Standardization in Services: Assessing the Impact on Customer Satisfaction

186 2019, XXII, 3 Ma ke ing and T ade 10.15240/ ul/001/2019-3-012 In oduc ion The se ice o ganiza ions de elop complex se ice o e ings and p ocedu es o ca e o he changing cus ome s’ equi emen s. The inc eased complexi y o he se ice p ocesses hal s e ec i eness o he ope a ions and may lead o he lowe i m compe i i eness o e ime (Schä e meye , Rosenk anz, & Hol en, 2012). The complexi y o se ice ope a ions induces long wai ing imes o cus ome s and high non- alue added cos s o he companies (Geo ge, 2003), and he di e si y o he se ice o e ings challenges e ec i eness o he p ocesses (Ca lbo g, Kinds öm, & Kowalkowski, 2013; Sil es o & Lus a o, 2015). Due o he di ec cus ome pa icipa ion in he se ice p oduc ion, cus ome has powe o signi ican ly impac and dis o se ice ope a ions (Zome dijk & de V ies, 2007). Thus, o ackle he issue o edundancy and imp o e pe o mance, companies make de e mined e o s o s anda dize hei ope a ions. The s anda diza ion boos s en e p ise pe o mance h ough cos , ime educ ion and quali y imp o emen (Da enpo , 2005; Müns e mann, Eckha d , & Wei zel, 2010). The uni ica ion o he business p ocesses leads o he imp o ed con ol and collabo a ion be ween depa men s (Wuellenwebe , Koenig, Beimbo n, & Wei zel, 2009). The d i e o con inuous imp o emen is now p ominen in he se ices segmen , and he p ocess s anda diza ion is c i ical o ensu e e ec i eness o imp o emen e o s (Ande son, Rung usana ham, Sch oede , & De a aj, 1995; Be ge , 1997). The goal o s anda diza ion and con inuous imp o emen is o achie e highe cus ome sa is ac ion in he ligh o he changing cus ome p e e ences, while deli e ing pe o mance bene i s (Ande son, Fo nell, & Rus , 1997; Deming, 1993; Imai, 1986; Like & Mo gan, 2006). Howe e , excessi e s anda diza ion may ha e nega i e impac on cus ome sa is ac ion, since s anda d ope a ions may no ailo o he needs o he a ied cus ome base (Babba , 1992; Hsiao, Chen, Chang, & Chiu, 2016; Lill ank, Shani, & Lindbe g, 2001). Thus, in he ace o he g owing cus omiza ion end, companies ace he con lic ing ade-o o mee cus ome demands and deli e pe o mance imp o emen s (Sil es o & Lus a o, 2015). Ou analysis o he li e a u e e eals he sca ci y o s udies on he impac o s anda diza ion on cus ome sa is ac ion, ye less in se ices. The s udy o Müns e mann, on S e en, Laume and Eckha d (2010) on s anda diza ion o human esou ce p ocesses p o ides o a a e excep ion. The p esen s udy con ibu es o he scan ield o knowledge o s anda diza ion applica ion in se ices, since he p e ious esea ch has mainly ocused on heal hca e, elecommunica ion and manu ac u ing indus ies. The majo i y o he s udies on s anda diza ion assesses he sa ing gains, o en o e looking he impo ance o cus ome sa is ac ion, e en hough cus ome sa is ac ion is linked o a highe cus ome e en ion and imp o ed e enue (Rus & Chung, 2006; Tyagi & Gup a, 2013). The exis ing accoun s also ail o conside s anda diza ion wi hin he wide o ganiza ional imp o emen p ocess ha o en akes place simul aneously. S anda diza ion o he ope a ions in ol es signi ican cos s due o he in es men in he design o he new p ocesses and employee aining (Wang, Wang, Ma, & Qiu, 2010). A he ini ial s age o s anda diza ion, he equi ed in es men may ou weigh he bene i s associa ed wi h he highe p ocess eliabili y and a minimal cus ome sa is ac ion imp o emen . Howe e , e ec i e implemen a ion o he s anda dized p ocesses will e en ually b ing in economies o scale and emendous imp o emen o he se ice quali y (Wang e al., 2010). STANDARDIZATION IN SERVICES: ASSESSING THE IMPACT ON CUSTOMER SATISFACTION Oksana Ko al, S ephen Naba eseh, Felici a Ch omjako á EM_3_2019.indd 186 05.09.2019 9:51:02 187 3, XXII, 2019 Ma ke ing and T ade Despi e he impo ance o s anda diza ion o mode n businesses, he condi ions os e ing e ec i eness o s anda diza ion emain la gely unde s udied. The p e ious esea ch has ocused on iden i ying wha le el o p ocess a ie y as opposed o s anda diza ion should be kep , in o de o mee cus ome equi emen s (A le bach, Bolsinge , & Röglinge , 2016). In hei esea ch, Schä e meye e al. (2012) ind ha complexi y o he p ocesses signi ican ly hinde s business p ocess s anda diza ion. Rome o e al. (2015) builds upon con ingency heo y and iden i ies h ee g oups o he ac o s ha impac s anda diza ion: ex e nal (di e ences in cul u e and legisla ion), in e nal (o ganiza