Can continuous improvement lead to satisfied customers? Evidence from the services industry

Abstract

Purpose To achieve higher customer satisfaction (CS), companies implement continuous improvement (CI) programs, regardless of the growing evidence of their failure to achieve declared goals. The purpose of this paper is twofold: first, to identify whether companies are able to improve CS through the application of CI; and, second, to identify what organizational practices are able to facilitate the impact of CI on CS. Design/methodology/approach To test the developed assumptions, the study uses the structural equation modeling technique. The data for analysis were collected from 304 service companies via a custom web-survey. Findings The research confirms the direct positive impact of CI on CS. Further, the study demonstrates that management commitment and rewards system that encourages employees to participate in CI play the major facilitating role in improving CS through CI. These practices accompanied by quality-oriented culture and employee training in the improvement tools provide necessary infrastructure to sustain CI in the companies over time. Additionally, regardless of the vital role of goal setting for CI established in previous research, the proposed study finds a limited ability of goal setting, as compared to other organizational practices, to facilitate CI–CS relationship. Originality/value The study contributes to the scarce field of research on CI implementation in the services environment. Further, the research assesses CS as a variable of interest, as opposite to the previous studies, considering CS as a part of the composite variable. The research assesses the impact of the training in CI methodology on the CI–CS relationship, while previous research focuses on the general, work-related training. The findings provide an important basis for further academic work in the area of quality management. The identified practices can serve as guidance for managers, implementing CI in their companies due to the high fit of the proposed model.

Improving customer satisfaction and loyalty through mHealth service digitalization

“…Value co-creation is an essential element that could help pharmacists improve satisfaction and loyalty precisely with the cooperation of their customers (Andrew et al, 2016;Koval et al, 2018;Wiedmann et al, 2010) P52…”

“…The pharmacists reported having changed their opinions about customer satisfaction and loyalty (Koval et al , 2018). According to 67 percent of the participants, when the mobile apps were introduced, they believed that consumers would change their attitude only slightly.…”

Adopting Six Sigma DMAIC for environmental considerations in process industry environment

“…TQM is a proven CI approach for organizations to achieve benefits related to elimination of defects and rework, enhanced cost efficiency and employee productivity, reduced operational costs and improved customer satisfaction (Sinha et al , 2016; Valmohammadi, 2011; Khan, 2003; Shenawy et al , 2006). In an empirical study using data of 304 service companies operating in four European nations, Koval et al (2018) noted a direct positive impact of CI on customer satisfaction. The authors found that rewards system and management commitment are the crucial dimensions for enhancing customer satisfaction through CI.…”

“…CI approaches has been among the central themes of interest for both academics and practitioners in the field of quality management (Koval et al , 2018; Salah et al , 2010). Many scholars have empirically validated the structural relationship between TQM, one of the established CI methods, and organizational benefits in terms of efficient internal processes, better product/service quality and higher operational performance (Jayad et al , 2019; Sinha et al , 2016; Valmohammadi, 2011).…”

“…Some of the recent studies have also highlighted the key technical as well as behavioral dimensions critical for the deployment of TQM in organizations (Sunder and Prashar, 2020; Jayad et al , 2019). Traditionally, the focus of CI methods such as TQM was primarily to achieve organizational objectives of operational efficiency, product/service quality, process flexibility, market responsiveness and customer satisfaction (Bouranta et al , 2017; Koval et al , 2018; Linderman et al , 2006). The TQM literature has plethora of evidence pertaining to the positive influence of adopting TQM principles such as senior management commitment, strategic leadership, customer focus, employee awareness and training and quality culture on sustaining the competitive advantage (Sinha et al , 2016; Powell et al , 2017).…”