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Problem definition: This paper considers a tandem queueing system in which stage 1 has one station serving multiple classes of arriving customers with different service requirements and related delay costs, and stage 2 has multiple parallel stations, with each station providing one type of service. Each station has many statistically identical servers. The objective is to design a joint capacity allocation between stages/stations and scheduling rule of different classes of customers to minimize the system's long-run average cost. Methodology/results: Using fluid approximation, we convert the stochastic problem into a fluid optimization problem and develop a solution procedure. Based on the solution to the fluid optimization problem, we propose a simple and easy-to-implement capacity allocation and scheduling policy and establish its asymptotic optimality for the stochastic system. The policy has an explicit index-based scheduling rule that is independent of the arrival rates, and resource allocation is determined by the priority orders established between the classes and stations. We conduct numerical experiments to validate the accuracy of the fluid approximation and demonstrate the effectiveness of our proposed policy. Managerial implications: Tandem queueing systems are ubiquitous. Our results provide useful guidelines for the allocation of limited resources and the scheduling of customer service in those systems. Our proposed policy can improve the system's operational efficiency and customers' service quality. Funding: Z. Zhong's research is partially supported by the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities [Grant 2023ZYGXZR074] and the Hunan Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China [Grant 2022JJ40109]. P. Cao's research is partially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China [Grant 72122019]. J. Huang's research is partially supported by the Hong Kong Research Grants Council General Research Fund [CUHK-14501621] and the National Natural Science Foundation of China [Grant 72222023]. S. X. Zhou's research is partially supported by the Hong Kong Research Grants Council General Research Fund [CUHK-14500921], the National Natural Science Foundation of China [Grant 72394395], and the Asian Institute of Supply Chains and Logistics. Supplemental Material: The online appendix is available at https://doi.org/10.1287/msom.2023.0266. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Docked Bike Sharing Systems often experience load imbalances among bike stations, leading to uneven distribution of bicycles and to challenges in meeting users' demand. To address the load imbalances, many docked Bike Sharing Systems employ rebalancing vehicles that actively redistribute bicycles across stations, ensuring a more equitable distribution and enhancing the availability of bikes for users. The determination of the number of rebalancing vehicles in docked Bike Sharing Systems is typically based on various criteria, such as the size of the system, the density of stations, the expected demand patterns, and the desired level of service quality. This is a determining factor, in order to increase the efficiency of customer service at a reasonable cost. To enable a cost-effective rebalancing, we have used a cluster-based approach, due to the large scale of the Bike Sharing Systems, and our model is based on Markov Chains, given their proven effectiveness in this domain. Degrees of subsystem load at station level were used for modeling purposes. Additionally, a quantization strategy around cluster load was developed, to avoid state space explosion. This allowed the computation of the probability of transitioning from one degree of system load to another. A new method was developed to determine the fleet size, based on the identified subsystem steady state, describing the rebalancing necessity. The model evaluation was performed on traffic data collected from the Citi Bike New York Bike Sharing System. Based on the evaluation results, the model transition rates were in accordance with the expected values, indicating that the rebalancing operations are efficient from the point of view of the fulfillment of on-time arrival constraints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research of the quality control of logistics services relevancy is determined by the increasingly dynamic and competitive nature of the market requires companies to ensure the high quality of their logistics services, especially in the sphere of business-to-consumer (B2C). The research aims to analyse and identify optimal approaches and strategies for quality control of logistics services in B2C interactions. Among the methods used were the analytical method, statistical method, functional method, system analysis method, deduction method, synthesis method and comparison method. In the process of the study, the current practice of quality control in B2C logistics was analysed. An economic relevance assessment identified how service quality can affect business and also assessed the potential benefits of improving it. Approaches to quality control were analysed, including such methods as statistical data analysis, internal and external audits, application of quality standards, and use of technology for monitoring and tracking processes. Opportunities to optimise logistics processes and their impact on overall quality were also considered. A comparative analysis of practices in the industry identified best practices and innovations. The study summarised current trends and provided practical recommendations for companies seeking to optimise quality control of logistics services on a costeffective basis. The practical relevance of the findings is to provide companies with valuable tools and insights to improve their logistics operations and enhance customer service. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the wide use of information technologies including Big Data and artificial intelligence (AI), consumers' personal actions (their search history, transaction records, click-through behaviors, etc.) can be tracked, recorded and analyzed by the service provider (e.g., Google) to provide personalized services. Under the current regime, consumers usually hand over their personal data for free in exchange for high-quality services. As it becomes more and more commonly accepted that "data is property," should consumers be entitled to claim their property rights over their personal data? New technologies emerge to empower consumers to control their own data, and the service provider may need to compensate for the usage of such data. How consumers and the service provider should react to such technologies, however, is not clear. We build a theoretical model in which consumers have different sensitivities towards their data ownership. We show that the impact of the data ownership shift depends not only on the service provider's