ional s uc u e and le el o company dispe sion) as well as immedia e (manage ial p e e ences). S anda diza ion is inhe en o con inuous imp o emen ; ye , he e is a dea h, i no absence, o he esea ch ega ding how ac o s ha impac con inuous imp o emen , in luence s anda diza ion and ope a ional pe o mance o he i m. To esol e his disc epancy in ou esea ch we p o ide an al e na i e app oach o unde s anding he ac o s in luencing ela ionship be ween s anda diza ion and cus ome sa is ac ion h ough he p ism o con inuous imp o emen ; hus, we a gue ha ac o s ha a e p o en o in luence con inuous imp o emen will also os e s anda diza ion in he o ganiza ions. The goal o he esea ch is o assess he impac o con inuous imp o emen p ac ices on he s anda diza ion – cus ome sa is ac ion ela ionship in he con ex o he se ices i ms. The g owing dependence o he global economy on he se ices sec o and a lack o he esea ch on he se ice companies p o ide a compelling case o he s udy. 1. Li e a u e Re iew 1.1 S anda diza ion and Con inuous Imp o emen S anda diza ion o he ope a ions enables o ganiza ions o emo e non- alue added wo k h ough educ ion o complexi y and excessi e edundancy. The o ganiza ions employ p ocess s anda diza ion o achie e uni o mi y and anspa ency o he ope a ions ac oss alue chain (Wuellenwebe e al., 2009). Shaw, Holland, Kawalek, Snowdon and Wa boys (2007) conside s anda diza ion as an o ganiza ional e o o b ing ope a ions o a single s anda d business p ocess. S anda dized ope a ions educe a iance associa ed wi h each ask, minimize ambigui y, and help employees a oid cos ly mis akes (C osby, 1979; Gilson, Ma hieu, Shalley, & Ruddy, 2005). The uni ica ion o he p ocesses ensu es high quali y o he deli e ed se ices. Howe e , Taubi z (2014) ound ha excessi e s anda diza ion can lead o he e o s and iola ion o occupa ional sa e y. Shaw e al. (2007) de ine s anda diza ion as a pa o he “me a” p ocess o con inuous imp o emen in he o ganiza ion. The p ocess s anda diza ion is embedded wi hin he concep o con inuous imp o emen , ensu ing communica ion and in o ma ion low be ween he indi iduals and eams, in ol ed in he imp o emen p ojec s, h ough uni ica ion o he bes p ac ices and communica ion ools (Ma son & S au e , 2009; Nakamu a, 1993). In he Six Sigma DMAIC cycle (De ine-Measu e- Analyze-Imp o e Con ol) s anda diza ion is undamen al o he Con ol s age, whe e he newly es ablished e ined p ocesses a e documen ed, employees a e ained and he moni o ing plans a e es ablished; hus, making he new p ocess an accep ed s anda d (Boon Sin, Zailani, I anmanesh, & Ramayah, 2015; Pyzdek & Kelle , 2009). Con inuous Imp o emen (CI) is an umb ella concep ying oge he imp o emen me hodologies such as To al Quali y Manage- men , Lean and Six Sigma in o a comp ehensi e imp o emen app oach, bene i ing om he complemen a y na u e o he me hodologies (Be ge , 1997). Con inuous imp o emen is an ongoing e inemen o he s anda ds es ablished wi hin he o ganiza ion and s anda dized p ocesses a e he p e equisi e o he u he changes (Be ge , 1997; Nakamu a, 1993). As a es imony o his s a emen , Be ge (1997) p o ides an example o he PDCA (Plan-Do- Check-Ac ) loop o he Lean me hodology, whe e e e y imp o emen e o s leads o he es ablishmen o he new s anda d ope a ions ha a e con inuously imp o ed h ough he applica ion o PDCA. 1.2 Rela ionship be ween Se ices S anda diza ion and Cus ome Sa is ac ion Cus ome sa is ac ion (CS) is ypically iewed as an ex en o which pe cei ed se ice pe o mance co esponds o he p io cus ome expec a ions (Ande son EM_3_2019.indd 187 05.09.2019 9:51:02 188 2019, XXII, 3 Ma ke ing and T ade e al., 1997). The quali y o he p o ided se ice, as pe cei ed by he cus ome , has an in ica e impac on cus ome sa is ac ion, and is dependen on he homogenei y o he se ice quali y (Pa asu aman, Zei haml, & Be y, 1998; Rome o e al., 2015; Wang e al., 2010). The objec i e o he se ice ope a ions s anda diza ion is o sa is y as many cus ome s as possible, while accommoda ing only a limi ed numbe o cus ome needs, which is akin o he mass p oduc ion o goods (Simonson & Nowlis, 2000). Gilson e al. (2005) sugges ha cus ome s may pe cei e employees, ained o pe o m ope a ions based on he se o s anda ds, as mo e knowledgeable, which, in u n, should lead o he highe cus ome - pe cei ed quali y o he se ice. Thus, due o he high le el o in e ac ion wi h he cus ome s du ing he se ice p oduc ion, s anda diza ion o p ocesses