UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA School of Business
Department of Marketing, Business Economics, and Law
MARKETING 466, Section B1, Winter 2020
Course Outline Instructor: Sharon Bell, MBA
Class Time: Tuesday and Thursday 3:30 to 4:50pm Class Location: BUS 1 – 09
E-mail: [email protected]
Office Hours: BUS 2-33 – Tuesday and Thursday 2:45pm to 3:15pm or by appointment.
Please note that I work off campus, so please use email first to reach me.
COURSE OVERVIEW
About 75% of Canadian GDP is derived from services industries. Much of the job growth in developed countries is in services companies. Moreover, what were historically product dominant firms are turning into service companies; for example, more than half of IBM’s revenues and GE profits are now derived from services. Research in service rather than product marketing didn’t start until the mid- 1980’s. The result is that academics as well as practitioners still have a lot to learn about the service phenomena.
This course will build on the core marketing concepts from Marketing 301, to make them specifically applicable to service industry settings. We will discuss how services are different, why they are
different, and what strategies result from these distinctions. We will cover why people are essential to service success, why expectations are important to service consumers, how the physical environment influences service delivery and how services firms should recover from failure. You will also learn how quality is evaluated in service firms.
To make Management decisions, managers need an understanding of services theory as well as how to use it in concrete situations. These are best learned by examining service problems that require managerial judgment and decision making. To that end, cases and an applied project will be used in this course.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
The course objectives are as follows:
1. To appreciate the differences between services and physical goods 2. To understand how these differences translate into strategic direction 3. To understand what quality means in service delivery
4. To understand how perceptions of service quality are developed by customers
5. To understand how service customers determine value in a service exchange and how this translates into a satisfied customer base
6. To appreciate the role of physical evidence in service delivery and what constitutes an effective service environment
7. To have the knowledge necessary to manage the human element involved in service delivery
8. To appreciate the ramifications of service failure and the benefits of service recovery strategies
9. To understand the importance of keeping good current customers and finding good future customers
REQUIRED TEXT
Zeithaml et al (2018), Services Marketing: Integrating Customer Focus Across the Firm. 7th Edition.
McGraw-Hill Irwin
Please note there are copies of the textbook available in the Winspear Business Library.
OTHER COURSE MATERIALS
HBS Case: https://www.iveycases.com/ProductView.aspx?id=9427 EVALUATION
Midterm 25%
Project – Pre-work Pass/fail Project – Written Report 40%
Project – Presentation 10%
Final Exam 25% TBD
NOTE RE: EXAMS: Each exam is based on the textbook and class materials. Exams will test both factual knowledge as well as your ability to apply the concepts.
NOTE RE: PROJECT
The assignment is to evaluate a service company and may be completed individually or in groups of 2 to 4 people. Details on the assignment will be provided in class, and posted
on e-class. For the assignment, students will receive a group mark. However, each student is expected to contribute fully and equally to the project. The instructor will be observing individual contributions. Marks may be adjusted accordingly where a student is
not contributing equally and fully.
Students should familiarize themselves with the University’s guidelines regarding exam deferrals.
Absences from exams can be excused only on the basis of illness accompanied by a Medical Statement or, a family emergency/distress. Students should also familiarize themselves with the University’s guidelines for appeal of grades.
CALCULATION OF FINAL GRADES
https://policiesonline.ualberta.ca/PoliciesProcedures/Pages/DispPol.aspx?PID=101
The University of Alberta academic policy on grading states the following: “Grades reflect judgements of student achievement made by instructors. These judgements are based on a combination of
absolute achievement and relative performance in class.” The rounding of final course grades is at the discretion of the instructor. Percentage grades are calculated and then converted to letter grades (using the conversion chart at the end of the course outline) for posting as the student’s final grade.
Any grade that is rounded up will be based on the active, constructive contribution to the class by the student over the term.
PROFESSIONALISM
Students are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner. Examples of acting in an unprofessional manner include:
- Arriving for class late on a regular basis - Leaving class early on a regular basis
- Poor attention in class, particularly if it disrupts others – this might include texting, checking email, checking websites or using apps, listening to music, talking to other students, cell phone ringer on
- Addressing the instructor or other students in an inappropriate or disrespectful manner ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
The University of Alberta is committed to the highest standards of academic integrity and honesty.
Students are expected to be familiar with these standards regarding academic honesty and to uphold the policies of the University in this respect. Students are particularly urged to familiarize themselves with the provisions of the Code of Student Behavior – online at
https://www.ualberta.ca/governance/resources/policies-standards-and-codes-of-conduct/code-of- student-behaviour - and avoid any behavior which could potentially result in suspicions of cheating, plagiarism, and misrepresentation of facts and/or participation in an offence. Academic dishonesty is a serious offence and can result in suspension or expulsion from the University.
UNIVERSITY POLICY ON COURSE OUTLINES
Policy about course outlines can be found in Section 23.4(2) of the University Calendar.
COURSE SCHEDULE
The following schedule is provided as a general guideline. Depending on the flow of the course, it could change slightly, so students should keep current on in class activities.
January 7 Course Introduction -
January 9 Gaps Model of Service
Quality
Chapter 1 and 2
January 14 Customer Expectations of
Service
Chapter 3
January 16 Customer Perceptions of
Service
Chapter 4
January 21 Case: JetBlue
January 23 Listening to Customers
through Research
Chapter 5
January 28 Building Customer
Relationships
Chapter 6
January 30 Service Recovery Chapter 7 Pre-work
Assignment Due
February 4 Case: United Breaks
Guitars
February 6 Service innovation and design
Chapter 8
February 11 Customer defined service
standards
Chapter 9
February 13 Case HBS 504016 Starbucks –
Delivering Customer Service
February 18 Reading Week – no class
February 20 Reading Week – no class
February 25 Review
February 27 Midterm
March 3 Physical Evidence and
Servicescape
Chapter 10
March 5 Employees’ Role in Service
Delivery
Chapter 11
March 10 Customers’ Role in Service
Delivery
Chapter 12
March 12 Managing Demand and
Capacity
Chapter 13
March 17 Integrated Services
Marketing Communication
Chapter 14
March 19 Industry Panel Assignment Due
- Written Plan
March 24 Pricing of Services Chapter 15
March 26 Financial and Economic
Impact of Services
Chapter 16
March 31 Project Presentations
April 2 Project Presentations
April 7 Review
April 14 – 25 Final Exam Period
Final Grade Conversion Chart (source: www.ualberta.ca)
Percentage Letter Grade
90-100 A+
86-89 A
82-85 A-
78-81 B+
74-77 B
70-73 B-
66-69 C+
62-65 C
58-61 C-
54-57 D+
50-53 D
0-49 F