The Influence of Service Orientation on B2B e‐Service Capabilities: An Empirical Investigation

Abstract

E‐Services, or the company's portfolio of service offerings available to its customers through the Internet, are an emerging area of interest to operations management. Yet little is known about the operations and capabilities needed for provision of business‐to‐business (B2B) e‐services. This paper aims to make a contribution toward closing this gap. First, we develop a new construct of B2B e‐service capability, a term that captures a generic set of five interrelated and complementary dimensions: (1) e‐service recovery, (2) e‐customization, (3) ease of navigation, (4) service portfolio comprehensiveness, and (5) information richness. These combined operational abilities are associated with B2B service delivery, including its portal design, technology architecture, and mix of product and service offerings. They are posited to be necessary for delivering effective B2B e‐services. We also argue that, both service orientation (SO) and customer receptivity to technology, influence B2B e‐service capability. We empirically test a path model using structural equation modeling on a sample of 181 businesses that have deployed B2B e‐services. We find that the influence of SO on performance is not direct but rather mediated by the e‐service capability, a finding that holds for both goods producers and service providers. We suggest that a firm's SO may mitigate industrial customers' resistance toward conducting business online.

Keywords

service operations strategy B2B electronic‐services B2B capabilities service orientation e‐service delivery

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Agarwal

Venkatesh

. 2002. Assessing a firm's web presence: A heuristic evaluation procedure for the measurement of usability. Inf. Syst. Res. 13 (2): 168–186.

Alba

Lynch

Weitz

Janiszewski

. 1997. Interactive home shopping: Consumer, retailer, and manufacturer incentives to participate in electronic marketplaces. J. Mark. 61 (3): 38–53.

Amit

Zott

. 2001. Value creation in e‐business. Strateg. Manage. J. 22 (6/7): 493–520.

Anderson

J. C.

Gerbing

D. W.

. 1991. Predicting the performance of measures in a confirmatory factor analysis with a pretest assessment of their substantive validities. J. Appl. Psychol. 76 (5): 732–740.

Antioco

Moenaert

R. K.

Lindgreen

Wetzels

M. G. M.

. 2008. Organizational antecedents to and consequence of service business orientations in manufacturing companies. J. Acad. Mark. Sci. 36 (3): 337–358.

Asher

2007. Developing a B2B E‐commerce implementation framework: A study of EDI implementation for procurement. Inf. Syst. Manage. 24 (4): 373–390.

Armstrong

J. S.

Overton

R. S.

. 1977. Estimating nonresponse bias in mail surveys. J. Mark. Res. 14: 396–402.

Barney

J. B.

1991. Firm resources and sustained competitive advantage. J. Manage. 17 (1): 99–120.

Barua

Konana

Whinston

A. B.

Yin

. 2001. Driving e‐business excellence. Sloan Manage. Rev. 43 (1): 36–44.

10.

Bollen

K. A.

1989. Structural Equations with Latent Variables. Wiley, New York.

11.

Bolton

R. N.

Smith

A. K.

Wagner

. 2003. Striking the right balance: Designing service to enhance business-to-business relationships. J. Serv. Res. 5 (4): 271–291.

12.

Boyer

K. K.

Hallowell

Roth

A. V.

. 2002. E‐services: Operating strategy, a case study and a method for analyzing operational benefits. J. Oper. Manage. 20 (2): 175–188.

13.

Brown

S. W.

Gustafsson

Witell

. 2009. Beyond products. Wall Street Journal, June 22, pp. R7–R8.

14.

Business Wire.

2011. Worldwide Interactive Services Delivers VSoft's Teller and Home/Office Item Capture. Available at http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20110118005009/en/Worldwide‐Interactive‐Services‐Delivers‐VSoft's‐Teller‐HomeOffice (accessed date January 18, 2011).

15.

Chakraborty

Lala

Warren

. 2002. An empirical investigation of antecedents of B2B websites' effectiveness. J. Inter. Mark. 16 (4): 51–72.

16.

Chatterjee

Grewal

Sambamurthy

. 2002. Shaping up for e‐commerce: Institutional enablers of the organizational assimilation of web technologies. MIS Quar. 26 (2): 65–89.

17.

Cherbakov

Galambos

Harishankar

Kalyana

Racklam

. 2005. Impact of service orientation at business level. IBM Syst. J. 44 (4): 653–668.

18.

CISCO.

2007. Leading Practices for Partners, V. 2.1. CISCO Corporate Headquarters, San Jose, CA.

19.

Crampton

S. M.

Wagner

J. A.

. 1994. Percept–percept inflation in micro‐organizational research: An investigation of prevalence and effect. J. Appl. Psychol. 79 (1): 67–76.