could be especially ele an he se ice employees. The s anda diza ion o p ocesses ha e led o he eme gence o he e m “McDonaldiza ion” in he se ice indus ies (Ri ze , 2011). The s anda dized p ocesses p o ide an ad an age o p edic abili y and consis ency o he se ice s anda d; hus, deli e ing he same high le el o se ice quali y and cus ome sa is ac ion du ing e e y in e ac ion wi h he o ganiza ion (Ding & Keh, 2016; Hsieh & Hsieh, 2001). The echnological ad ancemen s and in en ion o sel -se ice echnologies has led o a highe le el o se ice consis ency, especially in a el, hospi ali y, banking and e ail indus ies (Le i , 1976). The esea che s ha e demons a ed ha cus ome sa is ac ion depends on he quali y o he se ice; howe e , li le esea ch has been done o add ess he ques ion o how s anda diza ion o he se ice a ec s cus ome sa is ac ion. The e is a disag eemen among schola s ega ding he na u e o he ela ionship be ween cus ome sa is ac ion and s anda diza ion. Ope a ions esea ch and p oduc ion managemen li e a u e sugges s ha his ela ionship is posi i e (C osby, 1979; Deming, 1993; Ju an, 1988). In hei esea ch Müns e mann, Eckha d , e al. (2010) ound ha s anda diza ion o he hi ing p ocess deli e ed 30% cos educ ion. In economics li e a u e, howe e , i is main ained ha an inc eased cus ome ocus leads o he g ow h o he p oduc ion cos s, lowe e iciency and p oduc i i y (Ande son e al., 1997; Ha , 1995; Wang e al., 2010). The esea che s Chiang and Wu (2014) pos ula e ha s anda diza ion o he se ice ope a ions leads o he inc ease o cus ome o ien a ion among employees. The e is also e idence o he posi i e impac o p ocess s anda diza ion on job sa is ac ion (Chiang & Wu, 2014; Hsieh & Hsieh, 2001). Howe e , Rus , Je ey, Jianmin and Zaho ik (1999) asse ha excessi e cus omiza ion can be ha m ul o he e en ion o cus ome s. Gilson e al. (2005) ha e simila indings: eams wi h he s anda d p ocesses achie e highe cus ome sa is ac ion, howe e , excessi e s anda diza ion may educe employee c ea i i y and p oblem sol ing skills, hus, esul ing in educ ion o cus ome sa is ac ion. Building on he p e ious esea ch we hypo hesize ha s anda diza ion posi i ely in luences cus ome sa is ac ion: Hypo hesis 1 (H1): S anda diza ion has a posi i e impac on cus ome sa is ac ion. 1.3 Fac o sIn luencingE ec i eness o S anda diza ion and Measu emen I em The s anda diza ion–cus ome sa is ac ion ela ionship is embedded wi hin he wide o ganiza ional con ex , and, consequen ly, is a ec ed by he he e ogeneous in e nal and ex e nal ac o s (Duncan, 1972). In ou esea ch we ollow p e ious s udies linking s anda diza ion o cus ome sa is ac ion. We conside s anda diza ion a pa o an ongoing con inuous imp o emen p ocess wi hin he o ganiza ion. Wi h his assump ion in mind, we build u he hypo heses and p opose he ollowing s a emen s ega ding s anda diza ion: 1) s anda diza ion is inhe en o con inuous imp o emen ; 2) con inuous imp o emen has a posi i e impac on cus ome sa is ac ion, hus, s anda diza ion also posi i ely impac s cus ome sa is ac ion; 3) he ela ionship be ween s anda diza ion and cus ome sa is ac ion can be impac ed by he ac o s, ha a e p o en o os e con inuous imp o emen . To e lec he complex ela ionship be ween s anda diza ion and cus ome sa is ac ion, we in oduce mul iple media o s, ollowing Shah and Golds ein (2006). The e is a scan esea ch ega ding ac o s ha in luence s anda diza ion in he i ms. Since s anda diza ion is one o he key elemen s o CI, in ou esea ch we a gue ha he ac o s, in luencing CI, also ha e impac on s anda diza ion. We d aw u he EM_3_2019.indd 188 05.09.2019 9:51:02 189 3, XXII, 2019 Ma ke ing and T ade hypo heses based on he no ion o ela edness o s anda diza ion o CI. The su ey i ems we e con ex ualized om p io esea ch and modi ied o applica ion in he se ices indus y. To ope a ionalize he cons uc s, he sui able measu emen s we e adap ed om he esea ch li e a u e (see Appendix A). In line wi h he li e a u e e iew we asked esea ch pa icipan s o e alua e in luence o S anda diza ion on imp o emen o cus ome sa is ac ion on he 1-5 Like - ype scale, whe e 1 is o S ongly Disag ee and 5 o S ongly Ag ee. We conside cus ome sa is ac ion as he majo indica o s o ope a ional pe o mance based on Imai (1986), Deming (1993); Bessan and F ancis (1999); Anand e al. (2009). We adap he S anda diza ion measu e om Deming (1993), Kim, Kuma and Kuma (2012) as well as Like (2006). Fig. 1 p o ides he