Exploring the inputs of IS service

• Authors: Janette Moody
• Venue: SIGCPR '01 Proceedings of the 2001 ACM SIGCPR conference on Computer personnel research
• Year: 2001

The importance of an IS unit's level of service to its internal customers (i.e., end-users) is well recognized (Kettinger and Lee, 1994; Pitt, Watson and Kavan, 1995; Kang and Bradley, 1999). In fact, the level of service provided by the IS unit to its internal customers can ultimately impact the organization's level of service to its external customers, as the IS unit contributes to the overall organizational climate for service (Schneider, White, and Paul, 1998). Much of the research on IS service quality has focused on the gap that exists between end-user expectations for the service and perceptions of the actual service received. Therefore, while these studies have contributed to the measurement of the IS unit's service (i.e., outputs), they have not looked closely at the service providers themselves (i.e., inputs). This research project focuses on the inputs.The research project will test the model depicted in Figure I to investigate the antecedents of, and influences on, the service quality of an IS service encounter (i.e. the service outcome). Using Ajzen and Fishbein's (1977) theory of reasoned action, this model posits that the service orientation (SO) of IS personnel will have a significant impact on end-user ratings of IS service quality (i.e., service outcomes). In addition, the model indicates that the service outcomes may also be influenced by the SO modeled by IS managers and team leaders, and by how (or if) service behavior is rewarded in the IS unit. Therefore, the model looks at the attitudes brought to the job by IS personnel, two facets of the work environment encountered by IS personnel while on the job, and the resulting service encounter as perceived by the end-user.