20.

Crawford

C. H.

Bate

G. P.

Cherbakov

Holley

Tsocanos

. 2005. Toward an on demand service‐oriented architecture. IBM Syst. J. 44 (1): 81–108.

21.

Curran

P. J.

West

S. G.

Finch

J. F.

. 1996. The robustness of test statistics to non‐normality and specification error in confirmatory factor analysis. Psychol. Methods 1 (1): 16–29.

22.

Daft

R. L.

Lengel

R. H.

. 1984. Information richness: A new approach to managerial behavior and organization design. Cummings

L. L.

Staw

B. M.

eds. Information and Cognition in Organizations. JAI Press, Greenwich, CT.

23.

Daft

R. L.

Lengel

R. H.

. 1986. Organizational information requirements, media richness and structural design. Manage. Sci. 32 (5): 554–571.

24.

Day

1994. The capabilities of market‐driven organizations. J. Mark. 58 (4): 37–52.

25.

Davis

F. D.

1989. Perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and user acceptance of information technology. MIS Quar. 13 (3): 319–340.

26.

Davis

F. D.

Bagozzi

R. P.

Warshaw

P. R.

. 1989. User acceptance of computer technology: A comparison of two theoretical models. Manage. Sci. 35 (8): 982–1004.

27.

Deshpande

Webster

F. E.

Jr . 1989. Organizational culture and marketing: Defining the research agenda. J. Mark. 53 (1): 3–16.

28.

Dewitt

Brady

M. K.

. 2003. Rethinking service recovery strategies. J. Serv. Res. 6 (2): 193–207.

29.

Dillman

D. A.

2000. Mail and Internet Surveys: The Tailored Design Method. Wiley, New York.

30.

Doney

P. M.

Cannon

J. P.

. 1997. An examination of the nature of trust in buyer‐seller relationships. J. Mark. 61 (2): 35–51.

31.

Dwyer

F. R.

Schurr

P. H.

. 1987. Developing buyer‐seller relationships. J. Mark. 51 (2): 11–27.

32.

Edwards

J. R.

Bagozzi

R. P.

. 2000. On the nature and direction of relationships between constructs and measures. Psychol. Methods 5 (2): 155–174.

33.

Edvinsson

Malone

M. S.

. 1997. Intellectual Capital. Harper Collins, New York.

34.

Fisk

R. P.

Grove

S. J.

John

. 2000. Interactive Services Marketing. Houghton‐Mifflin, Boston, MA.

35.

Ferdows

De Meyer

. 1990. Lasting improvements in manufacturing performance: In search of a new theory. J. Oper. Manage. 9 (2): 168–184.

36.

Frei

F. X.

Edmondson

A. C.

Hajim

. 2007. Dell Computer (A): Field Service for Corporate Clients. Harvard Business School Case 9‐603‐067, 2002, Revised Apr 30 2007. Harvard Business School Press, Cambridge, MA.

37.

Froehle

C. M.

Roth

A. V.

. 2004. New measurement scales for evaluating perceptions of the technology‐mediated customer service experience. J. Oper. Manage. 22 (1): 1–21.

38.

Grant

1991. A resource‐based perspective of competitive advantage. Calif. Manage. Rev. 33: 114–135.

39.

Grant

R. M.

1996a. Toward a knowledge‐based theory of the firm. Strateg. Manage. J. 17(Winter Special Issue): 109–122.

40.

Grant

R. M.

1996b. Prospering in dynamically competitive environments: Organizational capability as knowledge integration. Org. Sci. 7: 375–387.

41.

Gupta

Zeithaml

. 2006. Customer metrics and their impact on financial performance. Mark. Sci. 25 (6): 687–717.

42.

Hair

J. F.

Anderson

R. E.

Tatham

R. L.

Black

W. C.

. 1995. Multivariate Data Analysis. Prentice‐Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ.

43.

Hallowell

R. L.

Schlesinger

. 2000. The service profit chain: Intellectual roots, current realities, and future prospects. Swartz

T. A.

Iacobucci

eds. Handbook of Services Marketing & Management. Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks, CA, 203–221.

44.

Hart

C. W.

Heskett

J. L.

Sasser

W. E.

Jr . 1990. The profitable art of service recovery. Harv. Bus. Rev. 68: 148–156.

45.

Hartline

M. D.

Ferrell

O. C.

. 1996. The management of customer‐contact service employees. J. Mark. 60: 52–70.

46.

Hatzakis

E. D.

Nair

S. K.

Pinedo

M. L.

. 2010. Operations in financial services. Prod. Oper. Manag. 19 (6): 633–664.

47.