revenue structure and the discount in the service quality offered to non-data-providing consumers, but also on whether and how consumers are compensated. More importantly, if the service provider can endogenously adjust the qualities of services provided to consumers, the shift of data ownership may not necessarily benefit consumers, or harm the service provider. We also offer guidelines for data regulation policy designs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In modern banks, establishing efficient and quality customer services plays a crucial role to achieve the business success. There are a large number of customers to be served daily; however, required service resources (in particular, customer service representatives) can be rather limited. Therefore, customer service representative scheduling is a challenging problem for bank managers. In the present paper, we focus on a customer service representative scheduling problem considering the stochastic customer arrival time and service duration to minimise the total cost including two parts: (i) the loss concerning the customer waiting and (ii) cost of providing service representatives. We formulate this scheduling problem as an integer programming problem and employ an adapted water wave optimization (WWO) algorithm to solve this problem efficiently. We adapt the propagation and refraction operators of WWO according to the solution space of this problem. The results of the conducted computational experiments demonstrate that the adapted WWO algorithm outperforms the considered state-of-the-art evolutionary algorithms in solving a set of test instances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research was conducted because there was a decrease in the number of customers of the Tirta Giri Nata Drinking Water Regional Public Company in Cirebon City during the 2021-2023 period. This research uses a qualitative method by collecting data through interviews, observation and documentation. This research uses public service theory which focuses on the five main service quality dimensions related to customer service by public water companies: Tangibles, responsiveness, reliability, assurance and empathy. This study uses an interactive model data analysis procedure, which begins with data collection and continues with data reduction, data visualization, and conclusion drawing as the final step. The results showed that the service quality of PERUMDA Tirta Giri Nata Cirebon City still did not meet the five main success indicators, namely reliability, responsiveness, assurance, empathy, and tangible. The conclusion of this study is that the quality of customer service at PERUMDA Tirta Giri Nata Cirebon City, especially in terms of administrative and technical complaint services, has not yet reached an optimal level. There are still shortcomings in fulfilling the expected dimensions and indicators of service quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Foco (Interdisciplinary Studies Journal) is the property of Revista Foco and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Telecommunications operators are tasked with enhancing service quality, reducing operational costs, and preserving customer privacy. This study presents an innovative application of large language models (LLMs) integrated with the LangChain technology framework, aimed at revolutionizing customer service in the telecom sector. The LangChain framework features a Knowledge Organizing Module and a Knowledge Search Module, both designed to refine customer support operations. The research develops an LLM‐based approach to improve the segmentation and organization of knowledge bases, tailored for the telecommunications industry. This approach ensures seamless integration with existing LLMs while preserving distinct knowledge domains, crucial for search accuracy. Additionally, the framework includes an advanced information security protocol with a robust filtering system that effectively excludes sensitive data from the model's outputs, enhancing data security. Empirical findings indicate that the ChatGLM2‐6B+LangChain model outperforms the baseline ChatGLM2, demonstrating heightened effectiveness in telecom‐specific tasks and outstripping even more sophisticated models like GPT‐4. The implementation of this LLM‐based framework within telecom customer service systems has significantly sharpened the precision of knowledge recommendations, as reflected by a dramatic increase in acceptance rates from 15% to 70%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In today's rapidly advancing digital era, service provider applications such as Grab have become an integral part of people's lives, especially in urban areas. Despite providing convenience in mobility and time efficiency, users of such applications often encounter challenges such as product non-compliance with what was promised, resulting in losses that require accountability from the business entities. In this context, Consumer Protection Law becomes crucial as the foundation for both parties in transactions. However, in reality, many consumers still struggle to obtain compensation for their losses, indicating the weak consumer protection, especially in electronic transactions, in Indonesia. This study aims to highlight the need for more effective protection for consumers so that their rights can be fulfilled. By analyzing regulations and business practices, this research aims to evaluate the level of existing protection and concludes that efforts to protect consumers need to be enhanced. The implication of this research is the need for collaborative efforts among the government, companies, and service platforms to improve consumer protection and enhance the quality of services and products offered to consumers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aims to develop an empathetic and user-centric customer support service design model. Though service design has been a critical research focus for several decades, few studies focus on customer support services. As customer support gains importance as a source of competitive advantage in the present era, this paper aims to contribute to industry and academia by exploring the service design model. Design/methodology/approach: The study adopted a theories-in-use approach to elucidate mental models based on the industry's best practices. In-depth interviews with 62 professionals led to critical insights into customer service design development, supported by service-dominant logic and theory of mind principles. Findings: The ensuing insights led to a model that connects the antecedents and outcomes of empathetic and user-centric customer service design. The precursors include people, processes and technology, while the results are user experience, service trust and service advocacy. The model also emphasises the significance of the user's journey and the user service review in the overall service design. Research limitations/implications: