LaserData is a Boston high technology firm that has moved the world of video disc technology one step further into direct use by librarians. Robert Nelson is Vice President of the…
Abstract
LaserData is a Boston high technology firm that has moved the world of video disc technology one step further into direct use by librarians. Robert Nelson is Vice President of the firm. The introduction of this technology for electronic publishing will have far reaching effects on the structure of information and how librarians will work with it. But it is not the product itself that librarians should be most concerned with, although it has a great deal of potential. Rather, we should be reading this interview as a way to identify the trends of this technology and its potential to change the ways by which we work. Thus, this interview not only celebrates the advent of further advances into interactive video disk technology; it also provides librarians with a glimpse into the future applications of new and enhanced technologies in the year 2001. LaserData displayed the new technology in Los Angeles at ALA. We look forward to further developments and thank them for their time in making this interview possible.
Information brokers are a growing segment of the information environment. They present both a promise and a threat to the professional tenets of librarianship. They provide a…
Abstract
Information brokers are a growing segment of the information environment. They present both a promise and a threat to the professional tenets of librarianship. They provide a promising alternative avenue for information professionals who wish to either be independent entrepreneurs or to work for one. On the other hand, they challenge a number of basic philosophical tenets governing the practice of traditional librarianship. Barbara Felicetti, President of Info/motion, explains the role of the information broker. She discusses the many relationships of information and business needs, and the role of an information broker in defining and filling those needs.
Jane H. Yurow is Director of Jane Yurow Associates, Chevy Chase, Maryland, consultants in telecommunications and information policy. Formerly, she was Director, Organization for…
Abstract
Jane H. Yurow is Director of Jane Yurow Associates, Chevy Chase, Maryland, consultants in telecommunications and information policy. Formerly, she was Director, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Privacy Guidelines Project, and Senior Policy Analyst at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce (NTIA). At NTIA she worked on both domestic and international telecommunications policy. Ms. Yurow has a B.A. from Barnard College and an L.L.B. from Yale Law School and is a member of the Connecticut and District of Columbia Bars. Her mailing address is Suite 302, 6917 Arlington Road, Bethesda, Maryland 20814.
Dr. S. Norman Feingold is President of National Career and Counseling Services in Washington, DC. He is author of over 45 books, hundreds of articles, and is a frequent speaker…
Abstract
Dr. S. Norman Feingold is President of National Career and Counseling Services in Washington, DC. He is author of over 45 books, hundreds of articles, and is a frequent speaker and consultant in the guidance field. His most recent book is Emerging Careers: New Occupations for the Year 2000 and Beyond published by Garrett Park Press, Garrett Park, Maryland 20896. The interview with Dr. Feingold is based on this book with particular emphasis on the nature and future of work.
The use of satellites to broadcast television programs and provide other information services directly to the home has been recently approved by the Federal Communications…
Abstract
The use of satellites to broadcast television programs and provide other information services directly to the home has been recently approved by the Federal Communications Commission. This new technological innovation is known as direct broadcast by satellite (DBS) and will go into limited operation during 1984. The Satellite Television Corporation (STC), a subsidiary of COMSAT, is the company that will be providing the first national satellite to home television network in the United States. In this interview with Hartford Gunn, Vice‐President of Program Development for STC, the concept of DBS is explored. As discussed in this interview, DBS holds potential for librarians. There is no doubt that another element in the telecommunications web is coming into place as we move further into the Third Wave.
Anyuan Shen and A. Dwayne Ball
Despite the strong intuitive appeal of personalization (through employees or, increasingly, through the use of software applications), relatively little is known about its role in…
Abstract
Purpose
Despite the strong intuitive appeal of personalization (through employees or, increasingly, through the use of software applications), relatively little is known about its role in managing service relationships. This study aims to explore the burgeoning area of technology‐mediated personalization and its effects on customer commitment to service relationships.
Design/methodology/approach
A theoretical perspective based on integrated reviews of service research and relationship marketing is developed and used to guide the exploration of personalization effects with qualitative data.
Findings
Personalization is not always good enhancement to service: its effects have contingencies and vary across the categories. Continuity personalization seems to be a promising area for researchers and practitioners.
