Measuring the impact of soft and hard quality practices on service innovation and organisational performance

Abstract

This study aims to examine the relationships among quality practices, service innovation and organisational performance of telecommunication operators in Pakistan. Quality practices were divided into soft and hard quality practices. Initially, the impact of soft quality practices on hard quality practices was studied; then the impact of each of these quality practices on service innovation and organisational performance was examined. The study tests if hard quality practices mediate the impact of soft quality practices on service innovation and organisational performance. Mediating impact of service innovation among quality practices and organisational performance relationship was also tested. A conceptual framework was formulated in order to test and establish these relationships. A questionnaire survey was conducted on the target population and data collected from 318 respondents were used to empirically examine the framework through structural equation modelling technique. The results of the study show that quality practices improve service innovation and organisational performance, while service innovation positively impacts organisational performance. Therefore, telecommunication operators should give importance to quality practices and service innovation in order to ensure improved organisational performance. The results of the study also confirm the findings of pervious researches on a similar subject.

Keywords:

• soft quality practices
• hard quality practices
• service innovation
• organisational performance