The model developed through this study addresses the critical gap concerning the lack of service design research in customer support services. The key insights from this study contribute to the ongoing research endeavours towards transitioning customer support services from an operational unit to a strategic value-creating function. Future scholars may investigate the applicability of the empathetic user service design across cultures and industries. The new model must be customised using real-time data and analytics across user journey stages. Practical implications: The empathetic and user-centric design can elevate the customer service function as a significant contributor to the overall customer experience, loyalty and positive word of mouth. Practitioners can adopt the new model to provide superior customer service experiences. This original research was developed through crucial insights from interviews with senior industry professionals. Originality/value: This research is the original work developed through the key insights from the interview with senior industry professionals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explored the sources of value co-creation, co-destruction and co-recovery amid the COVID-19 outbreak using 415 online reviews of guests' experiences with Airbnb. Data analysis using the grounded theory approach identified two main sources: Airbnb's customer service and hosts' conduct. Four sub-themes (quality of interactions with customer service representatives, difficulties in achieving resolution, dissatisfaction or satisfaction with the resolution offered and costs incurred by the consumer) comprised the main theme of Airbnb's customer service. Two sub-themes (the role of the host's communication in service recovery and perceived unethical actions by the host) comprised the main theme of hosts' conduct. The findings indicate that collaborative engagement in the restoration of service failure by actors results in value co-recovery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The aim of this article is to present a modern approach to optimising service quality management and customer relationship building in the logistics industry. The text addresses issues related to the ability of logistics systems to meet the expectations of customers in terms of the reliability and timing of deliveries, marketing communication with customers and the convenience of purchasing logistics services. These issues are important for transportation company managers because a thorough knowledge of customers9 preferences and behaviours as well as industry trends should be the starting point for developing and implementing a customer service strategy. Design/methodology/approach: The paper is based on a review of the literature and internet sources. The analyses conducted cover the years 2000-2023. Findings: The article discusses selected elements included in the process of customer service management in logistics companies. Customer service was broadly defined as the adopted concept of business activity which serves the formation of long-term relationships with customers. Special attention was paid to such attributes of customer service as delivery reliability, responsiveness to market needs, and staff empathy. Research limitations/implications: It would undoubtedly be advisable to carry out representative surveys among both actual and potential customers of logistics operators in the future to empirically verify the importance of selected elements of the logistics service offered to customers in improving the competitive position of companies and their market success. Among others, the Servqual method for measuring customer satisfaction described in this article can be used for this purpose. Practical implications: Effective customer relationship management is essential for the managers of logistics companies. The paper discusses selected elements of logistical and transactional customer service, including the indicators and metrics used for evaluating contractors operating in the TSL industry. Originality/value: The findings of the analyses have cognitive value. The article describes the role of customer service in increasing the competitiveness of companies operating in the logistics sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this article is to explore the concept of ikram al-dayf and its potential to be adapted into the Muslim-friendly tourism and hospitality practices. This article also introduces a set of ethical values for honoring guests in reference to the concept of ikram al-dayf. The concept of ikram al-dayf is pertinent to improve the Muslim-friendly staffs’ knowledge and understanding on how they should treat their guests better, since their service quality especially related to customer service aspect is still questionable. The article in the beginning presents the Muslim-friendly tourism and hospitality industry scenario and its related standards to show the needs for quality Muslim-friendly guest service. Next, it describes the established dimensions of service quality (SERVQUAL) model. Third, it explains the concept of ikram al-dayf and its relationship to guest service quality. It is based primarily on evidence from the Qur’an and the hadith. Fourth, it inserts ethical values based on the concept of ikram al-dayf into the dimensions of SERVQUAL. Finally, it briefly outlines the importance of applying ikram al-dayf ethics to be applied in Muslim-friendly hospitality practices. The article highlighted four core ethical values, namely qawlan karima, amanah, ta’ awun and ihsan which need to be given special attention for the best quality of service. These four ethical values suit the four dimensions of service quality and can be applied in the guest service phases (prearrival, arrival, stay, and departure of guests). The findings can then be embedded in the existing SERVQUAL dimensions as an added value for the use of Muslim-friendly hospitality players. The appreciation of ikram al-dayf ethics is not merely meant to portray the beauty of Islamic morality but also to improve service quality and achieve higher customer satisfaction. Eventually, it will be a competitive advantage for Muslimfriendly hospitality services to attract more customers especially among Muslims guests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the advent of AI, consumer-brand interactions are undergoing a dramatic transformation (Prikshat, Malik, and Budhwar, 2021). Consumer experience with AI is a lesser explored area of study. This research aims to examine how AI may be used in the retail industry to enhance the purchasing experience for AI users. With the trust-commitment theory and the service quality model as our inspiration, we developed our theoretical framework. Customers who have used a YouTube service powered by artificial intelligence were sent an online survey. Partial least squares-structural equation modeling was used to analyze