Research limitations/implications
Personalization effects should be rigorously studied. Continuity personalization seems to offer a promising area for future research.
Practical implications
The intuitive belief about personalization is probably misleading. Whether or not personalization strategies help service relationships depends on their capacity to generate positive inferences on dimensions of performance, benevolence, and value provision. Out of the three types, continuity personalization offers a promising strategic option for managing ongoing customer relationships if well implemented.
Originality/value
The counter‐intuitive insights into personalization effects on relationship continuity address issues of theoretical and practical concerns.
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Keywords
Athanasia Daskalopoulou, Kathy Keeling and Rowan Pritchard Jones
Service research holds that as services become more technology dominated, new service provider roles emerge. On a conceptual level, the potential impact of different roles has…
Abstract
Purpose
Service research holds that as services become more technology dominated, new service provider roles emerge. On a conceptual level, the potential impact of different roles has been discussed with regard to service provider readiness, job performance and overall experience. However, as yet, there is sparse empirical support for these conceptual interpretations. The purpose of this paper is to provide an understanding of the new service provider roles that emerge due to the increase of technology mediation in services.
Design/methodology/approach
This study follows a qualitative methodology. Insights are drawn from in-depth interviews with 32 junior and senior health-care service providers (across 12 specialties) and 5 information governance/management staff.
Findings
This analysis illustrates that new service provider roles include those of the enabler, differentiator, innovator, coordinator and sense-giver. By adopting these roles, health-care service providers reveal that they can encourage, support and advance technology mediation in services across different groups/audiences within their organizations (e.g. service delivery level, peer-to-peer level, organizational level). This paper further shows the relationships between these new service provider roles.
Originality/value
This study contributes to theory in technology-mediated services by illustrating empirically the range of activities that constitute each role. It also complements prior work by identifying that service providers adopt the additional role of sense-giver. Finally, this paper provides an understanding of how by taking on these roles service providers can encourage, support and advance technology mediation in services across different groups/audiences in their organization.
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Cesare Amatulli, Andrea Sestino, Alessandro M. Peluso and Gianluigi Guido
New technologies represent an important challenge for all sectors across the world, becoming a relevant opportunity for the luxury hospitality industry as well. This study…
Abstract
New technologies represent an important challenge for all sectors across the world, becoming a relevant opportunity for the luxury hospitality industry as well. This study empirically investigates the effects of openness to change and status consumption orientation in influencing luxury hotel guests' perceived usefulness of voice assistants when integrated with their staying. Specifically, we shed light on the potential interplay between these two constructs in shaping guests' perceived usefulness of these devices. Finding suggests that openness to changes and status consumption represents two potentially alternative aspects that managers could leverage to encourage hotel guests' perceived usefulness and vocal assistant devices. This implies that openness to change on the part of luxury hotel guests may be a necessary but not sufficient condition for these devices to be accepted. Rather, luxury hotel managers should also consider the status consumption orientation of their guests.
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D. Randall Brandt and Kevin L. Reffett
Proposes that service quality can be improved by focusing on customer problems. Describes aproblem‐centred research program used to establish the types and pervasiveness of…
Abstract
Proposes that service quality can be improved by focusing on customer problems. Describes a problem‐centred research program used to establish the types and pervasiveness of customer problems and to evaluate the effect of each on customer satisfaction. Makes it possible to identifycritical problem areas and to establish service priorities accordingly. Offers recommended guidelines for designing and conducting problem‐centred consumer research.
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Gail Tom and Scott Lucey
Describes a laboratory study which tested the effect of customerattributions on customer satisfaction, both with the checker and withthe store. Tests were carried out for…
Abstract
Describes a laboratory study which tested the effect of customer attributions on customer satisfaction, both with the checker and with the store. Tests were carried out for situations where the perceived waiting time was longer than expected, and for situations where it was shorter than expected. The findings indicated the significant effect of customer attribution. Concludes that customer satisfaction/dissatisfaction is dependent not only on the perceived waiting time, but also on the customer identification of the causes, as well as the stability and control of the causes.