Jakša Kivela

Consumer research in the restaurant environment, Part 1: a conceptual model of dining satisfaction and return patronage.

This article proposes a conceptual model that explains dining satisfaction and predicts post‐dining behavioural intentions. The model provides a reference framework for conceptualising and describing the effects of disconfirmation on individuals’ dining and post‐dining experience processes, and within which dining satisfaction research findings can be related, organised, and integrated to form a systematic body of knowledge. The resulting discussion reviews consumer satisfaction research to date and evaluates applications of the approach in customer feedback. The article concludes that disconfirmation theory has sufficient comprehensiveness by suggesting that dining satisfaction is a consequence of disconfirmation and that satisfaction with the dining event does lead to repeat patronage. Subsequent articles (Part 2) will report and explain the research design and analytical methods used in this study, and (Part 3) will report on data analysis and findings of the study.

Consumer research in the restaurant environment. Part 2: Research design and analytical methods

In Part 1, a model of dining satisfaction and return patronage was developed and described. Based on extensive review of the relevant consumer behaviour literature the model was developed and underpinned by the disconfirmation and expectancy theory. As noted in the article, disconfirmation theory is widely accepted as an account of the process by which customers develop feelings of satisfaction or dissatisfaction, that is, when customers compare new dining experiences with some basis that they have developed from prior experiences. On the other hand, the assumption that a customer will weigh various restaurant attributes is based on expectancy theory. In the majority of studies using disconfirmation theory, expectations are formed according to customers’ pre‐experience beliefs and standards that they use to measure their purchase experience. These theories bring together the social, psychological and cultural concepts into four distinct groups of variables: input variables both internal and external, process variables and output variables (Lowenberg et al., 1979; Finkelstein, 1989). This paper is a continuation and explains: how the model of dining satisfaction and return patronage was operationalised, that is, how the research instrument was developed; how the sample size and survey procedures were developed and conducted; and how the selection of analytical procedures was conceived.

Delivering Quality Service: Diagnosing Favorable and Unfavorable Service Encounters in Restaurants

The development of an integrated customer feedback and employee performance strategy has underpinned the sweeping changes undertaken by many service organizations in recent years. However, it is fair to suggest that customer feedback processes that go beyond customer comment cards are often neglected in restaurant operations. In this article, customer perceptions about specific service delivery dimensions are explored and classified. The methodology was underpinned by the critical incident technique (CIT). The findings allude to the linkages between customer feedback and employee performance and the possible integration of feedback into the overall management of service delivery in restaurants. The resulting discussion highlights the CIT’s use in customer feedback analysis. The results of the survey undertaken suggest that the CIT might be sufficiently comprehensive to assess service delivery quality in restaurant operations.

Doing business in the People's Republic of China.

A variety of barriers face foreign joint venture (JV) operators in the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Among these are issues that relate to business and investment laws and regulations, which by default include the foreign investment enterprise (FIE) business vehicles. In this context, one could argue (and legal experts tend to agree) that unless a suitable business vehicle is selected by the FIE, or if the FIE is not correctly set up, the venture may become highly vulnerable to closure and possible litigation, irrespective of whether the organization is well managed. The most likely route for international hotel executives to establish a foreign business venture in the PRC is via a JV. The key to establishing a JV is appropriately conducted business negotiations with prospective Chinese partners.

Total Quality Management Transfer: A Case of Hong Kong Hotels

Hong Kong is world-renowned for its first-class hotels. But increasingly, there is a need for the systematic application of Total Quality Management (TQM) in Hong Kongs hotel industry because its labour turnover is unacceptably high, the cost of hotel labour is rising, and competition is increasing. TQM was first introduced in the local hotel industry during the late 1980s.Data on the present status of TQM in Hong Kongs hotel industry are inter preted within the context of the Chinese family business. The paper concludes by contrasting two case-studies to demonstrate the most effective implemen tation of TQM in Hong Kong hotels.

What recovery? A commentary in response to Bongkosh Ngamsom Rittichainuwat's "Tsunami recovery: a case study of Thailand's tourism".

Although according to some the recovery from the December 2004 Asian tsunami is just about as complete as it can be, issues concerning what kind of recovery are by and large ignored, save for the plethora of information about the economic recovery. This commentary asks the reader to think beyond the economic recovery and consider what the recovery might mean in human terms. It also steers the reader toward an issue of greater concern: in Thailand and elsewhere in Southeast Asia, tourism business considerations often override safety requirements, and in 2004 this had devastating results.