model o he hypo hesized ela ionships. Employee Rewa ds and Recogni ion Rewa ds and ecogni ion aid in educing employee esis ance owa ds he changes, associa ed wi h he p ocess s anda diza ion and imp o emen p ojec s. When no ewa ded app op ia ely, employees may sabo age he imp o emen ini ia i e (Oláh, Szolnok, Nagy, Lengyel, & Popp, 2017; T on oll, B own, G emle , & Ed a dsson, 2011). A he same ime, o ganiza ions ha ha e designed employee ewa ds and ecogni ion sys ems ha ensu e high le el o employee in ol emen and pa icipa ion, epo be e esul s om p ocess imp o emen (Hab oo , 2016; Yang, Lee, & Cheng, 2014). In ou esea ch, we a gue ha employee ewa ds and ecogni ion acili a e p ocess s anda diza ion in he company. Iden i ica ion o he p ocess s anda diza ion oppo uni ies equi es e o s on he side o employees, and app op ia e ewa ds sys em will d i e employee mo i a ion owa ds highe s anda diza ion. Hypo hesis 2 (H2): E ec i e ecogni ion and ewa d sys em ein o ces he posi i e ela ionship be ween s anda diza ion and cus ome sa is ac ion. Quali y-O ien ed Cul u e The quali y-o ien ed cul u e engages employees a e e y le el by p omo ing sha ed alue o cus ome ocus. Consequen ly, in an a emp o deli e he se ice o p oduc o consis en ly high quali y, o ganiza ions end o s anda dize hei p ocesses. Resea che s acknowledge he undamen al ole o he quali y-o ien ed cul u e o e ec i eness o imp o emen e o s (Cal o-Mo a, Picón, Ruiz, & Cauzo, 2013; Hab oo , 2016). Quali y cul u e di ec ly in luences he le el o employee in ol emen in p ocess imp o emen and s anda diza ion (Tsi onis & Psychogios, 2016). Sophis ica ed quali y cul u e se es as an in eg a ing ool o o ganiza ions, and helps hem o o e come implemen a ion ba ie s (De e , Sch oede , & Mau iel, 2000; Dow, Samson, & Fo d, 1999; P ajogo & B own, 2006). We concep ualize his media o om De e e al. (2000); Bo olo i e al. (2015); Jayan h and Xu (2016). Hypo hesis 3 (H3): Quali y-o ien ed cul u e posi i ely media es he ela ionship be ween s anda diza ion and cus ome sa is ac ion. Managemen Commi men The managemen o he o ganiza ion should be he d i ing o ce behind imp o emen ini ia i e (Powell, 1995; Bessan & F ancis,1999; Bo olo i e al., 2015; Hab oo , 2016). Leade ship can demons a e i s commi men o he imp o emen and s anda diza ion by p o iding esou ces a he ope a ional le el and de ining s a egic goals ha inco po a e p ocess imp o emen a he o ganiza ional le el (Haikonen, Sa olainen, & Jä inen, 2004). Managemen commi men o p ocess imp o emen acili a es us in leade ship among employees, which u he os e s employee au onomy and p oac i e p ocess imp o emen (Anand e al., 2009; Ch omjako á, 2016). P ocess imp o emen should in ol e employees om he shop loo o he op-le el managemen in o de o be e ec i e (Like & Mo gan, 2006). Leade ship o he o ganiza ions should exempli y he co e con inuous imp o emen alues and ensu e ha he esou ces, equi ed o p ocess imp o emen s and s anda diza ion a e alloca ed; hus demons a ing commi men o he imp o emen e o (Imai, 1986; Kaye & Ande son, 1999). Acco dingly, we hypo hesize ha high managemen commi men will lead o he high le els o p ocess s anda diza ion. Hypo hesis 4 (H4): Managemen commi - men ein o ces he posi i e ela ionship be ween s anda diza ion and cus ome sa is ac ion. T aining and De elopmen o Employees T aining o employees is a complex ac o ha can be iewed as an educa ion on he EM_3_2019.indd 189 05.09.2019 9:51:02 190 2019, XXII, 3 Ma ke ing and T ade job- ela ed skills o on he imp o emen me hod. In he p oposed esea ch, we ake he la e s ance and assess impac o he aining on imp o emen me hodology on he cus ome sa is ac ion and s anda diza ion. The p e ious s udies la gely ocus on he job- ela ed, a he han on speci ic imp o emen me hodology aining (Pon , Fu lan, & Vinelli, 2009; Zeng, Phan, & Ma sui, 2013) and he e is a gene al lack o he s udies on he impac o he imp o emen me hodology aining on he ope a ional pe o mance. Howe e , Polli (2013) obse ed he ounda ional ole o aining o he e ec i eness o imp o emen e o in he o ganiza ion. Thus, we hypo hesize ha aining in imp o emen echniques will acili a e s anda diza ion in he company. We a gue ha app op ia e aining equips employees wi h he se o skills o iden i y s anda diza ion oppo uni ies: Hypo hesis 5 (H5): T aining and de elopmen o employees ha e a posi i e impac on he s anda diza ion-cus ome sa is ac ion ela ionship. Goal Se ing and P ojec