Exploring customer stewardship behaviors in service firms

Henry Boateng, Fortune Edem Amenuvor, Diyawu Rahman Adam, George Cudjoe Agbemabiese, Robert E. Hinson

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

7 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Purpose: The existing literature has emphasized the importance of frontline service employees developing a sense of ownership for the overall well-being of customers. However, studies into why frontline service employees develop ownership and responsibility for customers are still lacking. The purpose of this paper is to address the question, “Why do frontline service employees engage in responsible customer service behaviors and protect the interests of customers in Ghana?" Design/methodology/approach: A semistructured interview with 61 frontline service employees was used in the study. This study used a thematic analysis technique to analyze the data. Findings: The findings show that frontline service employees develop a sense of customer stewardship because of organizational values, human resource management initiatives (rewards and in-service training) and ownership and accountability. Originality/value: Studies on why frontline service employees engage in responsible customer service behaviors and protect the interests of customers is limited. This study addresses this gap in the literature.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)541-555
Number of pages15
JournalEuropean Business Review
Volume34
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jun 2022
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Customer stewardship
  • Frontline employees
  • Ghana
  • Service firms

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