A unified framework for the design of service systems : a co-production approach | |
| Author | Troung Hong Trinh |
| Call Number | AIT Diss. no.ISE-12-21 |
| Subject(s) | Customer services Service industries |
| Note | A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment ofthe requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering, School of Engineering and Technology |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Series Statement | Dissertation ; no. ISE-12-21 |
| Abstract | The design of service system is an important issue in service organizations and is also one of themost interested topics in service operations management. However, a major challenge in earlier literature is on how to find general principles to guide the design process. The purpose of this research is to propose a co-production approach and to develop a unified framework for the design of service systems. The co-production approach views customer as co-producer with the presence of customer inputs in a service process, and conducts strategic tradeoffs between firm and customers. In this research, the co-production approach is employed to develop a framework for the design of service systems that includes theoretical models such as service strategy triad, service positioning strategy, and service delivery strategy, in which interrelationships among market target, service concept and service delivery system design are explored by defining service classification based on two dimensions of service and process, and integrating service strategy into service delivery strategy. The design of service system actually requires theoretical and analytical models to guide managerial decisions. For that reason, a bi-level multi-objective model is developed for service delivery strategy from strategic level to operational level. For the upper level, the co-production approach is employed to develop channel strategy that conducts an objective tradeoff between total cost and total utility. For the lower level, the DEA (Data Envelopment Analysis) method is used to plan allocation policy with capacity constraints, in whichoutput-oriented CCR models are employed to measure customer efficiency and firm productivity. In order to deal with multi-objective problem, Multi-Objective Particle Swarm Optimization Algorithms (MOPSOs) are developed using the Object Library for Evolutionary Techniques, (ET-Lib) to identify objective tradeoffs (Pareto Fronts). Anexperimental study with a hypothetical service system is carried out to verify theoretical typology on service co-production through the analytical models, and conduct strategic approaches and allocation behavior in service delivery systems. The experimental result indicates that the co-production function is feasible under economic and institutional considerations; the co-production approach extends and generalizes both the firm approach and the customer approach; and there exists strategic tradeoffs between firm and customers in service delivery systems. These findings provide managerial indicators for the design of service delivery systems.This researchnot only contributesa theoretical background on co-production and a unified framework for the design of service systems, but also creates rich opportunities for application of analytical methods in service operations. |
| Year | 2012 |
| Corresponding Series Added Entry | Asian Institute of Technology. Dissertation ; no. ISE-12-21 |
| Type | Dissertation |
| School | School of Engineering and Technology (SET) |
| Department | Department of Industrial Systems Engineering (DISE) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Industrial Systems Engineering (ISE) |
| Chairperson(s) | Voratas Kachitvichyanukul; |
| Examination Committee(s) | Huynh Trung Luong ;Do Ba Khang; |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | Ministry of Education and Training (MOET), Vietnam ;Asian Institute of Technology fellowship; |
| Degree | Thesis (Ph. D.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2012 |