1
The article a “system approach to service quality” by MARK R. TESTA and LORI J. SIPE, is based on analyzing the problems faced in the service delivery by the managers until the point up to when the managers does not reach the root cause of the problems under consideration. As per the article the managers must apply the time tested approach and use the five why’s until the real cause of the problem is revealed to the managers. Managers as per the article can also use employee tools or grids, and use specific steps that they can use for improving the services. The five steps that they can use mainly include 1. Defining and communicating the issues, 2. Provide training and education to employees, 3. Improvement of service processes, 4. Result evaluation and acknowledging feedback and 5. Celebrate success (Testa & Sipe 2006).
The main aim of this article is to review the different concepts of the system which can be utilized to improve the service quality. This article suggests the managers in the hospitality industry to adopt the systematic thinking process in order to avoid the short term solutions and processes. As per the article the system thinking approach requires the understanding of several and multiple relationships in between the different segments of the systems or organizations. The system approach mainly recognizes the interrelationship in between the different parts of the organizations and the implication of the actions taken on them. The article also discusses the analysis of the symptoms and also addressing the problems by the use of different techniques which helps in the improvement of the service quality (Testa & Sipe 2006).
Research methodology employed
The research methodology adopted in the article is the use of secondary data and the analysis of certain articles from which the data has been collected. In the article the decisions taken by several managers have been analyzed and based on the previous result different theories have been developed in order to bring in the best method using which the managers can bring in the service quality. The analysis of the different tools of the quality management has also been analyzed in the research article and based on this the proper evaluation of the research has been done (Testa & Sipe 2006).
Research findings and conclusions
From the analysis of the article “a systematic approach to service quality for hospitality leaders” by MARK R. TESTA and LORI J. SIPE, it has been analyzed and found that the resolution of some of the service-related problems is beyond the authority of the managers who are at the front line. The tool that has been provided under the article is of greater understanding of addressing the factors that can be applied to improve the problems and bring a foundation of the comprehensive solutions at the group and individual level. It can also be concluded that the constant flow of the information within the organization can facilitate the process of revealing the root causes of the problems. It can also be concluded that the training and education provided to the employees also aids the organization in the improvement of the service quality within the organization and thus helps the managers to improve the service they provide for longer periods. It can also be concluded that the continuous improvement process applied in the organization brings in different opportunities for the organization and helps the organizations to grow. Finally it can be concluded that the managers must gather different data to evaluate and analyze the situation and take appropriate decisions (Testa & Sipe 2006).
Summary of article 2
The literature “Towards an understanding of total service quality in hotels” by Hugh Wilkins, Bill Merrilees and Carmel Herington, includes the discussion of the importance of the service quality for the better performance of the business that has been effectively recognized in the literature. All these factors have direct impact on the customer’s satisfactions and it also has an impact on the customer’s loyalty though it is indirect (Wilkins, Merrilees & Herington 2007).
The literature discusses about the model of the service quality and the implications of this factors for the future research. The literature also recognizes about the importance of the service quality and the service quality and its measurement across the industries and not only the hospitality industry. The literature also includes the addresses of the antecedents and the structure of the hotel industry with context to the importance of the services quality in the first class hotels. The literature also clears the exploratory and the conformation factors and the analysis of the approaches using a structural model which may be used to measure the structure of the service quality. The paper also includes the clarification of the dimension of the structure of the service quality in the hospitality industry, as this is vital for the managers to identify the bundles of the services and the attributes which the consumers or the customers finds vital and important. The clarification of the structure of the service quality and the organizational structure is also vital as per the article as the customers views these factors as the second level dimension (Wilkins, Merrilees & Herington 2007).
Research methodology employed
The research methodology adopted in the research is done using the exploratory research and the confirmatory factors analysis and approaches. A structural model has also been used in the research in order to test the structure of the service quality in the organizations. The literature adopted the mixed method approach, including the qualitative analysis factors. The factors related to the research has been analyzed using the content analysis and other aspects of the hotel performances based on the themes and analysis of the different literatures which was identified based on the scales which is associated with the performance of the hotels (Wilkins, Merrilees & Herington 2007).
Research findings and conclusions
The research “Towards an understanding of total service quality in hotels” by Hugh Wilkins, Bill Merrilees, Carmel Herington mainly provides an insight into the two vital aspects of the understanding of the factors associated with the consumer behaviors in the hotels. In order to analyze these factors the research has analyzed the service quality provided in the first class of the luxury hotels. Under this has been analyzed that there are mainly three types of the service quality this mainly includes the physical products, quality of the food and beverages and the service experience. These three groupings are the main factors that have an impact on the consumer’s perspectives. These perspectives also provide means to the managers of the hotels to provide the optimum services to the customers. it can also be concluded that the training programs provided to the staff helps the mangers in effectively providing adequate services to the customers and improve the quality of the services in all the three perspective discussed in the research. It can also be concluded from the research that it is vital that the customers in the first class hotels must provide prompt services to its customers and not let them waiting more than a minute in order to increase the customer’s satisfaction level (Wilkins, Merrilees & Herington 2007).
Comparison of the results from the two studies
From the comparison of the results of the two studies under consideration it can be said that both the research focus on the main factor of the improvement of the service quality in the hotels. Both the research focus on the providing of the training to the employees of the organization in order to bring in the quality in the services provided by them and develops a sense of responsibility among the staff towards the customers. As per the literature “system approach to service quality” by MARK R. TESTA and LORI J. SIPE, it can be said that the constant flow of information within the organization helps the mangers to evaluate the main problems associated with the service quality. As per the literature there are five whys which the managers must use in order to research at the root cause of the problem and find the solution for addressing such issues (Testa & Sipe 2006). While as per the analysis of the literature “Towards an understanding of total service quality in hotels” by Hugh Wilkins, Bill Merrilees and Carmel Herington it can be said that there are three factors or groupings which are associated with the quality of services in the hotels the managers needs to focus on all these groupings. In order to improve the service the managers needs to improve all these factors and keep a watch on these factors and try to improve them from time to time and develop measures to face issues associated with it (Wilkins, Merrilees & Herington 2007).
Conclusions regarding service quality in the hospitality industry
From the analysis of both the literature it can be said that the service quality is the vital for the success of the hospitality organizations for long term. For the improvement of the service quality it is vital to provide training to the staff in one area to another from time to time and improve the quality of services. The service quality is the main factors that attracts the customers and, make them loyal towards the organization.
References
Testa, M.R. & Sipe. L.J. (2006). A Systems Approach to Service Quality : Tools for Hospitality Leaders. Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly. 47: 36.
Wilkins, H., Merrilees, B. & Herington, C. (2007). Towards an understanding of total service quality in hotels. Griffith Business School. 26, pp. 840–853.