Reference no: EM133135265

The reading in week one established a foundation for examining how we define quality service. We reviewed Gronroos's criteria for good perceived service, Martin's six steps to cultivating an environment of quality service, and previewed the "Experience Economy" theorized by Pine II and Gilmore. If we put these in a timeline, the origin of these works/theories would span over three decades from Gronroos to today. Also during this time, we experienced the rise of the Millennials in the workforce and consumers accompanying the rise of the Internet and previously unimaginable connectivity and access to information as well as the recession of 2008 and the evolving habits of consumers and how they [we] define value. What was once a focus on getting more for less [hence modern portion sizes in restaurants], there has been a gradual transition in redefining "more" from quantity to quality. We still like to get more bang for the buck, but that bang is more related to the quality of the experience. In hospitality, that experience is our product.

To explore one of the pitfalls of consistent service, consider the first word used in chapter 1 of The Experience Economy, "commoditized". Using your industry segment of interest [food service, lodging, travel, planning], explain what it means to be commoditized and evaluate an example you may have experienced and how it affected your overall experience.