Heim

G. R.

Sinha

K. K.

. 2002. Service process configurations in electronic retailing: A taxonomic analysis of electronic food retailers. Prod. Oper. Manag. 11 (1): 54–74.

48.

Heskett

J. L.

Jones

T. O.

Loveman

G. W.

Sasser

W. E.

Schlesinger

L. A.

. 1994. Putting the service profit chain to work. Harv. Bus. Rev. 72 (2): 164–174.

49.

Heskett

J. L.

Sasser

W. E.

Hart

. 1990. Service Breakthrough. The Free Press, New York.

50.

Holland

Baker

S. M.

. 2001. Customer participation in creating brand loyalty. J. Int. Mark. 15 (4): 34–45.

51.

Holloway

B. B.

Beatty

S. E.

. 2003. Service failure in online retailing: A recovery opportunity. J. Serv. Res. 6 (1): 92–105.

52.

Hoskisson

Hitt

Wan

Yiu

. 1999. Theory and research in strategic management: Swings of a pendulum. J. Manage. 25 (3): 417–456.

53.

Humphreys

McIvor

Cadden

. 2006. B2B commerce and its implications for the buyer‐supplier interface. Supply Chain Manage. 11 (1): 131–139.

54.

Iacobucci

Ostrom

. 1996. Commercial and interpersonal relationships: Using the structure of interpersonal relationships to understand individual-to-individual, individual-to-firm, and firm-to-firm relationships in commerce. Int. J. Res. Mark. 13 (11): 53–72.

55.

James

L. R.

Mulaik

S. A.

Brett

J. M.

. 2006. A tale of two methods. Org. Res. Methods 9 (2): 233–244.

56.

Jarvis

C. B.

MacKenzie

S. B.

Podsakoff

P. M.

. 2003. A critical review of construct indicators and measurement model misspecification in marketing and consumer research. J. Consum. Res. 30 (2): 199–218.

57.

Jap

S. D.

Manolis

Weitz

B. A.

. 1999. Relationship quality and buyer‐seller interactions in channels of distribution. J. Bus. Res. 46 (13): 303–314.

58.

Kellogg

D. L.

Chase

R. B.

. 1995. Constructing an empirically derived measure for customer contact. Manage. Sci. 41 (11): 1734–1749.

59.

Klaussen

Jacobs

. 2001. Experimental comparison of web, electronic and mail survey technologies in operations management. J. Oper. Manage. 19 (6): 713–728.

60.

Kogut

Zander

. 1992. Knowledge of the firm, combinative capabilities, and the replication of technology. Org. Sci. 3 (3): 383–397.

61.

Kumar

1999. The impact of long‐term client relationships on the performance of business service firms. J. Serv. Res. 2: 4–18.

62.

Lin

Huang

Burn

. 2007. Realising B2B e‐commerce benefits: The link with IT maturity, evaluation practices, and B2BEC adoption readiness. Eur. J. Inf. Syst. 16 (6): 806–819.

63.

Martínez

J. A.

. 2007. Measuring perceived service quality in urgent transport service. J. Retail. Consum. Serv. 14 (1): 60–72.

64.

Massey

A. P.

Khatri

Montoya‐Weiss

M. M.

. 2007. Usability of online services: The role of technology readiness and context. Decis. Sci. 38 (2): 277–308.

65.

Menor

L. J.

Roth

A. V.

. 2008. New service development competence and performance: An empirical investigation in retail banking. Prod. Oper. Manag. 17 (3): 267–285.

66.

Menor

L. J.

Roth

A. V.

Mason

C. H.

. 2001. Agility in retail banking: A numerical taxonomy of strategic service groups. Manuf. Serv. Oper. Manage. 3 (4): 273–292.

67.

Meyer

Chase

Roth

A. V.

Voss

Sperl

Menor

Blackmon

. 1999. Service competitiveness: An international benchmarking comparison of service practice and performance in Germany, UK, and USA. Int. J. Serv. Ind. Manage. 10 (4): 369–379.

68.

Milgrom

Roberts

. 1990. The economics of modern manufacturing: Technology, strategy, and organization. Am. Econ. Rev. 80 (3): 511–528.

69.

Miller

J. L.

Karawan

K. R.

Craighead

C. W.

. 2000. Service recovery: An integrated framework and empirical investigation. J. Oper. Manage. 18 (4): 387–400.

70.

Mitchell

1994. Using industrial key informants: Some guidelines. J. Mark. Res. Soc. 36 (2): 139–144.

71.

Moore

G. C.

Benbasat

. 1991. Development of an instrument to measure the perceptions of adopting an information technology innovation. Inf. Syst. Res. 2 (2): 192–222.