the data (n=301 replies). Trust and relationship commitment was shown to play a pivotal role in moderating the connections between customers' evaluations of service convenience, individualization, and quality. We also discovered that trust is not the only factor that substantially influences relationship commitment and that relationship commitment acts as a mediator between service quality and AI-enabled customer experiences. This research fills a gap in the literature by identifying the direct influence of perceived convenience, personalization, and service quality on AI-enabled customer experience and the intermediary effects of trust and relationship commitment. Further, the research has real-world consequences for businesses that want to apply AI in the services they provide to YouTube subscribers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the impact of university services on customers' (students') Emotional Brand Attachment (EBA) and Customer Citizenship Behaviors (CCB). The main reason for examining this association was to explore the role customer service generated EBA played in motivating students to exhibit voluntary and extra-role behaviors. Using 568 completed research questionnaires, the proposed hypotheses were tested using multiple regression analysis. In addition, mediation effect of EBA on customer service quality and CCB relationship were tested. The research findings indicated that reputation and academic aspects (primarily represented by teaching quality and student–faculty bonding) were most influential in creating EBA and subsequent willingness towards extra role and voluntary behaviors. The outcome of the mediation analyses showed that non-academic aspects (such as effective complaint resolution, IT support and administrative assistance) had a full mediating effect, whereas access and reputation had partial mediating effect, on students' citizenship behaviors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a competitive environment, satisfying the growing demand of customers for the quality of service of transport services, taking into account the economic interests of transport companies and service users is the most important task. Existing methods based only on the opinions of users do not fully take into account the interests of companies providing these services. To this end, the article analyzes the qualitative indicators of customer service provided by transport companies when providing them with various services. It has been established that the cost of organizing the service, the (lost) income, and the time lost by customers depend on the quality of service. This analysis is based on the queuing theory model. A method is proposed for determining the optimal value from an economic point of view of indicators of the quality of customer service. The method is based on minimizing a generalized indicator – reduced costs. This indicator takes into account, on the one hand, the interests of the company and, on the other hand, the interests of service users. The results obtained allow companies to choose the quality of customer service indicator and its optimal value for the provision of various services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article deals with the methodical foundations of quality management of railway transport services. Currently, the transport industry of Ukraine is going through extremely difficult times. This is due to the strengthening of internal conflicts regarding the development of enterprises in the industry, as well as negative external factors related to economic and political activities and a national disaster. Quality management at railway transport enterprises involves the creation of quality management systems and measures necessary for their effective functioning. It is noted that the profit dynamics of railway transport enterprises largely depend on socio-economic factors regarding the needs and possibilities of using high-quality transport services, as well as on technical and technological possibilities. As a result, the main disagreements and problems that led to customer dissatisfaction with rail transport services were revealed. As a result, it was found that the presence of the above discrepancies and problems has a significant impact on the level of quality management of services provided by railway companies. At the current stage of the integration of the railway industry of Ukraine into the EU transport system, it is necessary to clearly understand the problems that arise in the process. Only then it will be possible to resolve the discrepancies between consumer expectations and the actual quality of services they receive. As a result, it was concluded that management of the quality of services of railway transport enterprises should be more effective, using modern methods of comprehensive study of consumer needs and further improvement of the quality of consumer services. This is done to make a profit, increase the social significance of railway transport and gain competitive advantages in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While work on service failures has recently begun to investigate aspects of service recovery systems from an organizational perspective, little attention has been paid to the specific practice of organizational error tolerance in the service marketing literature. One important gap is the lack of an integrated perspective of the outcomes of such a policy on service recovery. The literature also ignores the differences in internal and external perspectives of service failure and their impact on openly communicating the policy. To address this issue, we examined how and under what conditions organizational error tolerance can help improve the experience of customers who encounter service failure caused by frontline employees. We opted for a multilevel qualitative approach in the retail sector, leading to four propositions. After identifying the mechanisms through which an error tolerance policy can generate positive outcomes—within certain limits—for customers in cases of service failure, we argue that such organizational error tolerance conflicts with the demanding attitude of today's customers, and their negative representation of individual errors. This tension makes it difficult for service providers to reveal their error tolerance policy, giving rise to what we refer to as an 'informational blind spot'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marketing practices like money-back guarantees (MBGs) are prevalent in many expert-service markets but are often decried as marketing gimmicks that take advantage of vulnerable and poorly informed consumers. In this research, conducted in the market for in vitro fertilization services, the authors empirically assess differences in quality of care between clinics that offer MBG programs and those that don't, to investigate whether MBG programs can serve a purpose consistent with signaling and insurance