Includes bibliographical references / A customer's overall experience of interaction with a firm can be influenced by a variety of antecedents including employee behaviour, and can affect a variety of constructs including a customer's intention to remain loyal to a firm. The study contributes to the customer experience literature by constructing and empirically testing a theoretical model that integrates the construct of employee engagement as an influencing variable on customer experience in a business-to-business environment. Employee engagement is characterised by the level of engagement an employee depicts through attributes such as vigour, dedication and absorption. The study sampled 106 employee respondents and 1,216 customer respondents of a South African mining and construction firm. The combined dataset of both employee and customer responses was empirically tested using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling. The research finds a relationship exists between employee engagement and customer experience of employee performance. Additionally, customer experience of employee performance was significantly statistically associated with overall customer experience, a construct focusing on customer experience comparative to competitors and alternate suppliers. The enhancement of understanding of the antecedents of employee engagement and the effect of customer experience on customer loyalty may assist in the development of interventions to address the gaps in the employee-customer encounter. The principle implication emanating from this study is that customer experience, as a construct, should not be ignored, as the inclusion of a customer experience construct may enhance and complement the prediction of customer behaviour, not only in a business-to-business environment. Establishing the positive and negative levels of the required competencies of employees assists in guiding the supervisory performance discussion, subsequent training suggestions and required on-the-ground coaching.

Background: The concept of Customer Experience Management (CEM) is growing as a marketing tool used in order to remain a competitive actor on the market. By designing a customer experience, companies are able to differentiate themselves by offering a holistic customer experience.                                                                                             Problem: The existing body of knowledge regarding CEM in the B2B setting is limited. However, recent studies have begun to examine the fact that the buying process in B2B does not only concern task related and rational decision-making criteria, but also that emotional consideration plays a part in the buying process. Additionally, during recent years the Office Space Interior Solutions (OSIS) companies have gone through the development from selling simple furniture to offering activity-based environments as well as using a profile as design companies.                                                                                             Purpose: The aim of this thesis is to create an understanding regarding how the phenomena of CEM is implemented within the B2B industry, more specifically Swedish OSIS companies within the regions of Småland and Västra Götaland.                                                                                            Method: Through semi-structured interviews with four case companies that all are operating within the OSIS industry, qualitative data has been collected and analysed through a thematic analysis approach. The answers have later been revised through a conceptual framework that has been identified through a review of existing literature concerning CEM.   Result: The findings suggested that OSIS companies do practice all the dimensions identified in the conceptual framework regarding customer experience and experience value. However, implementing the dimensions as a holistic experience design did not seem to be practiced by the companies. Finally, by providing a customer experience, OSIS companies are able to influence the purchase intentions, establish relationships and generate WOM which in turn can attract and retain customers.

Customer experience is one strategic option for organisations wishing to differentiate their service offering. Little research however has been conducted to explain how service design and management practices influence customer experience in non-hedonic contexts, settings in which the objectives for the design of the delivery system are not experiential. The objective of this research is to address this gap in academic knowledge. The conceptual framework used as the basis of the empirical research demonstrates how four experience mechanism constructs, incorporated into the design of the delivery system, facilitate the customer’s involvement in the delivery of the service and influence how they perceive the experience that emerges as a result. To explore the relevance of the framework two case studies were conducted. Data was collected principally through interviews with employees working at various levels throughout the organisations hierarchy and with customers. Observations and secondary source material also provided additional evidence. The thesis provides an original and distinct contribution to knowledge, through three main findings: Firstly, the research found evidence that the conceptual framework was relevant to the design of the delivery system and in customers’ perception of their experience. This challenges assumptions in existing literature that experience might not be a relevant design consideration in non-hedonic service contexts. Secondly, the findings provide a point of distinction between experiences in hedonic and non-hedonic contexts. Finally the study extends experience design theory demonstrating how in the contexts studied, the experience mechanisms act as antecedents for the experience a customer perceives. Whilst conducting only two case studies limits the impact of the findings, the propositions formulated to explain the key themes identified, can be used as a vehicle through which future quantitative research can be carried out, therefore extending the generalisability of the study beyond the contexts studied.

