In the era of experience economy, how best to deliver memorable and exciting customer experiences has become a key issue for service providers. This research aims to build a systematical, quantitative and expectation-based mechanism to design and manage service experience and operation for cyber-physical services. Consequently, this study not only analyzes and synthesizes the critical factors by reviewing literatures (that is, customer expectation, service operation and customer emotion) within the background of service science but also establishes a conceptual theoretical framework for designing satisfactory service experiences. Furthermore, this study presents a concept of the Exquisite Technology and a service system (i.e. U2EX) with a customer expectation management engine (including five core methods, Hawk-Dove game, Coopetition, PSO, FCM and expectation measurement model) in the exhibition context to demonstrate the feasibility of implementing the notions of customer expectation management and service experience design. Besides, we integrate the expectation theory with the emotion theory to build a theoretical concept and employ a multimethod (including a single case study, interviews, simulations and questionnaire surveys) to test the relations and research propositions of the theoretical concept. The research results show positive evidences to support our developed theoretical concept. The customer expectation measurement model is one critical element of the proposed engine that can help service providers understand and quantify customer expectation in dynamic and real time environments for appropriate service experiences based on the systematical and theoretical groundings (i.e. Fechner’s law and operation risk). Hence, we use the simulations to verify the reliability of the customer expectation measurement model. Meanwhile, this research also conducts simulation experiments of Hawk-Dove game, PSO, FCM and Coopetition methods to have preliminary evidences for supporting the proposed mechanism. Thus, service providers provide customers with high-quality service experiences to achieve customer satisfaction and co-create values with customers through meticulous service experiences design approaches. The proposed mechanism of expectation-based service experience and operation design and management has been demonstrated in the exhibition service sector. We would like to apply the advantage and usage of the proposed mechanism to the other feasible domains and service sectors. Consequently, this study proposes a S-D based input-output analysis approach in order to find the potential fields that can also adopt the proposed mechanism by measuring the effects of technology spillovers.

隨著體驗經濟時代的來臨，顧客越來越重視“服務體驗”，而服務體驗過程中必由服務提供者與顧客之間彼此互動所構成，因此設計一個難忘的互動回憶則成為研究的目的。然而，具有品牌力量與資源豐富的高能力服務提供者，往往在進行服務互動中面臨以下的難題：1) 標準化的流程無法彈性地識別各個顧客的心理需求；2) 成本考量難以管控不同顧客間高變異的期望；3) 在一定市場佔有率之下持續挖掘潛在顧客。再加上服務互動過程中，服務提供者與顧客存在既瓜分利益又共創服務價值的競爭合作關係。有鑑於此，本研究透過顧客的心理感受，即顧客期望與情緒兩方面來探討，並採用競合理論設計一系統化動態調整演算法，協助服務提供者找出最能吸引並滿足顧客的服務元件，進而創造整個服務生態環境的最大效益。實驗方法主要以會展服務為例，利用實作系統與問卷調查數值模擬服務互動結果，發現顧客的心理需求與價值不僅能被確認，更能按照管控的趨勢滿足顧客期望，同時為高能力服務提供者提升競爭力，形成彼此愉悅又精緻的服務體驗。綜合以上的研究問題、方法、實驗與貢獻，未來若能將本研究競合理論服務互動設計方法應用於展場活動上進行實地研究，藉由回饋修正方法內參數設定以期適用任一服務產業，為服務科學之應用提供發展方向。 / The importance of customer satisfaction and customer loyalty has attracted increasing attention as both the concerns of service quality and consumer behavior in service-related industry. Today with an emerging experience economy, customers increasingly desire neither goods nor services but sensation-filled experiences that engage them in a personal and memorable way. However, service providers with high competence (e.g. good branding, large resources) are being confronted with difficulties like: 1) recognizing customers’ psychological sentiments within the mental changeability of customers 2) managing high variation of expectations 3) surmounting potential customers’ discovery. Therefore, this study proposes a research method which based on coopetition theories to make high competence service providers (HCSPs) optimize customer attraction within a cooperative/competitive relationship in order to accomplish customer satisfaction/loyalty. From the experiment results which take the exhibition application to simulate a service ecosystem, customers’ psychological sentiments can be managed toward the trend in enhancing expectations together with fulfilling their demands. Therefore, our major research contributions is assisting HCSPs to design personalized and flexible interactions rather than standardized service by using systematical coopetition based interaction design method. Accordingly, HCSPs are easily enriched their competitiveness through managing customer expectations and pleasuring customer mentality in an experienced service journey. At last, the designed system grounded on the extensions to expectation and coopetition theories has shown its intended contributions with the positive simulation evaluation results in the exhibition application domain and could be a step ahead to demonstrate the system’s values in the future field test validation.

The Expectation confirmation model (ECM) is commonly employed to investigate technological advances and customer satisfaction with chatbots. However, customer satisfaction is a multifaceted concept intertwined with emotions and subjective perceptions, comprehending customer satisfaction fully can therefore be challenging. Consequently, the purpose of this exploratory study was to develop and refine the concept of customer satisfaction by answering the research question: How does the integration of underlying factors to the Expectation Confirmation Model (ECM) affect customer satisfaction with chatbot services?. The study incorporated underlying factors such as anthropomorphic behavior, brand perception, trust and word of mouth, which were integrated into the existing components of the ECM. Through a unique research approach involving 20 semi-structured interviews and observations, this study captured and reflected on the subjective impressions and emotions of customers while using chatbots. An array of findings are presented, such as the importance of distinguishing between usability and problem-solving efficiency of chatbots performance, the emphasis on accurate answers over human-like characteristics for chatbots, and the impact of experience, familiarity and age on customer satisfaction with chatbots. In conclusion, this study advocates for further qualitative research to explore  the potential impact of other underlying factors' on customer satisfaction for ECM.