theories. The analysis is conducted on a unique longitudinal data set that includes information on clinic-level treatment, outcome statistics, clinic characteristics, and marketing practices for fertility clinics in the United States, state-level insurance mandates, competition environments, and demographic and geographic characteristics. Using an instrumental variable approach to account for the endogeneity of MBG decisions made by fertility clinics, the authors find that MBG clinics, on average, offer better treatment outcomes in terms of success rates while undertaking lower risks. The results are consistent with signaling theory predictions that market-based programs like MBGs can serve as signals of unobservable clinic quality despite the incentives for clinics to engage in opportunistic behaviors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, a conceptual model for service quality of eSports events was proposed including four dimensions: competition quality refers to the perceived quality of the actual game itself; physical environment quality dimension stands for the physical surroundings where the service is produced and delivered; event execution quality measures the intangible items in the peripheral service, which can be directly designed or managed by the event organizer; and interaction quality measures the interaction among spectators, such as crowd experience or social factor. The validity of each dimension in other service industries and its suitability in the eSports context are both taken into consideration. At the current stage, the model is conceptualized from existing literature, thus demanding further qualitative and quantitative study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Environmental & Social Management Journal / Revista de Gestão Social e Ambiental is the property of Environmental & Social Management Journal and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The ongoing growth of e‐commerce deliveries has led to a significant increase in last‐mile delivery volumes. New technologies are being investigated to provide these deliveries efficiently and in a customer‐friendly manner. A common practice is to use fixed parcel lockers (FPLs) to make deliveries independent from the presence of the customer as is the case in attended home deliveries (AHDs). FPLs are usually installed at key locations in cities, and customers can collect their package at any time once it has been delivered to this particular location. Mobile parcel lockers (MPLs) represent a new idea: they can be parked for temporary collection of items at different locations, keeping the pickup distance to the customer short and avoiding high infrastructure costs. However, customers need to collect their parcels within a restricted time window. This service is supposed to become especially efficient through autonomously operating vehicles that can move MPLs at low costs. In this article, we introduce the heterogeneous locker location problem to study the effects of fleets combining two of the services—FPLs, MPLs, AHDs—within one framework. In our comparison, we consider that customers may have different expectations regarding their maximum pickup distance as well as their temporal flexibility in accepting deliveries. A fixed fleet is applied to maximize the number of customers served, respecting individual customer preferences in terms of pickup distances and time windows. We evaluate the different delivery services regarding managerial insights on service quality and efficiency. In the experiments, we analyze the impact of structural demand differences and different fleet sizes, as well as the operational fleet utilization and the individual customer experience. Results show the potential to increase the number of customers served by about 14%–19% through the use of MPLs while considering individual customer preferences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of marketing mix and service quality on customer satisfaction and its impact on electricity repurchase decisions, a case study on electricity companies in Indonesia. This research uses power electricity product categories and customer service provided by electricity companies. The population of this study is electricity customers spread throughout the territory of Indonesia using questionnaires of 250 respondents. This study used a multiplier regression analysis technique with SPSS Statistical Version 25 statistical processing. Research results, First, electricity customer satisfaction is significantly influenced by price, distribution channels, promotions, and service quality; Second, customer satisfaction has a positive and significant effect on the decision to repurchase electricity, Third, simultaneously product, price, distribution channel, promotion, and service quality have a significant effect on customer satisfaction and repurchase decisions, Fourth, customer satisfaction can mediate the influence of price, distribution channels, promotions, and service quality on repurchase decisions, But it is unable to mediate the influence of the product. The results of this study enrich the empirical literature on Marketing Mix theory, Service Quality, Customer Satisfaction, and Purchasing Decisions. Electricity companies can implement a marketing mix and service quality to improve customer satisfaction and electricity repurchase decisions. The originality of this study on mediating customer satisfaction on the effect of marketing mix and service quality on electricity repurchase decisions, no previous study has examined its effect on electricity companies in Indonesia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sitting at his office, Mr Gangwani was anxiously flipping through the reports scattered on the desk. The continuously growing customer complaints and substandard service delivery ratings were not only disturbing him but affecting the company's business also, at large. Despite several measures such as organizational restructuring, conduction of employees' motivation and training sessions, implementation of a state-of-the-art enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution taken by him to streamline organizational processes, etc., the bank's customers were not satisfied with the service delivery and overall experience. This case presents the deteriorating customer service experience situation at Wealthworth Bank Limited (WBL) and put forward a framework (HEART parameters) as a possible solution to enhance customers' service experience. It also questions the interoperability of the 'HEART' approach across WBL's various foreign centres. