All four dimensions have multiple elements that are detailed aspects that form the framework for achieving service excellence.
It would go too far to outline all these in this article, but I may do so in a later article.
In general, people who are familiar with various service management practices from e.g. ITIL would recognise recommended activities, such as customer journey mapping, service co-creation, employee feedback management, and innovation management.
These are just a handful of possibilities to help organisations achieve service excellence, but certainly indicate the direction in which to think.
How about Experience Management and XLAs?
Experience Management and its associated Experience Level Agreements (XLAs) are gaining popularity in (primarily IT) service providers.
It is being acknowledged that the experience of multiple stakeholders matters when providing services: the customers, consumers, suppliers, and also the employees providing the services.
As opposed to service excellence, experience management does not strive for exceeding the customer's expectations, but strives for meeting a level of satisfaction that is "just good enough".
Experience management includes methodologies to measure experience and act on its feedback.
These methodologies can as well be used in service excellence.
As I see it, experience management actually bridges levels 2 and 3 in the service excellence pyramid.
The upcoming ISO/IEC 20000-18 standard provides guidance on the use of experience management in a service management system.
Conclusion!
While many service providers are still working on getting their basic service management processes right, it is also time to look at going beyond the customers' expectations, as this will increase both customer loyalty and revenue.
Service excellence really focuses on the top 10-15% of service provider organisations that are ready to achieve the higher levels of the service excellence pyramid.
in practice, a continuum can be seen that ranges from the core service provision, for which ISO/IEC 20000-1 provides the requirements, via experience management, which will be standardised in ISO/IEC 20000-18 later this year, to service excellence, that has been documented in ISO 23592.
Many concepts are similar between all the standards and frameworks mentioned, though, making it possible to evolve services and service management systems to higher levels of excellence.
*'The Experience Economy: past present and future' by B. Joseph Pine and James H. Gilmore in: Handbook on the Experience Economy, Edward Elgar, 2013.
Dolf van der Haven
Dolf van der Haven is a Dutch author, consultant, auditor, and trainer specializing in IT service management (ITSM), information security management, governance, and quality management. With more than 30 years of experience in the ICT industry, he has held senior roles in global technology organizations, including SITA and previously Verizon, while contributing to the development of international ISO standards, particularly the ISO/IEC 20000 series for service management.
All four dimensions have multiple elements that are detailed aspects that form the framework for achieving service excellence.
It would go too far to outline all these in this article, but I may do so in a later article.
In general, people who are familiar with various service management practices from e.g. ITIL would recognise recommended activities, such as customer journey mapping, service co-creation, employee feedback management, and innovation management.
These are just a handful of possibilities to help organisations achieve service excellence, but certainly indicate the direction in which to think.
How about Experience Management and XLAs?
Experience Management and its associated Experience Level Agreements (XLAs) are gaining popularity in (primarily IT) service providers.
It is being acknowledged that the experience of multiple stakeholders matters when providing services: the customers, consumers, suppliers, and also the employees providing the services.
As opposed to service excellence, experience management does not strive for exceeding the customer's expectations, but strives for meeting a level of satisfaction that is "just good enough".
Experience management includes methodologies to measure experience and act on its feedback.
These methodologies can as well be used in service excellence.
As I see it, experience management actually bridges levels 2 and 3 in the service excellence pyramid.
The upcoming ISO/IEC 20000-18 standard provides guidance on the use of experience management in a service management system.
Conclusion!
While many service providers are still working on getting their basic service management processes right, it is also time to look at going beyond the customers' expectations, as this will increase both customer loyalty and revenue.
Service excellence really focuses on the top 10-15% of service provider organisations that are ready to achieve the higher levels of the service excellence pyramid.
in practice, a continuum can be seen that ranges from the core service provision, for which ISO/IEC 20000-1 provides the requirements, via experience management, which will be standardised in ISO/IEC 20000-18 later this year, to service excellence, that has been documented in ISO 23592.
Many concepts are similar between all the standards and frameworks mentioned, though, making it possible to evolve services and service management systems to higher levels of excellence.
*'The Experience Economy: past present and future' by B. Joseph Pine and James H. Gilmore in: Handbook on the Experience Economy, Edward Elgar, 2013.
Dolf van der Haven
Dolf van der Haven is a Dutch author, consultant, auditor, and trainer specializing in IT service management (ITSM), information security management, governance, and quality management. With more than 30 years of experience in the ICT industry, he has held senior roles in global technology organizations, including SITA and previously Verizon, while contributing to the development of international ISO standards, particularly the ISO/IEC 20000 series for service management.