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    The challenging meet between human and artificial knowledge. A systems-based view of its influences on firms-customers interaction
    (Emerald Publishing Limited, 2023-12-18) Saviano M; Del Prete M; Mueller J; Caputo F
    Purpose This paper aims to recall the attention on a key challenge for customer relationship management related to the role of human agents in the management of the “switch point” for ensuring the effectiveness and efficiency in a customer-machine conversation. Design/methodology/approach This study contributes to the discussion about the firms’ approach to artificial intelligence (AI) in frontline interactions under the conceptual umbrella provided by knowledge management studies. Findings This paper provides a theoretical model for clarifying the role of human intelligence (HI) in AI-based frontline interactions by highlighting the relevance of the actors’ subjectivity in the dynamics and perceptions of customer-machine conversations. Originality/value An AI-HI complementarity matrix is proposed in spite of the still dominant replacement view.
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    The anatomy of a customer relationship management (CRM) initiative : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Customer Relationship Management at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2008) Troy, Virgil
    Much has been written in the field of Customer Relationship Management (CRM). Current literature has focused on various industries such as telecommunications, hospitality, banking, finance, insurance etc; nothing has been investigated within New Zealand’s electricity lines companies and very little has been undertaken academically within New Zealand. This thesis explores for the first time The Anatomy of a CRM Initiative within an electricity lines company; a phenomenon which until recently was inaccessible to scientific investigation. The researcher also breaks new ground by empirically measuring for the first time CRM processes and practices from a New Zealand organisational perspective. CRM is based on three central assumptions that (1) customers want a relationship with suppliers of products or services, (2) CRM is a process or practice that all organisations to some degree either engage or should engage in, and that (3) good CRM increases the level of emotional bond between customer and supplier. As a result of undertaking this research, the researcher came to the conclusion that these assumptions may be fundamentally flawed. In the context of the single case study organisation, the researcher found that few customers wanted an active relationship with their supplier and the extent of these relationships varied across segments; up until this research, previous authors had suggested this scenario existed based on anecdotal evidence alone. From a case study, lines company industry and wider New Zealand organisational perspective, not all organisations demonstrated processes and practices were in place to proactively engage with their customers. Finally the research showed that the emotional bond between customers and the case study organisation is essentially the antithesis of traditional loyalty marketing which suggests that stronger emotional bonds are fostered based on good or excellent service. The researcher found evidence to suggest that, from a lines company perspective, emotional bonds are driven by poor quality rather than good quality.
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    IT capability, customer information handling, and privacy protection: a resource-based view of organisational performance : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Information Science in Information Systems at Massey University, Auckland, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2007) Tang, Yiyi
    What is the influence of Information Technology (IT) capability, and customer relationship management (CRM) capability on organisational information privacy protection behaviour, and ultimately how do these relationships impact on organizational performance? What are the relationships between different types of IT capabilities (i.e. outside-in, inside-out, and spanning capabilities) and how do they impact on performance (i.e. directly or indirectly)? This survey study attempted to answer these questions by empirically testing a research model based on the Resource Based-View (RBV) of the firm and the Comparative Advantage Theory of Competition to examine these relationships in the context of New Zealand firms engaged in IT supported CRM activities. RBV theory claims different subsets of a firm's resources (i.e. assets and capabilities) enable it to achieve initial and long-term competitive advantage (Barney, 1991). The role of different types of IS resources in achieving advantage has not been fully explored with some prior work finding evidence of direct effects but most finding only indirect effects of IS resources in general (Wade & Hulland, 2004). In addition, Comparative Advantage Theory claims a comparative advantage in resources leads to a competitive advantage in market position which in turn leads to superior financial performance (Hunt & Morgan, 1995). In turn, an organisation's use of customer information primarily for internal knowledge or external relationship building may be related to its privacy protection capability and how it measures performance (Greenaway & Chan, 2005) but these propositions had not yet been empirically tested. A review of the Information Systems literature showed that very little prior work had been done on organisational level privacy protection behaviours. The findings from my study begin to address these gaps in the literature. This research makes the following contributions to the academic literature on CRM. First, it empirically tested proposals found in the literature which suggested considering information privacy protection as a resource based on claims made by RBV theory. Second, the research splits IS capabilities into three groups (IS inside-out capability, outside-in capability and spanning capability), splits CRM capabilities into two groups (customer knowledge capability and customer relating capability) and splits organisational performance into two groups (effectiveness and efficiency) in order to assess the role of privacy protection practice as a mediating mechanism between different IS and CRM capabilities and organisational performance outcomes. The response data was analysed using Confirmatory Factor Analysis based on the Partial Least Squares parameter estimation technique, a form of Structural Equation Modelling. The findings show inside-out (internally focused) IT capabilities have a weak negative direct effect on customer relating capability. However, this can be mediated by investing in IT outside-in and IT spanning capabilities which have a positive impact on customer relating capability. Interestingly, IT Outside-in (externally focused) capabilities had a direct positive influence on customer knowledge capability. This was unexpected as earlier work predicted this relationship would be mediated by IT spanning resources. As expected, a comparative advantage in customer knowledge capability had a moderate direct positive impact on efficiency, measured as financial performance. It also had a moderate direct positive impact on producing a comparative advantage in customer relating capability. This supports CRM theory which claims that a better understanding of customers based on collecting and processing customer information can lead to a better customer relating capability. But, as predicted, no relationship to privacy protection capability was found. In contrast, using IT to gain a comparative advantage in customer relating capability had a direct positive impact on establishing privacy protection behaviours that exceed guidelines. Treating privacy protection as a resource also appears to lead to greater effectiveness which in turn leads to greater efficiency. In addition to contributing empirical evidence to support the conditions under which the proposed theoretical model applied, the results had several implications for practice. First, the findings provide organisations with greater awareness of how others in their industry are using IT to support customer relating and customer knowledge capabilities and how safeguarding or not safeguarding information privacy contributes directly to effectiveness and indirectly improves financial performance. Second, the findings are useful for raising consumer awareness about actual organisational information privacy practices. Most organisations in New Zealand reported meeting or exceeding industry guidelines. If the reported safeguards are in place and fair information handling practices are being followed, awareness of the results may help to reduce the high levels of privacy concern reported in consumer surveys. Lastly, privacy protection capabilities have a positive impact on performance, giving organisations an incentive to implement them.