The process of value creation is rapidly shifting from a product- and firm-centric view to personalized consumer experience today. Informed, networked, empowered and active consumers are increasingly co-creating value with the firm. The interaction between the firm and the consumer as well as the experience factor plays an increasingly important role in determining the success of a company’s offering. In this study, a special type of co-creating experience is investigated - “omstartspex” - where the audience is interacting with actors during the play. Drawing from results of three focus group interviews, this study attempts to understand the effect of co-creation on customer experience and its three dimensions - emotional, cognitive and relational. The co-creation process, demanding for both firm and consumers, raises important questions for managers in terms of operational efficiency and control over product quality, etc. Apart from it, the empirical results show that co-creation indeed has positive effect on customer experience. It creates unique customer experiences, strengthens the relationship between consumer (audience) and firm (actors). This, in turn, leads to an increasing level of customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Syfte: Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka hur kundens upplevelse formas i kontexten online product community, utifrån ett multidimensionellt perspektiv på kundupplevelsen.   Metod: Med bakgrund mot studiens syfte var det passande att använda en kvalitativ metod. Detta fenomen studerades genom en flerfallsstudie som den övergripande undersökningsdesignen.  Semi-strukturerade intervjuer har genomförts med respondenter från tre olika online product communities. Materialet har sedan analyserat genom en abduktiv analysmetod som är inspirerad av grounded theory.   Resultat & slutsats: Studien visar att kundupplevelsen för medlemmar i online product communities främst formas av den pragmatiska dimensionen, innehåll och funktionalitet är därmed centralt. Resultatet tyder även på att det finns två grupper av användare i dessa communities. Den ena gruppen är mer passiv och pragmatiskt inriktad medan den andra är mer aktiv och nöjesinriktad.   Förslag till vidare forskning: Då denna studie bygger på intervjuer med medlemmar i online product communities som både kan ses som aktiva och passiva medlemmar kan det vara av intresse att i framtiden studera hur de mest aktiva medlemmar upplever att delta i denna kontext, då det är denna kärna som genererar det största innehållet.   Uppsatsens bidrag: Denna studie sammanför den tidigare forskningen om kundupplevelse och senare forskning om kundupplevelse i online communities för att skapa en förklarande modell. Modellen beskriver vilka dimension som formar kundupplevelsen i denna kontext och testas sedan i tre case. Studien bidrar till en ökad förståelse för skillnaden mellan pragmatiska och mer nöjesinriktade användare.   Nyckelord: Customer experience, experiental marketing, online product communities. / Purpose of Study: The aim of this study is to examine how the customer experience is shaped in the context online product community, based on a multi-dimensional perspective on customer experience.   Method: Due to the purpose of the study qualitative methods were chosen. This phenomenon was studied by a multi-case study as the overall study design. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with respondents from three different online product communities. The material was then analyzed by an abductive method of analysis which is inspired by grounded theory.   Results & conclusion: The study shows that the customer experience for members of online product communities primarily is shaped by the pragmatic dimension, content and functionality is thus essential. The results also suggest that there are two groups of users in these communities. One of the groups is more passive and pragmatic, while the other one is more active and entertainment-oriented.   Suggestions for further research: Since this study is based on interviews with members of online product communities which can be seen as active and passive members it may be of interest in future research to study the most active members experiences in this context, because it is this core group that generates the largest content.   Contribution of the thesis: This study brings together previous research on customer experience and recent research on customer experience in online communities to create an explanatory model. The model describes the dimensions that shape the customer experience in this context and is then tested in three cases. The study contributes to a better understanding of the difference between pragmatic and more entertainment-oriented users.   Key Words: Customer experience, experiental marketing, online product communities.

abstract: Understanding the customer experience, which requires a thorough knowledge of all touchpoints that can result from the way that a product is marketed, sold, and used has recently been identified as a research priority by the Marketing Science Institute. Although recent research has examined some aspects of the customer experience, research has yet to examine the way in which the full spectrum of touchpoint experiences may drive particular marketing performance metrics. Significant challenges to this line of research are the complex network of relationships that competing firms have forged with channel partners, the relationships that focal customers have with other customers in social networks and user communities, and the relationships that customers have with the brand and with channel partners. To address these challenges, this paper examined the customer experience and its effects on loyalty and commitment through three research projects conducted in the consumer aviation market. The first and second studies examined these touchpoint experiences using archival data supplied by an avionics manufacturer. Results from these studies showed the importance of the customer experience in accounting for customer loyalty. The final study examined the role of identity in shaping the customer experience among aircraft owners through a series of depth interviews. Results from these interviews illustrated the importance of identity in shaping the customer experience, and provided insights into how individuals attempt to use their consumption experiences to reinforce a sense of identity / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Business Administration 2011

Purpose: The purpose of this study is the purpose of this study is to gain a more in-depth understanding of customer experience management and how it enables growth within an organization. Background: Customer Experience Management has been described as a process where the entire experience of a customer with a product/service and a company is strategically managed. It has been highlighted as a key area for organisations to focus on, yet, CEM is continuously being researched both by researchers and business practitioners as there is still a vague understanding on the topic. Nonetheless, CEM has been displayed as a successful process, however, very little research has gone into showing that it could enable organizational growth.

