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IB244-12 Managing Customer Service

Department
Warwick Business School
Level
Undergraduate Level 2
Credit value
12
Assessment
100% exam
Study location
University of Warwick main campus, Coventry
Introductory description

N/A.

Module web page

Module aims

Improves students’ understanding of the effective management of customer service.
Taking an operations viewpoint, examines and explores the part of the organisation where services are designed, created and provided.
Focuses on the role, nature and provision of customer service in both for-profit and public sector organisations.
Develops skills and provides techniques for the effective management of customer service.

Outline syllabus

This is an indicative module outline only to give an indication of the sort of topics that may be covered. Actual sessions held may differ.

Introduction: the customer service challenge. Develop an understanding of the scope and nature of service operations; and the
need for and importance of improving services. Delivering the service concept.
Design of customer service operations and processes. The need for well defined service concept and how this translates into
service design. Different approaches to service design will be presented and evaluated. Managing service quality. Measuring
customer satisfaction.
Closing expectation / perception gaps: gap analysis. Develop an understanding of the managerial challenge of service quality,
drawing on confirmation theory and the gap model of quality. Different approaches to measuring customer satisfaction,
including SERVQUAL, CIT, Service Transaction Analysis.
Managing staff. Managing customers. Capacity management.
An examination of the challenges of managing these key resources. Staff empowerment; leadership and the role of middle managers; management of compliant versus adaptive service operations. Effective management of customers as a service resource; the challenge of matching supply and demand in operations where production and consumption of service is simultaneous.

Learning outcomes

By the end of the module, students should be able to:

  • The main critical works in Customer Service Management.
  • The organisational and strategic context within which customer service managers function.
  • The design and management of customer service operations and processes.
  • The challenge of delivering service quality and effectively managing capacity.
  • Methods of measuring service quality and customer satisfaction.
  • Be able to analyse case studies to propose potential solutions to Customer Service problems and issues.
  • Learn to apply and critically evaluate the concepts and tools for analysing customer service operations and processes.
  • Develop an ability to critically evaluate the design and delivery of customer service in a variety of service organisations and contexts.
Indicative reading list

Johnston, R., Clark, G. and Shulver, M., Service Operations Management, Prentice Hall, 4th edition, 2012.
Van Looey, Bart., Paul Gemmel and Roland Van Dierdonck, Services Management: An integrated approach, 3rd ed., FT Prentice Hall, Harlow, 2013.
Fitzsimmons, J.A and Fitzsimmons, M.J., Service Management, McGraw Hill, 8th edition, 2014.

Subject specific skills

Demonstrate an awareness of practical managerial issues in Customer Service.
Development of decision making skills regarding design of customer service operations and processes, management of service quality and customer satisfaction, and capacity management.

Transferable skills

Demonstrate problem solving skills developed through analysing business problems in case studies.

Study time

Type Required
Lectures 10 sessions of 2 hours (100%)
Total 20 hours
Private study description

Private Study.

Costs

No further costs have been identified for this module.

You do not need to pass all assessment components to pass the module.

Assessment group B5
Weighting Study time
Online Examination 100% 60 hours
  • Answerbook Green (8 page)
  • Students may use a calculator
Feedback on assessment

Feedback via My.WBS.

Past exam papers for IB244

Courses

This module is Optional for:

  • Year 3 of UESA-HN11 BSc Engineering and Business Studies
  • UIBA-N203 BSc in International Management
    • Year 2 of N203 International Management
    • Year 2 of N203 International Management
  • UIBA-N201 BSc in Management
    • Year 2 of N201 Management
    • Year 2 of N201 Management
  • Year 2 of UIBA-N202 BSc in Management (with Intercalated Year/UPP)
  • UIBA-MN34 Law and Business Four Year (Qualifying Degree)
    • Year 3 of MN34 Law and Business Studies Four Year (Qualifying Degree)
    • Year 4 of MN34 Law and Business Studies Four Year (Qualifying Degree)
  • Year 2 of UIBA-N4N4 Undergraduate Accounting and Finance (with Foundation Year)
  • UIBA-N211 Undergraduate Information Systems Management and Innovation
    • Year 2 of N211 Information Systems Management and Innovation
    • Year 3 of N211 Information Systems Management and Innovation
  • UIBA-N214 Undergraduate Information Systems Management and Innovation (with Intercalated Year)
    • Year 2 of N214 Information Systems Management and Innovation (with Intercalated Year)
    • Year 3 of N214 Information Systems Management and Innovation (with Intercalated Year)
    • Year 4 of N214 Information Systems Management and Innovation (with Intercalated Year)
  • UIBA-N140 Undergraduate International Business
    • Year 2 of N140 International Business
    • Year 4 of N140 International Business
  • UIBA-N1R1 Undergraduate International Business with French
    • Year 2 of N1R1 International Business with French
    • Year 4 of N1R1 International Business with French
  • UIBA-N1R2 Undergraduate International Business with German
    • Year 2 of N1R2 International Business with German
    • Year 4 of N1R2 International Business with German
  • UIBA-N1R3 Undergraduate International Business with Italian
    • Year 2 of N1R3 International Business with Italian
    • Year 4 of N1R3 International Business with Italian
  • UIBA-N1R4 Undergraduate International Business with Spanish
    • Year 2 of N1R4 International Business with Spanish
    • Year 4 of N1R4 International Business with Spanish
  • Year 3 of UIBA-MN31 Undergraduate Law and Business Studies
  • UIBA-MN32 Undergraduate Law and Business Studies
    • Year 3 of MN32 Law and Business Studies (Four-Year)
    • Year 4 of MN32 Law and Business Studies (Four-Year)
  • UIBA-MN37 Undergraduate Law and Business Studies (Qualifying Degree) with Intercalated Year
    • Year 2 of MN37 Law and Business Studies (Qualifying Degree) with Intercalated Year
    • Year 4 of MN37 Law and Business Studies (Qualifying Degree) with Intercalated Year
    • Year 5 of MN37 Law and Business Studies (Qualifying Degree) with Intercalated Year
  • UIBA-MN35 Undergraduate Law and Business Studies with Intercalated Year (3+1)
    • Year 3 of MN35 Law and Business Studies with Intercalated Year (3+1)
    • Year 4 of MN35 Law and Business Studies with Intercalated Year (3+1)
  • UIBA-MN36 Undergraduate Law and Business Studies with Intercalated Year (4+1)
    • Year 2 of MN36 Law and Business Studies with Intercalated Year (4+1)
    • Year 4 of MN36 Law and Business Studies with Intercalated Year (4+1)
    • Year 5 of MN36 Law and Business Studies with Intercalated Year (4+1)
  • Year 3 of UIBA-N20A Undergraduate Management (with Foundation Year)
  • Year 3 of UMAA-G1NC Undergraduate Mathematics and Business Studies
  • Year 4 of UMAA-G1N2 Undergraduate Mathematics and Business Studies (with Intercalated Year)
  • Year 3 of UPXA-F3N1 Undergraduate Physics and Business Studies

This module is Option list A for:

  • UIBA-N203 BSc in International Management
    • Year 4 of N203 International Management
    • Year 4 of N203 International Management
  • Year 3 of UIBA-N201 BSc in Management
  • Year 4 of UIBA-N202 BSc in Management (with Intercalated Year/UPP)
  • Year 4 of UPXA-F3ND Undergraduate Physics and Business Studies (with Intercalated Year)

This module is Option list B for:

  • UIBA-N201 BSc in Management
    • Year 2 of N230 Management with Finance
    • Year 2 of N250 Management with Marketing
    • Year 3 of N230 Management with Finance
    • Year 3 of N250 Management with Marketing
  • UIBA-N202 BSc in Management (with Intercalated Year/UPP)
    • Year 2 of N231 Management with Finance (with Intercalated Year)
    • Year 2 of N251 Management with Marketing (with Intercalated Year)
    • Year 4 of N231 Management with Finance (with Intercalated Year)
    • Year 4 of N251 Management with Marketing (with Intercalated Year)
  • UIBA-NN35 Undergraduate Accounting and Finance
    • Year 2 of NN35 Accounting and Finance
    • Year 3 of NN35 Accounting and Finance
  • Year 3 of UIBA-N4N4 Undergraduate Accounting and Finance (with Foundation Year)
  • UIBA-NN36 Undergraduate Accounting and Finance (with Intercalated Year/Undergraduate Partnership Programme)
    • Year 2 of NN36 Accounting and Finance (Intercalated)
    • Year 2 of NN37 Accounting and Finance (Undergraduate Partnership Programme)
    • Year 3 of NN36 Accounting and Finance (Intercalated)
    • Year 4 of NN36 Accounting and Finance (Intercalated)
    • Year 4 of NN37 Accounting and Finance (Undergraduate Partnership Programme)