Case study service op management essay

Village Volvo 1) Describe Village Volvo’s service package. If we define what service package is we can say that the service package is defined as a bundle of goods and services with information that is provided in some environment.

This bundle contains five features describing services such as; • Supporting Facility • Facilitating Goods • Information • Explicate Services • Implicit Service Village Volvo shows an effort by two former authorized Volvo dealers mechanics to provide quality service repair on out-of-waranty Volvos at a reasonable cost. On the basis of their 22 combined years of training and experience with the local Volvo dealer, they have earned a respected reputation and following of satisfied customers, which make an independent service operation feasible. Supporting Facility: According to service management book the definition of supporting facility implies that any physical resources that must be in place before a service can be offered is called supporting facility. In this case the supporting facilities are mechanic workshops and cars needed to be repaired.

The shop was built in suburb in the countryside. The building is not a central place and appropriate for all of the customers, however a daily shuttle service which goes only two or three times a day is scheduled, since no alternate transportations are available. Village Volvo is based in a new prefabricated metal structure building that consist of four work bays, plus it includes the office, storage and waiting room. The waiting room is occupied with a television set, comfortable chairs, coffee, a soft-drink vendegin machine, magazines and the local newspaper. This facility is used almost exclusively by the clients who come during the “ drop-in” times. Facilitating Goods: These are the materials which the customers buy or consume from the supporting facilities. In this case these might be tires. Information: In order to give efficient and customized service, the service provider should gather some information about the customer.

In this case Village Volvo uses CCVD ( Custom Care Vehicle Dossier) which is kind of like a folder of the customers car. This folder can contain information about the previous problems or previous routine maintanence. Also this history can help diagnosing the problem easier.

Explicit Service: After a given service the observable benefits are explicit services. For example in Village Volvo after your car is repaired, with the accompany of the mechanics, you take the car to a test drive. You see if there are any problems at that moment and report your satisfaction. Implicit Service: The Psychological benefits that the customer sense as hardly visible or the external characteristics of service. You know that Village Volvo will not let you go if you are not satisfied with the result. 22 years of training, experience and satisfied customers makes them safe in the service operation. ) How are the distinctive characteristics of a service firm illustrated by Village Volvo? Intangibility: creative advertising, no patient protection, importance of Reputation. In this case it is mentioned that the company’s reputation is enough to be marketed by word of mouth marketing.

The company made their customers satisfied Perishability: cannot store inventory, opportunity loss of idle capacity, need to match supply with demand. By arranging appointments the company reduces the risk of loosing time. However, the company does not request any kind of appointment in routine services such as oil changing. Heterogeneity: customer participation in delivery process results in variability.

Simultaneity: Stands for the reason that services are created delivered and consumed simultaneously. For example if there is no car to change the oil there is no service but when a car comes in you have to change oil simultaneously. Customer Participation in the Service Process: attention to facility design but opportunities for co-production In Village Volvo customer – mechanic interaction is important so by talking about the problems mechanics try to understand the problem of the car.