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The Impact of Strategic Orientation on the Intellectual Capital Investments in Customer Service Firms
Kate Walsh*,
Cathy A. Enz,
and
Linda Canina
Cornell University
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: kmw33{at}cornell.edu.
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Abstract |
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This study examines the influence of intellectual capital on performance in customer service firms pursuing different strategic orientations (e.g., low-cost leader, differentiation). Grounding these arguments in the resource-based view and using 538 hotels in the lodging industry, this article employs an economic-based production model to empirically explore the performance effects of investing in three different types of intellectual capital: systems capital (operational knowledge), customer capital (brand and marketing knowledge), and human capital (knowledge from both service and professional employees). In addition, the authors account for key controls, including the physical asset, cost of living, customer demand, market segment, and company affiliation. Results reveal that for firms pursuing a differentiation strategy only, investments in both service employees and professional employees enhance performance. However, investments in systems capital and customer capital enhance performance for all the firms studied. The authors discuss the implications of this study for research in the services arena.
First published on March 5, 2008, doi:10.1177/1094670508314285
Journal of Service Research 2008;10:300.
A more recent version of this article appeared on May 1, 2008

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