The research sought to investigate the Critical Excellence Factors (CEFs) that drive Excellence in banking industry. Moreover, it examines whether customers perceive the service of an excellent bank differently from a less-excellent bank. Three hypotheses were formed then tested through case study and survey strategy (triangulation), within the Saudi banking industry context. The study combines the EFQM excellence model as an internal assessment tool (case studies), with the SERVQUAL gap model for external assessment (questionnaires). Analysing and contrasting the two sets of results allowed the study to achieve its main objective. Based on the empirical work, the study identifies several CEFs that must be carefully considered when driving excellence in banking. These factors were proposed in a generic integrated model for driving Excellence in Banking.

The research sought to investigate the Critical Excellence Factors (CEFs) that drive Excellence in banking industry. Moreover, it examines whether customers perceive the service of an excellent bank differently from a less-excellent bank. Three hypotheses were formed then tested through case study and survey strategy (triangulation), within the Saudi banking industry context. The study combines the EFQM excellence model as an internal assessment tool (case studies), with the SERVQUAL gap model for external assessment (questionnaires). Analysing and contrasting the two sets of results allowed the study to achieve its main objective. Based on the empirical work, the study identifies several CEFs that must be carefully considered when driving excellence in banking. These factors were proposed in a generic integrated model for driving Excellence in Banking.

Submitted in fulfillment of the requirements of the Degree of Master of Technology: Marketing, Durban University of Technology, 2012. / The aim of this study is to investigate service quality at retail banks, such as Standard Bank, ABSA Bank, First National Bank and Nedbank in Durban. The four objectives of this study are set as: Firstly, to identify the level of satisfaction with customer service received from different retail banks in Durban; Secondly, to identify customers’ expectations in terms of quality services provided by retail banks; Thirdly, to ascertain the perceptions of customers towards the service provided by retail banks in Durban; Fourthly, to measure the gaps between customer expectations and perceptions of service quality, using a modified version of the SERVQUAL model. The instrument used to assess the retail bank customer’s expectation and expectations of service quality, was the SERVQUAL questionnaire, measuring expectations and perceptions according to five quality dimensions. A total of 448 students were surveyed. Quota sampling was used in this study, in order to improve representativeness. Using quota sampling involves selecting the characteristics that are required in the sample and then sampling until enough representatives of each category are achieved. Although this is a form of non-probability sampling, a quota sample can provide a good approximation to a probability sample. It means that distributing questionnaires to a certain group would be stopped after the prescribed quota is reached. Data were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistical techniques. Conclusions and recommendations were thereafter drawn from the literature and the findings of the study. The study shows that retail bank customer expectations of service quality exceeded their perceptions in the five service quality dimensions used in the SERVQUAL questionnaire. This study is also important because it will assist bank managers to convert negative perceptions to positive impressions. Consequently, customers will benefit from the improved, outstanding customer service.

Submitted by Joana Azevedo (joanad@id.uff.br) on 2017-10-20T16:13:15Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissert Flávio Basta.pdf: 2529044 bytes, checksum: 905a37af08eddba428da4fb78273fe35 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Biblioteca da Escola de Engenharia (bee@ndc.uff.br) on 2017-10-23T15:17:00Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissert Flávio Basta.pdf: 2529044 bytes, checksum: 905a37af08eddba428da4fb78273fe35 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-10-23T15:17:00Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissert Flávio Basta.pdf: 2529044 bytes, checksum: 905a37af08eddba428da4fb78273fe35 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-06-27 / A presente pesquisa tem como objetivo estabelecer uma confrontação entre os atributos de qualidade percebidos por clientes, em avaliações on-line espontâneas, após a experimentação do serviço de um hotel categoria cinco estrelas, luxo, e a percepção da equipe gestora do referido estabelecimento. A fundamentação do estudo está suportada por revisão sistemática da literatura. Em termos metodológicos, para a captura da percepção dos clientes, adotou-se a pesquisa e análise de dados de 571 avaliações disponíveis on-line no portal TripAdvisor, enquanto para a pesquisa com os gestores, foram feitas entrevistas individuais com seis profissionais que atuam diretamente na administração do hotel estudado. Como resultado, é evidenciada a necessidade de intervenções estruturais no hotel estudado, o incremento de processos operacionais, controle de estoque, capacitação humana e profunda investigação dos resultados dos motores de satisfação de qualidade. / The present research aims to establish a confrontation between the attributes of perceived quality by clients, in spontaneous online evaluations, after experimenting the service of a five star - luxury category hotel and the perception of the management team of the establishment. The reasoning of the study is supported by a systematic review of the literature. In methodological terms, to capture customer perception, the research and data analysis was made with 571 evaluations available online on the TripAdvisor portal, while for the research with the managers, individual interviews were conducted with 06 professionals who work directly in the administration of the hotel studied. As a result it is evidenced by this study the need for structural interventions on the property, increase operational processes, inventory control, human training and deep investigation of the results of quality satisfaction engines.