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The extant literature on service failure focuses mainly on how to recover from such incidents. However, companies can act before a service failure occurs to mitigate its negative effects. Building on signaling theory, we adopt a mixed‐method approach based on five studies using different types of analyses (textual and content analysis, and multivariate analysis) to investigate the effect of signaling frontline employee inexperience on customer responses to service failure due to an error committed by an employee. Five studies provide evidence that highlighting inexperience—either informally (through a conversation) or formally (through an in‐training badge)—can act as a signal that prompts customers to be more forgiving toward frontline employees, and such consumer forgiveness then serves as an underlying mechanism to explain repatronage intention. This research also tests and explores the boundary conditions for the effectiveness of the inexperience signal. Our findings have various implications for professionals showing how useful it can be to signal the inexperience of a frontline employee who makes an error that leads to a service failure to be given a second chance, and how certain precautions should be taken to avoid the pitfalls of such a signaling strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Commuter trains are a popular mode of transportation among lowincome earners in Ghana. However, due to the economic turmoil of the 1970s, the government struggled to invest in and manage this travel option effectively. With the increasing trend towards mass commuter services worldwide, this study aimed to examine how commuters perceive the quality of railway services in Ghana, using the Accra-Nsawam corridor as a case study. The study involved an on-board survey of 430 passengers using questionnaires. The results showed that factors such as speed, punctuality, safety, comfort, and improved customer care were significant predictors of commuters' preference for commuter services. However, variables such as advanced technology and ticketing systems were found to be less important. The study recommends expanding rail services to other parts of the country while simultaneously improving technology [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of this study is to analyze the experiences of customers who used the food ordering app (FOA) in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) using a systematic review technique. By focusing on customers in HCMC, the study offered valuable localized insights, which could prove instrumental in improving app features, optimizing user interface, and tailoring marketing strategies for better user engagement. Subsequently, this study delivered an exhaustive explanation of the practical application of decision science, focusing on its relevance to the usage pattern of FOAs by customers on their handheld devices. Based on a systematic review, this study demonstrates that brand trust, service quality, hedonic motivation, price value, performance expectancy, and online reviews all have a positive influence on customer satisfaction and their intention to reuse the FOA. The scholars and management in the food industry of HCMC have the opportunity to use the results of this research as a blueprint for enhancing and reorganizing their customer service practices. They may strive to enhance the overall quality of service by improving the food ordering applications and integrating them with the identified criteria. The management of restaurants or food companies that use an app to deliver services to customers should update their apps to offer excellent services. As a result, it is anticipated that this will have a positive effect on customer satisfaction and enhance the likelihood of customers returning to utilize the service again. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the development and wide application of hybrid network computing modes like cloud computing, edge computing and fog computing, the customer service requests and the collaborative optimization of various computing resources face huge challenges. Considering the characteristics of network environment resources, the optimized deployment of service resources is a feasible solution. So, in this paper, the optimal goals for deploying service resources are customer experience and service cost. The focus is on the system impact of deploying services on load, fault tolerance, service cost, and quality of service (QoS). Therefore, the alternate node filtering algorithm (ANF) and the adjustment factor of cost matrix are proposed in this paper to enhance the system service performance without changing the minimum total service cost, and corresponding theoretical proof has been provided. In addition, for improving the fault tolerance of system, the alternate node preference factor and algorithm (ANP) are presented, which can effectively reduce the probability of data copy loss, based on which an improved cost-efficient replica deployment strategy named ICERD is given. Finally, by simulating the random occurrence of cloud node failures in the experiments and comparing the ICERD strategy with representative strategies, it has been validated that the ICERD strategy proposed in this paper not only effectively reduces customer access latency, meets customers' QoS requests, and improves system service quality, but also maintains the load balancing of the entire system, reduces service cost, enhances system fault tolerance, which further confirm the effectiveness and reliability of the ICERD strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the continuous development of subway networks in various cities and the application of new technologies in subways, passengers have increasingly high requirements for subway services. There is an urgent need to explore how subways can quickly and effectively provide quality services for passengers. Taking Nanjing Subway as an example, this paper first analyzes the behavior of passengers by using relevant travel data, to introduce the concept of smart customer service system, and then describes the design concept of smart customer service system. Through the transformation at three layers, i.e. system layer, application layer and management layer, the station is gradually changed to the "unmanned" operation mode, so that a "one-stop" convenient smart customer service system is created. In this way, the station operation staff and operation cost are reduced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With businesses under increasing pressure to provide excellent customer service, postfailure recovery strategies have become critical for long‐term customer satisfaction and loyalty. The domain of service recovery has extensively been examined in academia; however, systematic studies that provide a consolidated overview remains scant. To this end, we provide a systematic review and synthesis of service recovery literature by conducting a bibliometric‐based cocitation analysis of 24,741 cited references from 1020 articles from across disciplines. The study identifies 10 major research clusters that represent different research streams of service recovery and explores their intellectual foundations. In addition, the research