21.8.6 Satisfaction Gap
Dissatisfaction may result because the customer feels there is a significant difference
between the service she was expecting and the service she actually experiences.
Ultimately, this will entail the largest gap in the quality experience.
Many companies may fail to notice such a gap which can occur from one of the
other four gaps, or merely because the customer, erroneously, perceives the service
quality as inadequate. At worst, a company may lose a significant fraction of their
customers overnight, because while the company assumed satisfaction (and, no gap),
the truth was that the customers were merely waiting for some other supplier to
satisfy their alleged gap.
This gap can only be considered closed when the other four gaps in the model
have been eliminated. Once this happens, customer expectations and customer
perceptions should align.
The gap magnitude still remaining on any one or more of these four gaps will
define the range how the customer perceives quality falling short of their expectation. There is no other approach for the supplier to directly close this gap.
21.8.7 Summary
The Gap Model of Service Quality provides a framework which can help the
supplier to appreciate and understand usual customer satisfaction concerns. There
are five common gaps which can occur:
(1) The Knowledge Gap
(2) The Policy Gap
(3) The Delivery Gap
(4) The Communication Gap
(5) The Customer Gap
To use the model, suppliers should assess each gap and take the steps required to
reduce them as necessary.
21.9 Quality Service in the Public Sector
Private sector organisations are much quicker than the public sector to adopt new
methods, as they have with the principles of service quality. This is probably due to
the historical and environmental contexts in which the two sectors evolve.
Most public sector organisations aim primarily to provide a social advantage
within a restricted budget and by decreasing expenses. In contrast, private sector
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Dissatisfaction may result because the customer feels there is a significant difference
between the service she was expecting and the service she actually experiences.
Ultimately, this will entail the largest gap in the quality experience.
Many companies may fail to notice such a gap which can occur from one of the
other four gaps, or merely because the customer, erroneously, perceives the service
quality as inadequate. At worst, a company may lose a significant fraction of their
customers overnight, because while the company assumed satisfaction (and, no gap),
the truth was that the customers were merely waiting for some other supplier to
satisfy their alleged gap.
This gap can only be considered closed when the other four gaps in the model
have been eliminated. Once this happens, customer expectations and customer
perceptions should align.
The gap magnitude still remaining on any one or more of these four gaps will
define the range how the customer perceives quality falling short of their expectation. There is no other approach for the supplier to directly close this gap.
21.8.7 Summary
The Gap Model of Service Quality provides a framework which can help the
supplier to appreciate and understand usual customer satisfaction concerns. There
are five common gaps which can occur:
(1) The Knowledge Gap
(2) The Policy Gap
(3) The Delivery Gap
(4) The Communication Gap
(5) The Customer Gap
To use the model, suppliers should assess each gap and take the steps required to
reduce them as necessary.
21.9 Quality Service in the Public Sector
Private sector organisations are much quicker than the public sector to adopt new
methods, as they have with the principles of service quality. This is probably due to
the historical and environmental contexts in which the two sectors evolve.
Most public sector organisations aim primarily to provide a social advantage
within a restricted budget and by decreasing expenses. In contrast, private sector
614
21 Quality of Infrastructure Service Delivery