Ragnhild Halvorsrud

Improving service quality through customer journey analysis

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to propose a framework based on customer journeys for a structured portrayal of service delivery from the customer’s point of view. The paper also introduces customer journey analysis (CJA) for empirical investigation of individual service experiences in a multichannel environment. Design/methodology/approach The paper presents case studies for onboarding new customers on broadband services. CJA starts with modeling of the service process in terms of touchpoints. The individual customer journeys are reconstructed through methodological triangulation of interviews, diary studies, and process tracking. Findings The paper provides empirical insights into individual customer journeys. Four types of deviations during service delivery are identified: occurrence of ad hoc touchpoints, irregularities in the sequence of logically connected touchpoints, occurrence of failures in touchpoints, and missing touchpoints. CJA seems effective in revealing problematic and incoherent service delivery that may result in unfavorable customer experiences. Practical implications For a service company, the proposed framework may serve as a unifying language to ease cross-departmental communication and approach service quality in a systematic way. CJA discloses the gap between the planned and actual service delivery and can be used as a tool for service improvement. Originality/value The framework provides concepts, definitions, and a visual notation to structure and manage services in terms of customer journeys. CJA is a novel method for empirical studies of the service delivery process and the associated customer experience.

Evaluation of a modelling language for customer journeys

We report on an evaluation of the Customer Journey Modelling Language (CJML) for documenting and visualizing a service process from the customers perspective. The target group is employees in service organizations. We present a modelling toolkit and a scenario-based procedure that was used during the experiment with 48 target users. The purpose was to assess the applicability of CJML when introduced to new users. The participants were able to utilize CJML in a collaborative setting after a short training session. Overall, CJML was perceived as intuitive and useful by a large majority of the participants. A high precision level was obtained in more than 50% of the models produced during the experiment. Still, the analysis reveals the need for better guidance on delineation of process steps. We discuss validity of the results, and further work required to improve CJML.

Customer journey heatmaps: a wake-up call.

A certain company experienced an increasing level of dissatisfaction among its customers with the service it provided, and disagreed internally about the root causes of the negative trend. This case study describes a formalised methodology for customer journeys and a procedure to identify customer pain points and unwanted deviations. We present a three-step procedure to improve the companys service experience: 1) identifying the key planned journeys through workshops and world café methodology; 2) researching actual customer journeys through interviews; 3) establishing customer journey heatmaps as an internal call-for-action and prioritisation tool in the effort of service improvement.

Involving Users in the Design of Sharing Economy Services

Involving users in the design of sharing economy services is important to realize the expected growth in this market. However, such involvement may be challenging due to the complexity and networked character of the service context. We present a case study showing how users’ online feedback on novel design concepts may represent a viable approach to user involvement. In particular, the feedback provides insight into the strengths and weaknesses of proposed concepts as well as suggestions of relevance to the subsequent design process. On the basis of the case study, lessons learnt are discussed, as is needed future research.

Applying AmI Technologies to Crisis Management

The workshop aims to bring together researchers and practitioners working on the application of AmI to crisis and disaster management. Because of their pervasiveness and ease of use, AmI technologies hold a great potential to support crisis management in an efficient and effective way. Focus will be on better understanding (1) the strengths of the AmI paradigm, (2) challenges to its application, and (3) its potential in the development of innovative solutions. The workshop is open to papers from different standpoints, including platform and user interaction issues, methodological approaches, and specific applications.