Project Guidelines
Overview
The final project for this course is an analysis of a service company, including the identification of challenges faced by the company and the development of service strategies to overcome those challenges. Deliverables will include a final paper and a presentation. The project is divided into six milestones, which will be submitted at various points throughout the course to scaffold learning and ensure quality final submissions. These milestones will be submitted in Modules Two, Three, Five, Seven, and Nine.
Objectives
To successfully complete this project, you will be expected to apply what you have learned in this course and should include several of the following course outcomes:
• Evaluate the competitive advantages that service organizations and companies that sell products can use within the marketplace
• Identify the factors behind a good customer service experience
• Explain the marketing challenges associated with intangible goods and the strategies used to offset those challenges
• Identify the four stages of operational competitiveness and compare the differences of each stage
• Assess how the concepts of organizational behavior work with the overall marketing plan
• Analyze the consequences for managers when service is considered an experience where the consumer is an active participant
• Describe the benefits associated with customer satisfaction and explain why companies should invest in customer satisfaction research
• Explain how successful customer service programs provide employees with tools
• Define, compare and contrast the industrial management approach and the market-focused management approach
• Analyze the four culture-changing initiatives that facilitate cultural chang