Deck 11: Managing People for Service Advantage

Question 1

Employees should be trained in all these areas EXCEPT ____________.

A)organizational culture
B)organizational revenue
C)service knowledge
D)interpersonal skills
E)product knowledge

Answer 1

B

Question 2

In order for services to succeed in motivating and energizing people, they need to utilize the full range of available rewards.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Technical skills encompass all the required knowledge related to processes.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

Managers often omit which of the cost variables of high turnover/low pay?

A)Cost of constant recruiting
B)Low productivity of inexperienced workers
C)Cost of constantly attracting new customers
D)Income lost from customers turned off by negative word of mouth
E)All of the above

Question 5

Successful performance in a job is often measured by high productivity or outstanding customer service rather than the absence of mistakes.

Question 6

Potential ways to reduce conflict and break down the barriers between departments include ____________.

A)transferring individuals internally
B)establishing cross-departmental and cross-functional project teams
C)establishing cross-departmental and cross-functional delivery teams
D)having management's commitment
E)All of the above

Question 7

Companies that engage in a "Cycle of Success" are more likely to have which of the following?

A)Happier employees
B)More loyal customers
C)Higher profit margins
D)Better wages
E)All of the above

Question 8

Services need to train employees to deal with stress, difficult customers, and get support from their team leaders.

Question 9

Employee satisfaction typically has little impact on customer satisfaction.

Question 10

Customer contact personnel have to attend to both operational and marketing goals and this causes person/role conflict.

Question 11

The "Cycle of Failure" includes all of the following EXCEPT ____________.

A)emphasis on rules
B)emphasis on attracting new customers
C)adequate pay and job security
D)low skill levels
E)use of technology to control quality

Question 12

Friendly, warm, and independent personality traits are found in people with lower self-esteem.

Question 13

From the customer's perspective which of the following is the most important aspect of service?

A)Management's responsiveness to occurrences of failure.
B)Timely delivery of service.
C)Efficient handling of special requests.
D)The encounter with service staff.
E)A fair price.

Question 14

Great references from past employers are not a form of behavioral observation.

Question 15

The "Cycle of Mediocrity" is most often found in large, bureaucratic organizations like regulated oligopolies.

Question 16

Emotional labor is when employees ____________.

A)find it hard to be emotional because they are too overworked
B)have a gap between what they feel inside, and what management expects them to display to their customers
C)have to keep their emotions under control at the work place
D)feel happy all the time because they enjoy their jobs
E)are emotionally stressed by all the demands of their jobs

Question 17

Interpersonal skills include visual communication, attentive listening, and body language and tend to be specific to each service setting.

Question 18

Service employees are important to customers and competitive positioning because the front line ____________.

A)is the most visible part of the firm
B)contains more employees than management
C)is often the first to deal with customer complaints
D)is better trained at dealing with customers than are managers
E)all of the above

Question 19

The Service-Profit Chain needs ____________ to achieve service excellence and customer loyalty.

A)An excellent service process
B)Customer focus
C)High-performing, satisfied employees
D)Profit focus at the leadership

Question 20

Outcomes of the "Cycle of Failure" for firms include ____________ and ____________.

A)low service quality; low employee turnover
B)low service quality; high employee turnover
C)high service quality; low employee turnover
D)high service quality; high employee turnover
E)mediocre service quality; unpredictable employee turnover

Question 21

All employees are eager to be empowered.

Question 22

If a Nordstrom sales associate replaces shirts at no cost to the client, it is an example of ____________.

A)centralized decision-making
B)service theft
C)employee empowerment
D)service sabotage
E)rule setting

Question 23

Cora Griffth has nine rules of success for excellent service as a waitress. They include all of the following EXCEPT ____________.

A)getting things right the first time
B)listening first
C)anticipating customers' wants
D)treating customers like family
E)taking pride in one's work

Question 24

The Ritz-Carlton uses personality profiles to select the best applicants.

Question 25

Excellent service firms use all of the following to identify the best job candidates EXCEPT ____________.

A)observing behavior
B)conducting personality tests
C)interviewing applicants
D)viewing transcripts
E)providing applicants with realistic job previews

Question 26

Discuss why call centers are important or unimportant to customer perceptions of service firms. Give an example to back up your argument.

Question 27

Southwest Airlines illustrates a high-involvement company.

Question 28

The suggested salary to attract top performers is in the range of what percentile of the market?

Question 29

What are the three levels of employee involvement?

Question 30

Define service culture.

Question 31

One of Ritz-Carlton's hiring principles is ____________.

A)maintain a tight knit group
B)hire people with the right personality
C)"training, training, training"
D)customer service is first
E)new hires lead the way

Question 32

What is job content?

Question 33

According to John Wooden, "Too often, the big talkers are the big doers."

Question 34

Training at Apple includes how to phrase words in a positive rather than negative way.

Question 35

What are the three main causes of role stress in frontline positions?

Question 36

How can firms build a strong service culture?

Question 37

What qualities should effective leaders have in service organizations?

Question 38

Singapore Airlines uses teams for all of the following EXCEPT ____________.

A)train staff
B)provide emotional support
C)assess staff
D)promote staff
E)mentor cabin crew

Question 39

Give an example of a company where the winner of the show gets a chance to join the company.

Question 40

Give two reasons for using multiple interviewers.

Question 41

Describe how Disney selects the right people.

Question 42

How does Southwest Airlines ensure continuation of the firm's family feel?

Question 43

How is Cora Griffith's work strategy indicative of the "Cycle of Success?"

Question 44

Give an example of an organization that helps company's build a service culture.

Question 45

Discuss the causes and implications of low-pay/high turnover human resource strategies.