Service excellence is a key differentiation strategy (Pizam and Ellis, 1999 and Prince and Simon, 2009). For the hospitality industry in particular, it represents a primary source of competitive advantage (Davidson et al., 2002, Kim et al., 2003 and Pfeffer, 1998). The alignment of employee service values and behaviors with an organization's strategic service priorities and the service expectations of its customers is therefore critical to organizational success (Boxall and Purcell, 2003).
Today, organizations and customers alike demand exemplary service. Yet, the service values or service quality orientation (SQO) that employees hold do not always coincide with those of the organization or its customers. Service is a highly interactive process in which certain dimensions are more tangible than others. The importance individuals attach to different dimensions of service is also subjective. Divergence between employees, organizations, and customers about which specific dimensions or attributes of service epitomize service excellence may ultimately lead to inferior service outcomes ( Bitner et al., 1994 and Wong et al., 1999). However, when fit exists, favorable service outcomes are more likely as are complementary employee attitudes, such as job satisfaction and organizational commitment ( Babakus et al., 2003, Chiang and Birtch, 2009b and Kim et al., 2005).
SQO is influenced by employee perceptions about work environment or climate (i.e., organizational practices, policies and procedures). For example, rewards signal to employees what behaviors are valued by the organization and are instrumental to the alignment of employee–organization interests ( Eisenhardt, 1989). They have been used to direct, sustain, and motivate desirable values and behaviors, such as knowledge sharing ( Bartol and Srivastava, 2002), creativity ( Eisenberger et al., 1998), quality ( Cowherd and Levine, 1992), and customer satisfaction ( Delaney and Huselid, 1996). Hence, understanding the antecedent role that reward climate plays on employee SQO is essential to fostering service excellence.
Although scholars have recognized the importance of work climate, SQO, and employee attitudes, prior research is insufficient in several respects. First, it is mainly confined to examining the consequences of SQO (Kim et al., 2005 and Saura et al., 2005). SQO is frequently treated as a dispositional antecedent to customer satisfaction, job satisfaction, and performance (Hogan et al., 1984 and Brown et al., 2002). As a consequence, we know relatively little about how SQO is shaped or develops in the first instance (Hartline et al., 2000). Second, according to the interactionist perspective, employee values are influenced by their perceptions about work environment or climate (Lewin, 1951). Hence, the extent to which employees believe that certain service qualities and attributes (macroperceptions) are rewarded in their organization will strongly impact their perceptions (microperceptions) about the importance of such qualities and attributes (Dietz et al., 2004). Such a line of analysis is absent from the SQO literature despite repeated calls from scholars (e.g., Rogg et al., 2001 and Susskind et al., 2003). As scholars (e.g., Schneider and Bowen, 1985 and Zohar, 1980) contend, by measuring a specific dimension of climate (e.g., reward), we can more precisely detect its impact on employee SQO (Manning et al., 2004). Third, current SQO literature focuses predominantly on the customer at the expense of advancing our understanding about the role of employee attitudes (Jones et al., 2003 and Saura et al., 2005). Since employee attitudes are critical to service, it is important to explicitly relate SQO to such employee outcomes. Finally, little, if any, empirical research to date has investigated the potential mediating role of SQO (e.g., Brown et al., 2002 and Saura et al., 2005). Not only do the above shortcomings restrict continued theoretical advancement but also they inhibit the development of practical guidance for organizations pursuing service excellence strategies.
This study attempts to address the above gaps. We begin by briefly delineating reward climate and SQO. Following the development of our hypotheses and a brief overview of the methods employed, we present relevant analyses and findings. The findings demonstrate the important roles that reward climate, SQO, and employee attitudes (i.e., job satisfaction and organizational commitment) play in service excellence. They further reveal that SQO mediates the relationships between reward climate and employee attitudes. In doing so, this study extends the current literature and offers novel contributions to both theory and practice.
