Qual Quant (2015) 49:763–783
DOI 10.1007/s11135-014-0022-y
A critical review of service excellence models: towards
developing an integrated framework
Muhammad Asif
Published online: 18 April 2014
© Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014
Abstract Service excellence is increasingly being recognized as a critical factor for the
success of a business. Notwithstanding its growing popularity, systematic approaches for
the implementation of service excellence are lacking, and the models for service excellence
are still developing. This paper provides a critical analysis of different models of service
excellence. The purpose is to determine their strengths, limitations, and adequacy to pro-
vide a structured approach to service excellence implementation. The findings show that
while individual models have their strengths and limitations, none provides a comprehen-
sive approach to systematic implementation and management. The limitations of each model
warrant the use of an integrated approach to develop an overarching system for service excel-
lence. This paper develops a framework that builds on the integrated use of service excellence
models. The use of the framework is illustrated with examples.
Keywords Service excellence · Systematic approach · Service excellence models ·
Customer delight · Service excellence structures
1 Introduction
Service excellence refers to the provision of service that exceeds customer expectations and
entails customer delight. Delight is an expression of very high satisfaction resulting from
surprisingly good performance (Oliver 1997). Research and anecdotal evidence show that
service excellence requires an organized, systematic, and systems-wide effort (Lytle et al.
1998). Poor quality of service is often attributed to system or design failures, rather than
people (Berry et al. 1994). Systematic provision of service excellence means developing
organisational structures and systems—including routines, processes, management systems,
and behaviors—that result in sustainable service excellence, and therefore customer delight
M. Asif (
B
)
College of Business Administration, Prince Sultan University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
e-mail: muhammad.assif@gmail.com
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