Scenario

You work as a training specialist in the human resources department of a large insurance company, Mayhem. Several new managers will be starting in a few weeks. The managers will be overseeing employees who work in the company's service operations, including customer service and technical support. There is a large call center where customer service and technical support representatives respond to incoming customer calls. Customers call in with a variety of issues, from difficulty accessing the website to inquiries about whether their insurance covers specific items and cases. Due to the nature of the insurance business, representatives also need to be prepared to support customers who have recently dealt with extremely difficult situations, such as loss. The company's service operations will need to provide exceptional customer service and produce satisfied customers.

The new managers have varying degrees of experience, but some are new to this type of service operation. The director of human resources, Brian Smyth, has asked you to develop a service operations work to help familiarize the new managers with the function of service operations management within your organization. This work should include the functions and impact of service operations.

QUESTION AND DIRECTION

• Service operations work Your director, Brian Smyth, has asked that you include the following elements in your work for the new managers. A. Describe the basic functions and responsibilities of service operations for informing management practices. Include the following in your response:
  • How do the dimensions of customer servicesuch as framework of time, fault-freeness, flexibility, style, steering, and safetyframe basic functions and responsibilities?

• B. Describe the relationship of service operations to the larger organization. Consider the following in your response:
  • How do service operations support the larger organization and contribute to its succes
  • C. Differentiate between core and supporting service operations for informing management practices. Provide an example of each.
  • D. Describe the significance of the service industry in the U.S. economy. Include the following in your response:
  • Approximately what portion of the U.S. economy is comprised of the service industry?
  • How does globalization impact the growth of the service industry?
  • E. Describeservice operations metrics used in evaluating service operations functions and responsibilities. Include the following in your response:
  • What is the value of service operations metrics in determining how well a service is performed?
  • How are cost, quality, and productivity metrics used in evaluating service operations?
  • How can service operations metrics help businesses to provide better service?