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Gap Service

The document discusses four gaps that can occur in a company's service delivery: The knowledge gap is between customer expectations and the company's understanding of those expectations. The policy gap is between management's understanding of customer needs and the translation of that into service standards. The delivery gap is between service standards and actual delivery. The communication gap is between what is promised in advertising and what is actually delivered. For each gap, prescriptions are provided on how to identify and close the gaps, such as conducting customer research, setting clear service goals, training employees, and ensuring advertising accurately reflects capabilities.

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38 views

Gap Service

The document discusses four gaps that can occur in a company's service delivery: The knowledge gap is between customer expectations and the company's understanding of those expectations. The policy gap is between management's understanding of customer needs and the translation of that into service standards. The delivery gap is between service standards and actual delivery. The communication gap is between what is promised in advertising and what is actually delivered. For each gap, prescriptions are provided on how to identify and close the gaps, such as conducting customer research, setting clear service goals, training employees, and ensuring advertising accurately reflects capabilities.

Uploaded by

Mohit3107
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Gap 1: Knowledge Gap

The knowledge gap is the difference between the customer’s


expectations of the service and the company’s provision of that
service.

Gap 1 Prescription: Learn What Customers Expect:


Get a better understanding of customer expectations through
research, complaint analysis, customer panels, etc.

a. Increase direct interactions between managers and


customers to improve understanding

b. Improve upward communication from contact personnel to


management and reduce the number of levels between the two

c. Turn information and insights into action.

Gap 2: The Policy Gap

The policy gap is the difference between management’s


understanding of the customer needs and the translation of
that understanding into service delivery policies and
standards.

 
Gap 2 Prescription: Establish the Right Service
Quality Standards:
a. Ensure that top management displays ongoing commitment
to quality as defined from the customer’s point of view

b. Get middle management to set, communicate, and reinforce


customer-oriented service standards for their work units

c. Train managers in the skills needed to lead employees to


deliver quality service

d. Become receptive to new ways of doing business that


overcome barriers to delivering quality service

e. Standardize repetitive work tasks to ensure consistency and


reliability by substituting hard technology for human contact
and improving work methods (soft technology)

f. Establish clear service quality goals that are challenging,


realistic, and explicitly designed to meet customer
expectations

g. Clarify to employees which tasks have the biggest impact on


quality and should receive the highest priority

h. Ensure that employees understand and accept goals and


priorities

i. Measure performance and provide regular feedback

j. Reward managers and employees for attaining quality goals.


Gap 3: The Delivery Gap

The delivery gap is the difference between service delivery


policies and standards and the actual delivery of the service.

Gap 3 Prescription: Ensure That Service Performance


Meets Standards:
a. Clarify employee roles

b. Ensure that all employees understand how their jobs


contribute to customer satisfaction

c. Match employees to jobs by selecting for the abilities and


skills needed to perform each job well

d. Provide employees with the technical training needed to


perform their assigned tasks effectively

e. Develop innovative recruitment and retention methods to


attract the best people and build loyalty

f. Enhance employee performance by selecting the most


appropriate and reliable technology and equipment

g. Teach employees about customer expectations, perceptions ,


and problems

h. Train employees interpersonal skills, especially for dealing


with customers under stressful conditions

i. Eliminate role conflict among employees by involving them


in the process of setting standards
j. Train employees in priority setting and time management

k. Measure employees performance and tie compensation and


recognition of delivery of quality service

l. Develop reward systems that are meaningful, timely, simple,


accurate, and fair

m. Empower managers and employees in the field by pushing


decision-making power down the organization: allow them
greater discretion in the methods they use to reach goals

n. Ensure that employees working at internal support jobs


provide good service to customer contact personnel

o. Build teamwork so that employees work well together, and


use team rewards as incentives

p. Treat customers as “partial employees” clarify their roles in


service delivery, train and motivate them to perform well in
their roles as co-producers.

Gap 4: The Communication Gap

The communication gap is the gap between what gets


promised to customers through advertising and what gets
delivered.
Gap 4 Prescription: Ensure That Delivery Matches
Promises:
a. Seek inputs from operations personnel when new
advertising programmes are being created

b. Develop advertising that features real employees


performing their jobs

c. Allow service providers to preview advertisements before


customers are exposed to them

d. Get sales staff to involve operations staff in face-to-face


meetings with customers

e. Develop internal education, motivational, and advertising


campaigns to strengthen links between marketing, operations,
and human resource departments

ADVERTISEMENTS:

f. Ensure that consistent standards of service are delivered


across multiple locations

g. Ensure that advertising content accurately reflects those


service characteristics that are most important to customers in
their encounters with the organization

h. Manage customers’ expectations by letting them know what


is and is not possible – and the reasons why
i. Identify and explain uncontrollable reasons for
shortcomings in service performance Offer customers
different levels of service at different prices, explaining the
differences between these levels.

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