The Impact of Customer-Contac Employees’ Technology Readiness on Their Capacity to Satisfy Customer─Research on Taiwan’s Domestic Airlines

[[abstract]]在科技進步、電子商務迅速發展下，資訊技術在商業上的應用亦日顯重要，各航空公司亦競相投入人力經費資源，引進資訊技術應用在對旅客的服務，以提升服務品質。然而資訊技術固然可使第一線服務人員簡化工作流程，更有效率地服務旅客；但是另一方面卻有可能減少和旅客的互動的機會，造成在心態上對顧客個體的疏離。因此，本研究主要以員工的立場探討資訊技術導入後對其客服能力的影響。 國內外有關資訊技術方面的研究，多以探討顧客對於此資訊技術的評價為 主，亦即以顧客為研究對象，而較乏從員工的觀點出發；此外，員工對於技術的觀感「同時」具備了正面與負面的矛盾情感反應(Mick and Fournier, 1998)，除了對資訊技術的觀感外，員工自身所持的顧客心態(Customer Mind-Set)亦會影響其客服能力。本研究將以員工之技術準備度(Technology Readiness Index, TRI)，來衡量員工對技術的態度對其客服能力(Capacity to Satisfy Customer)的影響。 故本研究遂以國內線航空服務業之地勤服務人員為研究對象。分別檢測其對「資訊技術的準備度」與「客服能力」間的關係模式，並瞭解「員工的顧客心態」之中介效果。藉由描述性統計、變異數分析及迴歸分析等統計分析，並對本研究所提出的四項假設加以驗證。 主要獲致的結果為：員工對於技術準備度中的正面觀點和其客服能力具有正向關聯性；負面觀點則呈反向關係，且員工所持的顧客心態對此顯著關係有中介歷程效果存在。此外，員工對技術準備度中的正面觀感，會對其顧客心態有顯著的正向關係，且此顧客心態亦會顯著到員工對自我客服能力的評估。 最後，根據實証研究提出對航空服務業在導入資訊技術時，不應僅止於技術的導入或硬體設備更新而已，在導入過程中有關員工對資訊技術的反應，亦應加以重視，更為重要的議題在於如何讓使用技術的服務人員本身具有服務意識及熱誠，方能藉由資訊導入的好處，以提供更優質的顧客服務。[[abstract]]The growth of Information Technology (IT) is playing a significant role in service industries. That is, lots of airliners invest and enhance their information technology for passenger service in order to increase service quality. Though the infusion of IT may increase efficiency of server, but could change the interaction between customer and employees, it could decrease the opportunity of contact with customers. Therefore, this study explored the effects of IT on the customer-contact employee’ capacity to satisfy customers. Reviewing the past related studies, the greater parts are concerning customer’s evaluation about IT, that is to say, only a few articles focus on employees. They ignore that employee may has conflict attitude on IT which exist positive and negative reactions at the same time (Mick and Fournier, 1998). Besides, how the employees react to technology, and what extent of customer belief they have. Hence, We examine the attitudinal responses of IT readiness and customer mind-set of employees that can influence employees’ capacity to satisfy customers. This study will focus on the customer-contact employees of domestic airline industries and try to investigate the status of IT application on the passenger service. The research by using quantitative research method, the data has been collected by questionnaire survey and proceeded with reliability and validity analysis, regression analysis and related statistical techniques. In empirical studies , the major finding are as follow：the positive feeling of technology readiness index is significantly positive related to capacity to satisfy customers while the negative feeling is contrariwise, and employees’ customer mind-set has significantly mediating effect between technology readiness index and capacity to satisfy customer. Besides, employees’ customer mind-set is also related to employees’ evaluation of their capacity to satisfy customers. In the end, according to these results, we have conclude that the proprietors should not only actively infusion IT to increase competitive advantages, but also pay much attention to the attitude of employee to promote their service capacity