72.

Mukhopadhyay

Kekre

. 2002. Strategic and operational benefits of electronic integration in B2B procurement processes. Manage. Sci. 48 (10): 1301–1313.

73.

Nakane

1986. Manufacturing Futures Survey in Japan: A Comparative Survey 1983–1986. Waseda University, Tokyo, Japan.

74.

Narayandas

2005. Building loyalty in business markets. Harv. Bus. Rev. 89(September): 131–140.

75.

Ngwenyama

O. K.

Lee

A. S.

. 1997. Communication richness in electronic mail: Critical social theory and the contextual meaning. MIS Quar. 21 (2): 145–167.

76.

OECD.

2010. OECD Factbook 2010: Economic, Environmental and Social Statistics. OECD Publishing, Paris.

77.

Oliveira

Roth

A. V.

. 2011. Service orientation: The derivation of underlying constructs and measures. Int. J. Oper. Prod. Manage. 31.

78.

Oliver

R. L.

Anderson

. 1994. An empirical test of the consequences of behavior‐based and outcome‐based sales control systems. J. Mark. 58: 53–67.

79.

Parasuraman

2000. Technology Readiness Index (TRI)—a multiple‐item scale to measure readiness to embrace new technologies. J. Serv. Res. 2 (4): 307–320.

80.

Parasuraman

Zeithaml

Malhotra

. 2005. E‐S‐QUAL: A multiple-item scale for assessing electronic service quality. J. Serv. Res. 7 (3): 213–233.

81.

Pavlou

P. A.

Fygenson

. 2006. Understanding and prediction electronic commerce adoption: An extension of the theory of planned behavior. MIS Quar. 30 (1): 115–143.

82.

Pawling

2002. Boeing's plane sense: Boeing streamlines service and cuts cost with its online customer portal. iQ Magazine, January/February. http://www.pawling.net/boeing.html.

83.

Penrose

1959. The Theory of the Growth of the Firm. Basil Blackwell, Oxford.

84.

Perreault

W. D.

Jr. Leigh

L. E.

. 1989. Reliability of nominal data based on qualitative judgments. J. Mark. Res. 26: 135–148.

85.

Peteraf

M. A.

1993. The cornerstones of competitive advantage: A resource based view. Strateg. Manage. J. 14: 179–191.

86.

Phillips

L. W.

1981. Assessing measurement error in key informant reports: A methodological note on organizational analysis in marketing. J. Mark. Res. 18: 395–415.

87.

Podsakoff

P. M.

MacKenzie

S. B.

Lee

J. Y.

Podsakoff

N. P.

. 2003. Common method biases in behavioral research: A critical review of the literature and recommended remedies. J. Appl. Psychol. 88 (5): 879–903.

88.

Porter

M. E.

1980. Competitive Strategy. The Free Press, New York.

89.

Power

2005. Determinants of business‐to‐business e‐commerce implementation and performance: A structural model. Supply Chain Manage. 12 (2): 96–113.

90.

Rivkin

J. W.

2000. Imitation of complex strategies. Manage. Sci. 46 (6): 824–844.

91.

Rosenzweig

Roth

A. V.

. 2004. Towards a theory of competitive progression: Evidence from high-tech manufacturing. Prod. Oper. Manag. 13 (4): 354–368.

92.

Rosenzweig

Roth

A. V.

. 2007. B2B seller competence: Construct development and measurement using a supply chain strategy lens. J. Oper. Manage. 25 (6): 1311–1331.

93.

Roth

A. V.

1996. Competitive progression theory: Explanation and evidence. Voss

ed. Manufacturing Strategy in a Global Context. London Business School Press, London, UK, 309–314.

94.

Roth

A. V.

Chase

Voss

Rose

Menor

Blackmon

. 1997. Service in the U.S.: Progress Towards Global Service Leadership. Severn Trent, Plc, London.

95.

Roth

A. V.

Jackson

W. J.

. 1995. Strategic determinants of service quality and performance. Manage. Sci. 41 (11): 1720–1733.

96.

Roth

A. V.

Menor

L. J.

. 2003. Insights into service operations management: A research agenda. Prod. Oper. Manag. 12 (2): 145–164.

97.

Roth

A. V.

Schroeder

R. G.

Huang

Kristal

M. M.

. 2008. Handbook of Metrics for Research in Operations Management. Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks, CA.

98.

Roth

A. V.

van derVelde

. 1991. Operations as marketing: A competitive service strategy. J. Oper. Manage. 10 (3): 303–328.

99.