presents a conceptual framework to serve as a parsimonious guide for both practitioners and researchers. Furthermore, the study reveals a number of gaps in the existing literature and suggests promising directions for further investigation, including but not limited to: expanding methodological horizons in service recovery research, understanding service recovery mechanisms in Metaverse and synthetic environments, globalizing service recovery research, revitalizing service recovery processes in the age of artificial intelligence and robotics, investigating service recovery as an investment, and exploring service recovery in shared economies. Notably, this study serves managers, firstly, by providing them with a parsimonious structure of service recovery field that could help identify areas of improvement in their own service recovery systems and, secondly, by highlighting areas where academic knowledge base could inform industry solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite many advantages of social media as a customer service channel, there is a concern that active service intervention encourages excessive service complaints. Our paper casts doubt on this misconception by examining the dynamics between social media customer complaints and brand service interventions. We find service interventions indeed cause more complaints, yet this increase is driven by service awareness rather than chronic complaining. Due to the publicity and connectivity of social media, customers learn about the new service channel by observing customer service delivery to others—a mechanism that is unique to social media customer service and does not exist for traditional call centers. Importantly, high-quality service reduces future complaints. As a result, proactive customer service is a sound strategy on social media, as long as firms dedicate to service quality. Hence, firms should be less concerned about whether to respond and more focused on how to respond to customer complaints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rusunawa building is a vertical residential building aimed at low-income people. Although this runaway is specifically for low-income communities, runaway buildings must also meet the requirements for the availability of infrastructure, facilities, and utilities as stipulated in Law Number 20 of 2011 concerning Flats, SNI 03-7013-2004 concerning Planning Procedures for Simple Flats for Environmental Facilities. Through observations and data collection conducted by researchers in Rusunawa Jongke, Sleman Regency, several requirements regarding infrastructure, facilities, and utilities such as the maximum radius of facilities that do not comply with the Indonesian National Standard 03-7013-2004 Regarding the procedures for planning simple apartment environmental facilities, it is necessary to conduct research to determine the level of occupant satisfaction with the performance of infrastructure, facilities, and utilities of Rusunawa Jongke, Sleman Regency as one of One's evaluations in improving service quality. The Importance Performance Analysis method is used to assess the performance of managers on the performance of infrastructure, facilities, and utilities in Jongke Flats, through the perceptions of Rusunawa residents. This method compares the level of performance of managers against the performance of Infrastructure, Facilities, and Utilities with the level of expectations or interests of residents of Jongke Rental Simple Flats, Sleman Regency. Overall, the occupants' satisfaction score on the performance of infrastructure, facilities, and utilities in Jongke Rental Simple Flats, Sleman Regency resulted in an average score of 86%, meaning that the quality of service provided was good but not 100% satisfactory. The level of satisfaction obtained by the results was Quite Satisfied 16.67%, Satisfied 80%, and Very Satisfied 3.33%. Drainage facilities and worship facilities are aspects that need to be improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper tries to study the relationship between various constructs, such as tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, accuracy, security, ease of doing business, convenience and empathy with the quality of services provided by the banking sector in the state of Odisha, India. This study uses a modified 'SERVQUAL' model/scale comprising seven constructs/dimensions to measure the quality of services provided by the banks in the Odisha state. The respondents selected are the customers from both private and public banks operating in Odisha. The result of the study shows that, the constructs/dimensions studied in the modified SERVQUAL model and used in the study significantly and positively contribute to the customer service quality of the banks, except one construct, i. e, reliability, which significantly affects the service quality - but negatively. Further, the result points out that the banks in the state of Odisha are giving priority to the ease of doing business and facilitating convenience aspects that are followed by the responsiveness of the banks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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A growing literature employs distance-based measures of localization to assess the spatial distribution of firms with a focus on manufacturing across a country. We analyse the spatial concentration of a variety of consumer services firms in the Phoenix, AZ area using geo-referenced Yelp data from over 29,000 establishments. Results from a K-density approach indicate substantial localization and service differentiation among localised firms. Firm concentration varies across service cost and quality; higher quality/cost establishments tend to cluster. Our results further understanding of the modern urban landscape as cities are increasingly centres of consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The banking sectors are optimistic that electronic banking (E-banking) will help them provide better customer service and strengthen customer relationships. Despite this, a relatively low priority has been given to the level of satisfaction that E-banking users in Bangladesh have regarding the quality of the services they receive and their overall experiences. Consequently, this study aims to determine the effect of service quality and customer experiences on the level of satisfaction perceived by E-banking customers in Bangladesh. Using a convenience sampling technique and a self-administered questionnaire, we gathered data from 315 E-banking customers. The independent variable (service quality and customer experience) and dependent variable (customer satisfaction) on a five-point "Likert-Type Scale" explain the degree to which participants agree or disagree with the questionnaire's statements. Covariance-based structural equation modeling (CB-SEM) was utilised to analyse the gathered data. The findings of this study indicate that service quality