Using importance–performance analysis, goal difficulty and the Kano model to prioritize improvements in the quality of home delivery logistics services

• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJLM-12-2020-0491
• Published date: 07 October 2021
• Date: 07 October 2021
• Pages: 477-498
• Subject Matter: Management science & operations,Logistics
• Author: Kai-Chieh Hu,Kai-Chieh Chia,Mingying Lu,Ya-Lan Liang

Using importance–performance

analysis, goal difficulty and the

Kano model to prioritize

improvements in the quality of

home delivery logistics services

Kai-Chieh Hu and Kai-Chieh Chia

Department of Business Administration, Soochow University, Taipei, Taiwan

Mingying Lu

School of Big Data Management, Soochow University–Waishuanghsi Campus,

Taipei, Taiwan, and

Ya-Lan Liang

Department of Business Administration, Soochow University, Taipei, Taiwan

Abstract

Purpose –The purpose of the study is to clarify the quality of home delivery logistics services from the

perspectives of customers and provide insight to aid the prioritization of service quality improvements and

guide managerial strategic planning.

Design/methodology/approach –The study used a three-dimensional model that integrated Kano model,

goal difficulty (GD) and importance–performance analysis (IPA) for investigating service quality aspects

emphasized by customers and determine which attributes should be prioritized according to an enterprise’s

resource and capability constraints. Data were collected through questionnaires administered to the customers

and managers of five primary home delivery logistics service enterprises and six small to medium-sized

enterprises in Taiwan. Improving the quality of home delivery logistics services has become of increased

interest for enterprises.

Findings–The three most important attributes,ranked in order of priorityfor improvement,were the protection

of customers’personal information, delivery of products without damage and reasonable compensation

standardsfor product damage. The studyconcludes that enterprises shouldprioritize the improvementof these

attributes. Implications, detailed explanations and directionsfor further investigations are also proposed.

Originality/value –The study discusses the importance and relevant satisfaction levels of service quality

attributes from the perspective of customers while also considering the limitations of companies’resources and

capabilities. The results indicate that the method can be used to identify service quality attributes of home

delivery logistics and formulate strategies for enhancing customer satisfaction.

Keywords Logistics service quality, Importance–performance analysis, Home delivery logistics,

Goal difficulty, Kano model

Paper type Research paper

1. Introduction

Withrecent developmentsin online shopping ande-commerce (electroniccommerce), numerous

business opportunities in home delivery logistics have emerged (A

cimovi

cet al., 2020). Home

deliverylogistics (or “door-to-door”services) ine-retail (electronic retail)is a type of business-to-

consumer service inwhich a logistics company is hired by a sender to transport an item to a

recipient. Home delivery logistics has become increasingly critical for the service industry,

and the demand for such services has risen (Lee and Whang, 2001;Liao and Lou, 2013).

Quality of

home delivery

logistics

services

477

This paper forms part of a special section “Resilient supply chains through innovative logistics

management”, guest edited by Peggy S. Chen and Jiangang Fei.

The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:

https://www.emerald.com/insight/0957-4093.htm

Received 24 December 2020

Revised 17 May 2021

20 August 2021

Accepted 22 September 2021

The International Journal of

Logistics Management

Vol. 33 No. 2, 2022

pp. 477-498

© Emerald Publishing Limited

0957-4093

DOI 10.1108/IJLM-12-2020-0491

In the contextof logistics, service qualityand environmental sustainability are associatedwith

improvedoperating performance,greater revenue and higher cashflows (Garc



ıa-Dastugueand

Eroglu, 2019). However, service quality has a greater effect on operating performance than

environmental sustainability. Studies have demonstrated that logistics service quality is

positively associated with consumer satisfaction and further affects consumer loyalty

(Daugherty et al., 1998;Li and Dinlersoz, 2012;Goethals et al., 2011). To attract customers,

sustain customer loyalty and maintain market competitiveness, home delivery logistics

companiesmust enhance customer satisfaction(Huang et al., 2018;Hsuet al.,2011;Wang etal.,

2016). Home deliverylogistics companies that neglectservice quality risk customerchurn and

profit reductions.

Most delivery service corporations maintain a certain level of service quality. From the

perspective of business management, enhancing service quality to attract customers and

ensuring their satisfaction is a pivotal goal for home delivery logistics companies (Chen

et al., 2018a).Indeed,consumersatisfactionispositivelycorrelatedwiththequalityof

services (Bei and Chiao, 2001). In other words, from a one-dimensional perspective,

consumer satisfaction is enhanced by high-quality service. Offering a more comprehensive

perspective, Kano et al. (1984) observed that service quality was not linearly correlated with

consumer satisfaction. They classified service quality according to five categories, namely

one-dimensional attribute (O), attractive attribute (A), must-be attribute (M), indifferent

attribute (I) and reverse attribute (R). On the other hand, service quality attributes targeted

for improvement are often prioritized using IPA, which is involves the use of four-quadrant

matrix (Martilla and James, 1977;Yeo, 2003). This type of analysis enables the use of

customer feedback to determine which attributes of service quality to prioritize. Combining

IPA with the Kano model could aid the formulation of strategies for improving service

quality (Hu and Lee, 2017).

The information examined through Kano model or IPA, however, solely reflects the views

of customers; thus, it confers only referential value for analyzing market demand.

Administrators seeking to improve their strategies are limited by resources and

capabilities. They must possess an understanding of what aspects of service quality to

focus on improving while considering the challenge involved in the implementation of such

improvements (Hu and Lee, 2017;Steer, 1976). These developments can be regarded as

business goals, where GD refers to the level of difficulty involved in accomplishing the goal

(Kenis, 1979). The extent of the skills or resources required to improve a particular aspect is

positively correlated with the difficulty of achieving improvement (Dunbar, 1971;Kenis,

1979). Accordingly, Hu and Lee (2017) developed a Kano model–IPA–GD analytical

framework as an evaluation indicator to identify strategies for improving service quality.

Studies on the quality of home delivery logistics services have focused on evaluating

customerperceptions or on developingdimensions and attributes(Amorim et al., 2020;Mentzer

et al., 1999).In operation and management,businesses offering home deliverylogistics services

must satisfy delivery expectations and service quality requirements while adhering to the

constraints of the operating environment and other external factors. These restrictions are

crucialconsiderations for logisticsservice providers. Thus,the present study applied the three-

dimensional model developed by Hu and Lee (2017) to examine and discuss strategies for

prioritizing attributes of home delivery logistics service quality for improvement. The main

contributionof this study is thatit incorporates the viewsof logistics operatorsin analyzing the

prioritizationof such improvementsfor improvement.The results can offer practicalassistance

for enhancing the quality of home delivery logistics services. A survey of customers and

managers of relevant companies was conducted for data collection. Next, a framework

integrating the Kano model, IPA and GD analysis was developed to reveal service quality

aspects concerning customers and managers. The findings serve as a practical reference for

enhancing the qualityof home delivery logistics services.

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