CAKES FOR THE EYES TO EAT ONLY

Don't waste it on the stomach but to feed your senses through your eyes.

Photos : Shoe & Cap Cake

Photos : BBQ Cake

Photos : Burger & Fries Cake

Photos : Corn Cake

Photos: Crab in a Bucket Cake

ARTICLE REVIEW: STEMMING THE TIDE

Photos :Stemming the tide

Article reviewed was referenced from Wang, S & Davis, L, 2008,” Stemming the tide: dealing with the imbalance of customer relationship quality with the key contact employee versus with the firm”, Journal of Services Marketing, issue 22/7, pp. 533 – 549, Emerald.
The research examined the potential harm caused by the termination of an imbalanced customer-employee relationship, where customer-firm relationships are stronger than customer-employee relationship.
The research studies the issue of imbalanced customer-employee relationship with research focus on the causes of its origin. Hypotheses include:
H1: Employees with high levels of empowerment are more likely to create relationship quality (RQ) imbalance compared to those with low levels of empowerment.
H2: Customers under single-facet interactions are more likely to develop an imbalance of customer RQ in favour of a key contact employee compared to those under multi-facet interactions.
H3: Employees engaged in more extra-role performance toward the customer are more likely to cause imbalance of customer RQ in favour of the key contact employee compared to those engaged in less extra-role performance.
H4: Employees with short job tenure are more likely to cause RQ imbalance compared to those with long job tenure.
H5: Compared with men, women customers are more likely to develop imbalance of customer RQ in favour of the key contact employee.
H6: Customers with higher trust propensity are less likely to develop an imbalance of customer RQ in favour of the key contact employee.
H7: Customers with RQ imbalance are more likely to perceive more loss of relational benefits when the key contact employee stops serving the customer.
H8: Customers with RQ imbalance are more likely to re-evaluate business relationship with the service organization when the key contact employee stops serving the customer.
H9: Customers with RQ imbalance are more likely to experience discomfort when the key contact employee stops serving the customer.
The authors consider the research problem was worthy of investigation because little is known about customers’ cognitive and emotional reactions when the relationship with his/her favourite employee terminates. Understanding such reactions could enable service organizations to take precautious actions to prevent switching events and to provide better customer care when facing the termination of an imbalanced customer relationship.
The research method involved several round of interviews. Primary data were collected from 67 firms with 279 employees participating. 1100 customers were approached with 780 completing the customer paper-and-pencil survey. The 780 customer responses were matched with the employee responses and data yielded were analysed from these 780 pairs. The research method of interviews of both customers and their favourite employee provides a direct link to the problem that the authors are addressing. The sample is sizeable to infer the findings correctly. It is an effective method as in face-to-face interviews there is no significant time delay between question and answer; the interviewer and interviewee can directly react on what the other says or does. An advantage of this communication is that the answer of the interviewee is more spontaneous, without an extended reflection (Opdenakker 2006).
Findings found that:

• customers may perceive that they are losing the relational benefits that they have developed through key contact employee when the employee is no longer available;
• customers will experience discomfort when the key contact employee becomes unavailable;
• when RQ imbalance exists customers are more likely to re-evaluate their business relationship with the service firms when the key contact employee becomes unavailable;
• empowering employees in the service process might lead to RQ imbalance that favours the employee;
• developing multi-facet interaction between customer and organization will significantly reduce the customer RQ in favour of the employee;
• employee’s tenure with the company has a significant impact on the likelihood of relationship imbalance;
• the longer the employee works for the company, the less likely the imbalance of customer RQ in favour of the employee;
• when employees go above and beyond the call of duty to secure customer satisfaction, the likelihood of customer RQ imbalance increases;
• women are more likely to develop imbalance of RQ that favours the employee; and
• finally, that customers with a low propensity to trust are more likely to develop relationship imbalances that favour the employee.

The research provides an understanding how RQ imbalance with customers effect the business relationship with the service firm. Organizations have to take into consideration RQ imbalance when attempting to establish customer loyalty.
Service organization must identify causes of such RQ imbalance and find ways to prevent such occurrences.
Policies concerning employee empowerment should be developed in such a way that employee commitment and customer satisfaction are maintained without harming the customer organization relationship.
The more points of interaction that are included in the service experience, the lower the possibility of RQ imbalance that favours the employee, thus, in designing the service delivery, services marketing organizations may want to expand the points of contact.
The findings on employee tenure suggest that companies may be able to gain a competitive advantage by focusing on retaining employees.
The findings also suggest that service organizations should provide and advertise assurances with respect to the quality of the service.

HAVE YOUR CAKE AND NOT EAT IT

I got these pictures from a friend and I thought I'd share them with you.

They are all CAKES. No kidding.