Managemen The p ope selec ion and coo dina ion o imp o emen p ojec s co esponding o he s a egic goals can lead o an imp o ed ope a ional e ec i eness (Choo, Linde man, & Sch oede , 2007; Kaynak, 2003; Powell, 1995). The de eloped sys em o he imp o emen p ojec s, aligned wi h he s a egic goals o he company, a e ca dinal o sus ainabili y o he imp o emen ini ia i e beyond he ini ial oll-ou (Anand e al., 2009; Cal o-Mo a e al., 2013). Fo a long- e m e ec i eness o imp o emen ini ia i e, he o ganiza ion needs o igo ously selec p ojec s ha mee cus ome s’ needs (Jääskeläinen, Laihonen, & Lönnq is , 2014); o he wise, ailu e o adop a cus ome - ocused app oach may lead o de e io a ion o o ganiza ional pe o mance. O ganiza ions ha iden i y p ojec s based on hei impo ance o he s a egic p io i ies a e mo e in eg a ed and able o o e come unnecessa y complexi y (Galeazzo, Fu lan, & Vinelli, 2016). Resea che s emphasize he necessi y o a uni ied coo dina ion and goal se ing o imp o emen ini ia i es and asce ain posi i e impac o p ojec managemen on e ec i eness o he imp o emen ini ia i e (Gonzalez & Ma ins, 2016). Thus, we a gue ha he o ganiza ions exe cising goal se ing and p ojec managemen o imp o emen ini ia i e would bene i om a highe le el o p ocess s anda diza ion. We adap he media o Goal Se ing and P ojec Managemen om Galeazzo e al. (2016), Kaynak (2003), Sabella, Kashou and Om an (2014). Hypo hesis 6 (H6): Goal se ing and p ojec managemen ein o ce he posi i e ela ionship be ween s anda diza ion and cus ome sa is ac ion. 2. Me hodology – Da a Collec ion and Sample The da a was collec ed h ough he su ey ins umen in ou coun ies: he Czech Republic, Poland, Slo ak Republic and Hunga y ha o m a Viseg ad Fou (V4) g oup. We used da abases om he na ional in es men and de elopmen agencies o iden i y ini ial con ac s in he se ice companies (see ABSL, 2016; CzechIn es , 2015; HIPA, 2015; PITA, 2015; SARIO, 2015), and u he used snowballing echnique as well as in o ma ion a ailable online o each wide esea ch sample (Edmondson & McManus, 2007). To ga he da a om he se ice i ms wi h su icien numbe o manage s, we aimed a selec ing companies wi h mo e han 100 employees. Expe ience in con inuous imp o emen o a ailabili y o es ablished imp o emen p og am in he company was ano he selec ion c i e ion. The i ms we e solici ed o pa icipa ion by email, calling o pe sonal isi when app op ia e. To ensu e eliabili y and comp ehensi eness o he su ey ins umen , we consul ed 2 acul y membe s, 2 senio consul an s as well as 4 con inuous imp o emen manage s. Upon ecei ing mani old eedback, he ins umen was modi ied p io o la ge-scale s udy. As a inal s ep in p epa a ion o he su ey, we conduc ed a pilo s udy on wen y- wo companies o con i m he easibili y o selec ed app oach and ins umen (Dillman, Smy h, & Ch is ian, 2014). A cus om web-su ey ha gene a ed and sen a unique link o he esponden s was used o da a collec ion. Cus omized online su ey ensu ed secu i y and p i acy o he esea ch pa icipan s (Dillman e al., 2014). To ensu e eliabili y o he esul s and o a oid bias, we aimed a collec ing mul iple esponses om op manage s, eam leade s and on -line employees a he pa icipa ing (Woodside, 2016). We applied a pessimis ic app oach o agg ega e da a a he company le el h ough sub ac ion o he minimum alues om he esponses in each case (Has ie, Tibshi ani, & F iedman, 2001). The inal esponse a e EM_3_2019.indd 190 05.09.2019 9:51:03 191 3, XXII, 2019 Ma ke ing and T ade accoun ed o 62%. The sample consis s o 304 companies ha p o ide a wide spec um o se ices: inance, accoun ing, human esou ces, logis ics, in o ma ion echnology (including sys ems suppo ), cus ome suppo and p ocu emen . Since Viseg ad g oup expe ienced economic ansi ion and inc eased pa icipa ion in he in e na ional se ices ade (OECD, 2015), we expec a p onounced a iabili y in he CI pe o mance and p ac ices (Sch oede & Flynn, 2001; Zeng e al., 2013). Tab. 1 p o ides an o e iew o he pa icipa ing companies. 