Retrospective: tracking service failures and employee recovery efforts

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide an evaluation of the findings first put forward in the article Tracking Service Failures and Employee Recovery Efforts with the benefit of hindsight, and to offer directions for further research and developments in the research area. Design/methodology/approach – Research directions which emanated from the publication of the article have been examined in light of current service(s) marketing theory and practice. As a result, promising current and future strands of research have been identified. Findings – The original study yielded the initial steps into what has become a systematic step-by-step process that outlines the development and implementation of a service recovery program that now includes failure identification; failure attribution; recovery strategy selection; recovery implementation; and tracking, monitoring and evaluating effectiveness. Subsequent research has linked organistic and mechanistic components of a recovery program to important customer and financial outcomes and the development of a service recovery audit. Practical/implications – The original study served as a starting point for the development of a set of implications for services marketing practitioners. Specifically, as a result of the original research, a programmatic approach to service recovery was developed that includes the systematic process of failure identification; failure attribution; recovery strategy selection; (4) recovery implementation; and tracking, monitoring and evaluating effectiveness. Originality/value – The original article was highly rated, and generated discussion and important further research. It has value as a part of the history of service(s) marketing research. The retrospective analysis by the author(s) gives a unique insight into processes and thinking associated with understanding key aspects that contribute to the historical development of service(s) marketing, and provides substantial food for thought for future research directions.