Show all

ARTICLE REVIEW: AGE DIFFERENCES IN MOBILE SERVICE PERCEPTIONS

Article reviewed was referenced from Kumar, A & Lim, H, 2008, “Age differences in mobile service perceptions: comparison of Generation Y and baby boomers”, Journal of Services Marketing, issue 22/7, pp. 568 – 577

The research investigates the differences in the perceptions of mobile service quality and their effects on perceived value, satisfaction and loyalty decisions, with respect to two different customer age groups. The research compares Generation Y (Gen Y) and baby boomers in terms of their mobile service perceptions and loyalty intentions.

The research aims to investigate the effects of age on mobile service quality perceptions and its impact on perceived value, satisfaction and loyalty between two significant mobile service user segments – Generation Y and baby boomers.

Objectives studied include:

O1: Data services will have a greater effect on perceived economic and emotional value for Gen y-ers than for baby boomers.

O2: Functional service quality (billing system) will have a greater effect on perceived economic and emotional value for baby boomers than for Gen-Y.

O3: Perceived emotional will have a greater effect on satisfaction for Gen Y-ers than for baby boomers.

O4: Perceived economical value will have a greater effect on satisfaction for baby boomers than for Gen Y.

The main justification is to help mobile service providers (MSP) use the research to learn how to attract new subscribers as well as retain current customers. It is also to assist MSP in developing effective marketing strategies tuned to the specific needs of these two consumer segments. And to offer insights to MSP’s about effectively targeting their services.

The method was through online surveys and questionnaires with 298 respondents. The questions in the questionnaire were not extensive enough and had limitations. Survey type questions are too general and inflexible (CSU 2010).

The research finding found that:

• data services showed no significant relationship toward perceived value for both groups;
• the effect on customer service quality on perceived emotional value was significant for Gen Y and insignificant for baby boomers;
• perceived emotional value has a greater effect on Gen Y-ers than for baby boomers; and
• perceived economic value had a significant positive effect on satisfaction for baby boomers and not for Gen Y.

The research provide some insights to mobile service providers but it should also be possible to be inferred for other service organizations regarding the difference in service perceptions between the two different age groups.

The research confirms that the relationship between emotional value and satisfaction is stronger for Gen Y than baby boomers.Thus, marketers need to consider young customers’ emotional responses in their marketing efforts.

The research found that economic value had a significant relationship toward satisfaction for baby boomers. Thus, marketing managers in service organizations may place emphasis on their pricing when targeting baby boomers.

In developing strategies to market services, service organizations have to strive to appeal to the emotional value for Gen Y-ers, and for baby boomers, emphasis should be placed on the economic value that can be obtained from their services.

Bibliography:

1. CSU (Colorado State University), 2010 “Advantages and disadvantages of survey method”, retrieved 14 August 2010 from www.writing.colostate.edu website: http://writing.colostate.edu/guides/research/survey/com2d1.cfm

Conclusion of Management for Success 1st Series

Reflection

When I began these series, I had the impression that my materials will come mainly from management journals or HR journals. However, I find most materials relevant to the subject are from psychology journals.

I realise that at least for this first management series that the study of organisation behaviour (OB) is mainly the study of people and the many aspect of their behaviour in the workplace. We always know what makes us get up in the morning, that is, to “bring home the bacon”, so to speak.

 

Conclusion

I believe that for most people in their career building, they may have always relied on “self” motivation to be successful and to climb up the corporate ladder. There are many "self-help" books such as “Seven Habits..” by Stephen Covey and “Who moved my cheese” by Spencer Johnson to “tune our minds” for success. I especially like and concur with Herzberg’s two-factor theory on the motivational-hygiene factors of job satisfaction and job dissatisfaction.

 

However, as a manager, it is not only self and self interest that makes the organization successful but the people working with you in that organization that had to be supported and whom we have to motivate to attain personal and organization goals. It will possibly be more challenging as a manager to manage people than to non-people related resources. It is indeed difficult to understand and manage people.

 

After understanding the three factors of management, some “mysteries”,hopefully will not be so mysterious after all and this added understanding of organizational behaviour and people behaviour will support you and your future managerial work.

 

However, even though most of the fundamental theories can be applied today in the organization, I believe even more new challenges will emerge in the organization and that continuous improvement in one self will entail continuous learning on our part. The abundance of research done in the academic world in this area is expanding and I am confident we can continue to learn from others doing and publishing those researches.

 

It is appropriate to end this series with a quote from Covey (2006): “You lead (empower) people. You manage and control things”.

 

Reference:

1. Covey, SR 2006, ‘Leading in the knowledge worker age’, Leader to Leader, Vol. 2006 Issue 41, pp. 11-15