3. Resul s To clea ly asce ain he e ec o media o s on he ou come a iable (Cus ome Sa is ac ion), he media ing a iables and hei espec i e bes esponses we e u he analyzed. O e 58.1% o he esponden s epo o ha e an e ec i e ecogni ion and ewa d sys ems, 67.3% ha e a co po a e cul u e o ien ed on quali y, 64.9% ha e commi men o managemen o he imp o emen ini ia i e, 30.6% deli e p ope aining and lea ning o p ojec pa icipan s and 87% se clea goals o imp o emen o p og am. 3.1 Reliabili y Tes The eliabili y analysis was ca ied ou using C onbach Alpha o iden i y he ela ionship be ween i ems and he le el o in e nal consis ency. C onbach’s coe icien α alues o mo e han 0.7 we e conside ed o be consis en and eliable. The highe he alue o C onbach’s coe icien α o he close alpha is o 1.0, he highe he eliabili y o he measu emen i em. As indica ed in Tab. 2, he C onbach’s alpha alue o he s anda diza ion cons uc was 0.898 and 0.798 o he media o s. The alues eco ded o all he cons uc s signi y a e y s ong in e nal consis ency measu emen componen s and he eliabili y o u he analysis gua an eed. 3.2 Explo a o y Fac o Analysis Explo a o y Fac o Analysis (EFA) was pe o med on he da a o condense and summa ize da a Se ices b anch Czech Republic Slo ak Republic Hunga y Poland Finance 17 6 12 14 Accoun ing 16 5 15 15 Human Resou ces 12 5 9 14 Logis ics 10 3 7 17 In o ma ion Technology 15 5 10 15 Cus ome Suppo 18 5 19 13 P ocu emen 9 3 7 8 To al 97 32 79 96 % o basic sample 54% 53% 72% 12% Sou ce: own based on ABSL CZ (2016), HIPA (2015), PITA (2015), SARIO (2015) Tab. 1: Demog aphics o pa icipa ing companies Cons uc C onbach’s Alpha (α) C onbach’s Alpha Based on S anda dized I ems N o I ems S anda diza ion 0.898 0.900 4 Media o s 0.798 0.899 5 Sou ce: own Tab. 2: Reliabili y s a is ics EM_3_2019.indd 191 05.09.2019 9:51:03 192 2019, XXII, 3 Ma ke ing and T ade in o smalle componen s. The use o EFA u he e ealed he con e gence le el o i ems. The EFA assis ed in hypo hesizing concep s in he ini ial analysis. Acco ding o Hai , Ta ham, Ande son, and Black (1998), ac o loadings g ea e han 0.30 a e signi ican , 0.40 a e impo an while 0.50 o mo e a e e y signi ican . Also by ule o humb, ac o loadings o 0.50 o g ea e a e conside ed e y signi ican o be used o u he analysis. This pape adop ed ac o loadings o 0.50 o g ea e o be e y signi ican and u he applied he 0.50 ac o loading in he Pa h analysis o he hypo heses. P io o he ac o analysis, an ap io i analysis based on he P incipal Componen Analysis (PCA) was ca ied ou o de e mine he sui abili y o ac o analysis on he da a using he Kaise -Meye - Olkin (KMO) Measu e o Sampling Adequacy and he Ba le ’s Tes o Sphe ici y. As indica ed in Tab. 3, he Ba le ’s Tes o Sphe ici y is s a is ically signi ican a a P = 0.00, a KMO o 0.778 and a co ela ion ma ix p oducing co ela ions o 0.30 o abo e be ween a iables. The PCA was adap ed o p oduce he eigen alues in he ac o loadings able. Eigen alues o a leas 1 we e highly e ained. Howe e , o he ini ial alues close o one we e also conside ed, since he measu emen a iables a e ew. Th ee measu emen i ems in s anda diza ion accoun o 90.881% o o al a iance and wo media ing a iables accoun ed o 70.33% o o al a iance as indica ed in Tab. 3. Fo con e gen and disc iminan alidi y, he cons uc s/dimensions sa is ied p io equi emen s wi h ac o loadings g ea e han 0.50. 3.3 Con i ma o yFac o AnalysisUsing S uc u al Equa ion Models (SEM) To espond o he hypo hesis, i s he di ec impac o s anda diza ion on CS was assessed. Then media ion a iables such as ewa ds, quali y-o ien ed cul u e, managemen commi men , aining and goal se ing we e in oduced o asce ain he impac o such media o s on he ou comes wi h he e ec Componen Ini ial Eigen alues Ex ac ion Sums o Squa ed Loadings To al % o Va iance Cumula i e %To al % o Va iance Cumula i e % S anda diza ion A1 1.809 47.324 57.324 1.809 47.324 47.324 A2 1.454 22.003 69.327 1.454 22.003 69.327 A3 1.001 21.554 90.881 1.001 21.554 90.881 A4 .866 9.119 100.00 Media o s C1 1.56 44.18 44.18 1.56 44.18 44.18 C2 1.03 26.15 70.33 1.03 26.15 70.33 C3 .75 15.75 86.08 C4 .70 13.92 100.00 KMO and Ba le ’s Tes Kaise -Meye -Olkin Measu e o Sampling Adequacy .778 Ba le ’s Tes o Sphe ici y App ox. Chi-Squa e 2,278.132 d . 92 Sig. .000 Sou ce: own No e: Ex ac ion me hod: P incipal Componen Analysis. Tab. 3: To al a iance explained EM_3_2019.indd 192 05.09.2019 9:51:03 193 3, XXII, 2019 Ma ke ing and T ade on he La en Va iable (see Appendix A). Co ela ions we e de e mined o analyze he s eng h o ela ionship be ween he a iables. F om Tab. 4, h ee measu emen i ems o s anda diza ion signi ican ly ela e o he ou come a iable o cus ome sa is ac ion. The model gene a ed o espond o he hypo heses was e alua ed o alida e he in e nal consis ency eliabili y, con e gen alidi y and disc iminan alidi y. The A e age Va iance Ex ac ed (AVE) was used o alida e he con e gen alidi y o he la en a iable in he model. I can be obse ed in Tab. 5 ha all he measu emen i ems a e abo e he h eshold o 0.5 as by ule o humb. The squa e oo o AVE, using he Fo nell-Lacke C i e ion Disc iminan Validi y Tes , has high diagonal esul s o 0.722. This con i ms he disc iminan alidi y o he model. 