The purpose of this study is to develop and practically evaluate a new approach for the introduction of changes in internal and external processes in a customer front, but with the aim of maintaining or increasing customer perceived quality during insertion. A working model has been developed and is used in a qualitative research in the form of a case study carried out in a customer front, on a customer group in Telia's mobile customer service in Sweden. There is currently little research that has studied the implementation phase. The results of the study show that the designed working model works satisfactorily, but also that it can be developed more. Employees are satisfied and the sale was a positive boost, however, declined the customer experience a little bit. Employees raises questions as leader behavior, confidence in the group ahead, everyone's different circumstances and desire for the individual choice. The biggest challenge for future leaders will be to manage and lead continuous change. By creating opportunities for employees so that the customer experience should not be adversely affected during the introduction of the ever ongoing change. / Syftet med det här examensarbetet är att utveckla och praktiskt utvärdera ett nytt arbetssätt för införande av förändrade interna och externa processer i en kundfront, men med ambitionen att bibehållen eller högre kundupplevd kvalité under införandet. En arbetsmodell är utvecklad och är använd i en kvalitativ undersökning i form av att en fallstudie. Studien har genomförts i en kundfront, på en kundtjänstgrupp på Telias mobila kundtjänst i Sverige. I dag finns det lite forskning som har studerat själva införandefasen. Resultatet av studien visar att den utformade arbetsmodellen fungerar tillfredställande, men att den kan utvecklas mer. Medarbetarna är nöjda och försäljningen fick en positiv skjuts, men kundupplevelsen minskade lite. Framgångsfaktorer för ett lyckat förändringsarbete är enligt medarbetarna ledarens agerande, trygghet i gruppen, framförhållning, allas olika förutsättningar och önskan om det individuella valet. Den största utmaningen för framtidens ledare torde bli att hantera och leda ständiga förändringar. En ledare behöver skapa förutsättningar för medarbetarna så att kundens upplevelse inte påverkas negativt under införandet av de ständigt pågående förändringarna.

This study attempts to identify possibilities for creating a unified offline and online customer experience across communication channels in a retail company. With the current technological development and the trend of customers shifting more to the online channel, the customers also expect more from this communication channel. Within the online channel a development into an omni- channel (unified experience across channels) approach is leading to new possibilities, and keeping up with the development will support companies to keep their competitive advantage. The study reviews a case (Mio) with an offline channel represented by several large scale retail stores in Sweden, and also providing an online channel as a website meant to complement the stores. The study reviews previous literature in the field of customer experience both online and offline, omni channel retailing, and marketing. This is the foundation, together with a benchmark case (comparison case), and a survey to gain further insight and widen the knowledge. The results indicates that there are specific features which could contribute to a more positive and seamless experience across channels for the customer. These are information availability, quality and consistency across channels. As well as, functionality for purchases, order handling and tracking, and interactive customer service online. This could preferentially be fused in one place as a customers personal profile, allowing for a portal with everything the customer needs during all phases of the shopping experience. These findings provide insight into how the online channel could be used to better complement the offline channel, working synergistically. Future research is needed to validate these initial findings.

I hospitalitybranschen arbetas det intensivt med att erbjuda sina gäster så bra upplevelser som möjligt. Nya teknologiska lösningar som påverkar gästers interaktion med branschen utvecklas ständigt, samtidigt som människors levnadsvanor blir allt mer integrerade med det teknologiska. Flera undersökningar visar att just teknologi inkorporerad i hospitalitybranschen är en bidragande faktor för en förhöjd gästupplevelse, men trots det är det få inom branschen som väljer att anamma den. Tron om att den typen av investeringar är allt för kostsamma, okunskap om att teknologin finns och en allt för konservativ syn är tänkbara förklaringar till att stora delar av branschen halkar efter. I uppsatsen redogörs för några i världen pågående trender och en litteraturstudie genomförs för att undersöka hur teknologi kan användas för att förhöja gästupplevelsen inom hospitalitybranschen med hänsyn till dessa trender. Uppsatsen diskuterar hur branschen är på väg att förändras och föreslår ett par exempel för hur ditt varumärke kan hänga med i utvecklingen redan idag. / B-uppsatser