and customer experience significantly positively affect E-banking customer satisfaction in Bangladesh. The outcomes of this study will urge the banking authorities to prioritize service quality to boost customer satisfaction by suggesting several steps to improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and security of the E-banking system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on call centers, which have become a common means of communication with potential customers in various companies. Specifically, this paper analyzes call center data and the importance of assessing key indicators for evaluating call center performance. The questions this paper addresses are the criteria for evaluating call center quality and the methods for analyzing call center data. Previous research has shown the significance of call centers as the "face of the company," with the quality of their work reflecting how efficiently a company will serve its customers' requests in the future. The main goal of this paper is to fill a gap in previous research by identifying the main controlled key indicator for call center quality and to suggest ways to improve efficiency. By using analytical methods to examine call center data, this paper identifies the most important criteria for call center quality and provides recommendations for enhancing service quality. The main findings of this paper show the importance of call center operator performance in determining call center performance which affects company revenue. By evaluating key indicators such as the number of operators, this paper demonstrates how call centers can reduce service costs and improve efficiency. During the analysis using call center data for two years, it turned out that the company had expenses 1/3 of the total amount of maintenance compared to the previous year, which is not effective in terms of economy. Operational planning has a direct impact on operators' costs and the main cost component is the hourly cost of operators. If optimal planning turns out to be at least 10% better than the arrangement set in the call center, company will save a good amount. The significance of this paper lies in its potential to improve the quality of service in call centers and its contribution to the field of customer service management. By providing insight into the importance of call center efficiency, this research offers recommendations for predicting the optimal number of operators to improve the customer experience with reducing service costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Improving the quality of cold chain logistics services is a great challenge for fresh food e-commerce companies. Traditionally, the evaluation of logistics service quality has been carried out mainly through questionnaire surveys and expert groups, which are time-consuming and laborious. Unlike previous studies, in this study, we used a latent Dirichlet allocation model to explore logistics services using customer reviews on the 'fresh food' category of JD.com, one of China's most popular e-commerce websites. By revising the evaluation index system for logistics service quality, we put forward an evaluation system that covers six dimensions: reliability, security, timeliness, economy, pleasantness and convenience. We then incorporated sentiment analysis technology and the TF-IDF (Term Frequency-Inverse Document Frequency) algorithm to obtain a total score for the service quality of JD's fresh food logistics. This study provides a reference for other B2C fresh e-commerce enterprises on the implementation of logistics service quality evaluation and management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Cross-border e-commerce (CBEC) consumers come from different countries; thus, cultural differences may affect their evaluations and perceptions of service quality. This paper follows Hofstede's framework as a theoretical anchor to explore how to use online consumer reviews that reflect cultural differences to improve the service quality of CBEC. Methods: First, based on a latent Dirichlet allocation model, 14 service quality issues that consumers are concerned about in CBEC were identified. Second, a generalized ordered logistic regression model was explored to analyze the cultural influences on consumer sentiment orientation. Finally, the effect of each cultural dimension on consumer service quality perception in CBEC was evaluated by employing a binary logistic regression model. Results: The results showed that consumers paid more attention to the service quality of logistics service, customs efficiency and tariff, shopping experience, and so on. Cultural dimensions significantly impacted consumers' emotional tendencies. Moreover, cultural dimensions had significant impacts on consumers' service quality perception (e.g., logistics service, trust in sellers, customs disputes, and cell phone performance). Still, consumers' quality perceptions of some services (e.g., cell phone functions, items as described, logistics package quality, and gifts) were less affected by cultural dimensions. Discussion: Our findings not only provide new perspectives for CBEC consumer behavior studies on quality improvement but also provide practical implications for CBEC enterprises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Effective scheduling algorithms are needed in the cloud paradigm to leverage services to customers seamlessly while minimizing the makespan, energy consumption and SLA violations. The ineffective scheduling of resources while not considering the suitability of tasks will affect the quality of service of the cloud provider, and much more energy will be consumed in the running of tasks by the inefficient provisioning of resources, thereby taking an enormous amount of time to process tasks, which affects the makespan. Minimizing SLA violations is an important aspect that needs to be addressed as it impacts the makespans, energy consumption, and also the quality of service in a cloud environment. Many existing studies have solved task-scheduling problems, and those algorithms gave near-optimal solutions from their perspective. In this manuscript, we developed a novel task-scheduling algorithm that considers the task priorities coming onto the cloud platform, calculates their task VM priorities, and feeds them to the scheduler. Then, the scheduler will choose appropriate tasks for the VMs based on the calculated priorities. To model this scheduling algorithm, we used the cat swarm optimization algorithm, which was inspired by the behavior of cats. It was implemented on the Cloudsim tool and OpenStack cloud platform. Extensive experimentation was carried out using real-time workloads. When compared to the baseline PSO, ACO and RATS-HM approaches and from the results, it is evident that our proposed approach outperforms all of the baseline algorithms in view of the above-mentioned parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]