3.4 Tes ing Impac o Media o s on S anda diza ion-Cus ome Sa is ac ion Rela ionship Cus ome sa is ac ion is dependen on a lo o a iables. Companies may misapp op ia e ce ain condi ions o cus ome sa is ac ion wi hou ca e ully aligning a iables o in luence. This pape u he assessed he pa ame e s closely associa ed wi h cus ome sa is ac ion by de eloping six hypo heses. The model in Fig. 1, and he esul s deplo ed in Tab. 6 p esen he pic o ial indings. Using he s anda diza ion la en a iables wi h media o s applied, he model in Fig. 1 inco po a es Cus ome sa is ac ion as he ou pu a iable. The model is highly i o be analyzed and deployed in p ac ical se ings. A ca e ul analyses o he i indices in Tab. 6 indica e ha chi-squa e is no signi ican a a es s a is ic o 0.05, RMSEA < 0.05 and CFI is 0.971. F om Tab. 6 and Fig. 2, H3 and H6 a e he hypo heses no suppo ed in he analysis. The g ea e he le el o s anda diza ion in a company, he highe he posi i e impac on CS. This esul is suppo ed by a 99.974% o accu acy, 0.000 P- alue and a T-s a is ic o abo e 2. Fo CS o be enhanced, ewa ds and ecogni ion o employees in ol ed in s anda diza ion mus be in place, which is con i med by he esul o he second hypo hesis wi h a p- alue o 0.011. The o he measu emen indices a o he conclusion d awn o hypo hesis 2. The commi men o managemen La en Va iable S anda diza ion A1 A2 A3 A4 Cus ome Sa is ac ion 0.459** 0.384** 0.223* −0.411 P-Value 0.000 0.003 0.000 0.103 Sou ce: own No e: **, * Co ela ion is signi ican a 0.01 and 0.05 le els ( wo ailed), espec i ely. La en Va iable Symbols Boo s apped T-Value (loadings) Loadings Composi e Reliabili y C onbach’s Alpha AVE S anda diza ion A1 3.657 0.792 0.850 0.750 0.587 A2 3.302 0.696 A3 4.500 0.822 A4 3.046 0.676 Sou ce: own Tab. 4: Co ela ions o la en a iable and ou come Tab. 5: Quali y c i e ia EM_3_2019.indd 193 05.09.2019 9:51:03 194 2019, XXII, 3 Ma ke ing and T ade Fig. 1: Model wi h media o s o cus ome sa is ac ion Sou ce: own Hypo hesis Model Pa h Coe icien P-Value S.E. T-S a is ic Ou come H1 S anda diza ion → CS 0.740 0.000 0.026 3.913 Suppo ed H2 S anda diza ion → Rewa ds →CS 0.243 0.011 0.000 2.442 Suppo ed H3 S anda diza ion → Quali y cul u e →CS −0.021 0.881 0.143 2.113 No Suppo ed H4 S anda diza ion → managemen commi men →CS 0.153 0.001 0.016 3.318 Suppo ed H5 S anda diza ion → employee aining →CS 0.093 0.021 0.052 3.854 Suppo ed H6 S anda diza ion → Goal se ing and P ojec Managemen →CS 0.347 0.057 0.033 3.616 No Suppo ed Chi2 = 733.726 P > chi2 = 0.058 R2 = 0.980 RMSEA = 0.034 d = 304 CFI = 0.971 Sou ce: own Tab. 6: Hypo heses e alua ion and i indices o Cus ome Sa is ac ion (CS) EM_3_2019.indd 194 05.09.2019 9:51:04 201 3, XXII, 2019 Ma ke ing and T ade Zeng, J., Phan, C. A., & Ma sui, Y. (2013). Supply chain quali y managemen p ac ices and pe o mance: An empi ical s udy. Ope a ions Managemen Resea ch, 6(1-2), 19-31. h ps:// doi.o g/10.1007/s12063-012-0074-x. Zome dijk, L. G., & de V ies, J. (2007). S uc u ing on o ice and back o ice wo k in se ice deli e y sys ems – An empi ical s udy o h ee design decisions. In e na ional Jou nal o Ope a ions & P oduc ion Managemen , 27(1), 108-131. h ps://doi. o g/10.1108/01443570710714565. Ing. Oksana Ko al, Ph.D. Tomas Ba a Uni e si y in Zlin Facul y o Managemen and Economics Depa men o Indus ial Enginee ing and In o ma ion Sys ems Czech Republic [email p o ec ed] Ing. S ephen Naba eseh, Ph.D. Tomas Ba a Uni e si y in Zlin Facul y o Managemen and Economics Depa men o S a is ics and Quan i a i e Me hods Czech Republic [email p o ec ed] p o . Ing. Felici a Ch omjako á, Ph.D. Tomas Ba a Uni e si y in Zlin Facul y o Managemen and Economics Depa men o Indus ial Enginee ing and In o ma ion Sys ems Czech Republic [email p o ec ed] EM_3_2019.indd 201 05.09.2019 9:51:05 202 2019, XXII, 3 Ma ke ing and T ade Measu emen I em I em Code I em Desc ip ion Suppo ing Re e ences Independen Va iable S anda diza ion A1 We usually de elop s anda d ope a ing p ocedu es o all p ocesses. Peng, Sch oede , & Shah, 2008; Pon e al., 2009; Taylo , Taylo , & McSweeney, 2013; Ungan, 2006 A2 We end o s anda dize p ocesses be ween se