Quality improvement strategies of highway bus service based on a fuzzy quality function deployment approach

Abstract

In this study, fuzzy quality function deployment (FQFD) is used as a tool to improve service quality in the passenger transportation industry. QFD enables firms to hear the voice of the customer appropriately and integrate it with the technical language in design processes. However, the nature of uncertainty and subjectivity in service delivery processes makes it difficult to employ QFD consistently. This study provides an empirical example of how FQFD could be appropriately used. ‘Employee’ and ‘tangibility of buses’ are the items from the hybrid views of both customers and service provider managers who require the most attention when differentiating a passenger transportation service from a rival's. The vital technical requirements relate to ‘employees’, ‘the features of buses’, and ‘error-free services’.

Keywords:

• fuzzy quality function deployment
• highway passenger transportation
• fuzzy set theory
• service quality

Acknowledgement

We would like to thank our editor and reviewers for their contributions to improve our paper.