Sasser

W. E.

Fulmer

W. E.

. 1990. Personalized service delivery systems. Bowen

D. E.

Chase

R. B.

Cummings

T. G.

eds. Service Management Effectiveness. Jossey‐Bass, San Francisco, CA.

100.

Schmenner

R. W.

2009. Manufacturing, service, and their integration: Some history and theory. Int. J. Oper. Prod. Manage. 29 (5): 431–443.

101.

Schultze

Orlikowski

W. J.

. 2004. Practice perspective on technology‐mediated network relations: The use of internet-based self-serve technologies. Inf. Syst. Res. 15 (1): 87–106.

102.

Shah

Goldstein

S. M.

. 2006. Use of structural equation modeling in operations management research: Looking back and forward. J. Oper. Manage. 24: 148–169.

103.

Siemsen

Roth

Oliveira

. 2010. Common method bias in regression models with linear, quadratic, and interaction effects. Org. Res. Methods 13 (3): 456–476.

104.

Sims

2001. Bringing online help to the B2B world. CRM Magazine, August. http://www.destinationCRM.com/issue/770‐August‐2001.htm (accessed July 2011).

105.

Smith

A. K.

Bolton

Wagner

. 1999. A model of customer satisfaction with service encounters involving failure and recovery. J. Mark. Res. 36(August): 356–372.

106.

Standing

Lin

. 2007. Organizational evaluation of the benefits, constraints, and satisfaction of business‐to‐business electronic commerce. Int. J. Electron. Commer. 11 (3): 107–134.

107.

Truong

2008. An empirical study of business‐to‐business electronic marketplace usage: The impact of buyers' e-readiness. J. Org. Comput. Electron. Commer. 18: 112–130.

108.

Tsikriktsis

2004. A technology readiness‐based taxonomy of customers: A replication and extension. J. Serv. Res. 7 (1): 42–52.

109.

Tsikriktsis

Lanzolla

Frohlich

. 2004. Adoption of e‐processes by service firms. Prod. Oper. Manag. 13 (3): 216–229.

110.

US Census Bureau.

2010. E‐stats: e‐commerce 2008. Available at http://www.census.gov/estats (accessed January 2011).

111.

Vargo

S. L.

Lusch

R. F.

. 2004. Evolving to a new dominant logic for marketing. J. Mark. 69 (1): 1–17.

112.

Vargo

S. L.

Lusch

R. F.

. 2008. Why “service”? J. Acad. Mark. Sci. 36: 25–38.

113.

Venkatesh

2000. Determinants of perceived ease of use: Integrating control, intrinsic motivation, and emotion into the technology acceptance model. Inf. Syst. Res. 11 (4): 342–365.

114.

Venkatraman

1989. The concept of fit in strategy research: Toward verbal and statistical correspondence. Acad. Manage. Rev. 14 (3): 423–444.

115.

Venkatraman

1990. Performance implications of strategic coalignment: A methodological perspective. J. Manage. Stud. 27 (1): 19–41.

116.

Vickery

S. K.

Droge

Stank

T. P.

Goldsby

T. J.

Marklan

R. E.

. 2004. Implications of media richness in a B2B service environment: Direct versus indirect effects. Manage. Sci. 50 (8): 1106–1119.

117.

Voss

2003. Rethinking paradigms of service—service in a virtual environment. Int. J. Oper. Prod. Manage. 23 (1): 88–104.

118.

Voss

Blackmon

Chase

R. B.

Rose

Roth

A. V.

. 1997. Service competitiveness: An Anglo–US study. Bus. Strategy Rev. 8 (1): 7–22.

119.

Voss

Roth

A. V.

Rosenzweig

E. D.

Blackmon

Chase

. 2004. A tale of two countries conservatism, service quality, feedback on customer satisfaction. J. Serv. Res. 6 (3): 212–230.

120.

Wade

Hulland

. 2004. Review: The resource-based view and information systems research: Review, extension, and suggestions for future research. MIS Quar. 28 (1): 107–142.

121.

Weddle

Bullukian

J. M.

. 2004. The promise of B2B. Cap Gemini Ernst & Young Report, pp. 15–24.

122.

Wernerfelt

1984. A resource‐based view of the firm. Strateg. Manage. J. 5 (2): 171–180.

123.

Mahajan

Balasubramanian

. 2003. An analysis of e‐business adoption and its impact on business performance. J. Acad. Mark. Sci. 31 (4): 425–447.

124.

Zack

2003. Rethinking the knowledge‐based organization. Sloan Manage. Rev. 44 (4): 67–71.

125.

Zeithaml

Parasuraman

Malhotra

. 2002. Service quality through websites: A critical review of extant knowledge. J. Acad. Mark. Sci. 30 (4): 362–375.