ed clien s. Anand e al., 2009; Gonzalez & Ma ins, 2016; Like & Mo gan, 2006 A3 We usually use Bes P ac ices as an example o ollow and change o he p ocesses acco dingly. Chak a o y, 2009; Kaye & Ande son, 1999; Sabella e al., 2014 A4 We end o s anda dize p ocesses be ween se ed coun ies. Deming, 1993; Kim e al., 2012; Like & Mo gan, 2006; Powell, 1995; Swa ling & Olausson, 2011 Media o s Employee Rewa ds and Recogni ion C1 Ou company has es ablished an e ec i e ecogni ion and ewa d sys em o s imula e employee pa icipa ion in Con inuous Imp o emen . Bessan & F ancis, 1999; Deming, 1993; Dow e al., 1999; Nai , Malho a, & Ahi e, 2011; Yang e al., 2014 Quali y Cul u e C2 Ou company has a s ong co po a e cul u e o ien ed on quali y and suppo s associa ed cul u al changes. Bo olo i e al., 2015; Cal o-Mo a e al., 2013; Dow e al., 1999; Gonzalez & Ma ins, 2016; Hab oo , 2016; Jayan h & Xu, 2016; Sabella e al., 2014 Managemen Commi men C3 Managemen o he company shows a s ong commi men o CI h ough egula communica ion abou CI, pa icipa ion in he imp o emen e en s and isible suppo o he CI p og am. Anand, Chhajed, & Del in, 2012; Bo olo i e al., 2015; Cal o-Mo a e al., 2013; Hab oo , 2016; Nai e al., 2011; Powell, 1995; Samson & Te zio ski, 1999 T aining and de elopmen C4 Ou company ensu es ha employees, pa icipa ing in CI p ojec s, ecei ed p ope aining and lea ning oppo uni ies. Bo olo i e al., 2015; Dow e al., 1999; Hab oo , 2016; Jayan h & Xu, 2016; Laux, Johnson, & Cada, 2015; Pon e al., 2009; Yang e al., 2014; Zeng e al., 2013 Goal Se ing and P ojec Managemen C5 Ou company se s goals and imp o emen p ojec s ha ocus on cus ome needs. Anand e al., 2009; Cal o-Mo a e al., 2013; Galeazzo e al., 2016; Kaynak, 2003; Sabella e al., 2014 Ou come Va iable Cus ome Sa is ac ion D2 We ha e imp o ed cus ome sa is ac ion h ough con inuous imp o emen p ojec s in ou company. Ande son e al., 1995; Deming, 1993; Imai, 1986; Jayan h & Xu, 2016; Pie cy & Rich, 2009 Sou ce: own No e: All i ems use i e-poin Like - ype scales, whe e 1 = s ongly disag ee and 5 = s ongly ag ee. Appendix A: Measu emen i em o SEM models EM_3_2019.indd 202 05.09.2019 9:51:05 203 3, XXII, 2019 Ma ke ing and T ade Abs ac sTanda dizaTion in se ices: assessing The impacT on cusTome saTis acTion Oksana Ko al, S ephen Naba eseh, Felici a Ch omjako á To achie e high compe i i eness, he companies need o sa is y a ying cus ome needs. The changing na u e o cus ome p e e ences leads o he inc eased complexi y o he p ocesses in se ice companies. In o de o deli e he se ices o he high quali y a he accep ed cos s, he companies eso o he p ocess s anda diza ion. Howe e , excessi e p ocess s anda diza ion may lead o company’s inabili y o ca e o he di e en cus ome needs, and hinde i m compe i i eness o e ime. The goal o he p esen s udy, hus, is o e alua e he impac o s anda diza ion on cus ome sa is ac ion, and iden i y ac o s ha can u he os e his ela ionship. We iden i y he ac o s ha impac he s anda diza ion-cus ome sa is ac ion ela ionship h ough explo a o y and con i ma o y ac o analysis, and hen pe o m a s uc u al equa ion model linking s anda diza ion o cus ome sa is ac ion in he sys em o mul iple media ing ac o s. The analysis o 304 i ms e eals he posi i e impac o s anda diza ion on cus ome sa is ac ion. We u he e alua e he e ec o employee ewa ds and ecogni ion sys em, quali y-o ien ed cul u e, managemen commi men , aining and de elopmen as well as goal se ing and p ojec managemen on s anda diza ion- cus ome sa is ac ion ela ionship. The analysis e eals he iad o he ac o s ha a e ca dinal o imp o emen o cus ome sa is ac ion h ough s anda diza ion: aining on imp o emen me hods, ewa ds and ecogni ion o employees o s imula e hei pa icipa ion in imp o emen ini ia i es, as well as managemen commi men . Fu he analysis e eals ce ain egional di e ences in he p e ailing ac o s con ibu ing o s anda diza ion ac oss s udied coun ies. The s udy con ibu es o he sca ce ield o knowledge o s anda diza ion applica ion in se ices domain as well as p o ide di ec ions o he u he schola ly wo k in he ield o p ocess imp o emen and s anda diza ion as well as guidelines o he p ac i ione s conduc ing p ocess imp o emen in hei o ganiza ions. Key Wo ds: S anda diza ion, cus ome sa is ac ion, con inuous imp o emen , S uc u al Equa ion Modeling (SEM). JEL Classi ica ion: L8, L12, O33. DOI: 10.15240/ ul/001/2019-3-012 EM_3_2019.indd 203 05.09.2019 9:51:05