Title: Towards an efficient IS service management: the internal customers' zone of tolerance

Authors: Hugo Ribeiro; Belem Barbosa

Addresses: University of Aveiro, Instituto Superior de Contabilidade e Administração, R. Associação Humanitária dos Bombeiros Voluntários de Aveiro, 3810-500 Aveiro, Portugal ' University of Aveiro, Instituto Superior de Contabilidade e Administração, R. Associação Humanitária dos Bombeiros Voluntários de Aveiro, 3810-500 Aveiro, Portugal

Abstract: This article addresses the zone of tolerance (ZOT) as a diagnosis tool for managing the quality of information systems' (IS) service delivered to internal customers. It aims to contribute to a better understanding of internal customers' ZOT by considering the frequency of use and skills in IS as explanatory factors. A survey was administered to the internal users of one company's IS department. 276 valid questionnaires were obtained, representing a response rate of 70%. The results show that internal customers have narrow zone of tolerance, which differ according to the users' IS skills and how frequently they use the IS support service; occasional users and skilled users are the least susceptible to heterogeneity in the service delivery. This approach enables IS management to focus on users' expectations, making service delivery more efficient by allocating the resources where they are most needed.

Keywords: service quality; information systems' management; zone of tolerance; ZOT; measure of service adequacy; MSA; measure of service superiority; MSS; users' satisfaction.

DOI: 10.1504/IJSOM.2017.086301

International Journal of Services and Operations Management, 2017 Vol.28 No.2, pp.141 - 162

Received: 28 Nov 2015
Accepted: 31 Jan 2016
Published online: 04 Sep 2017 *

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