Measuring business-to-business professional service quality and its consequences

Previous studies of service quality have typically been based on the theoretical frameworks associated with the Nordic and the American schools of thought. However, research in both traditions tends to examine service quality issues from a consumer service perspective, with little or no reference to business-to-business services. This study synthesizes the two schools with a European framework for understanding business-to-business marketing, known as the International/Industrial Marketing and Purchasing Group (IMP) perspective. As a result, business-to-business professional service quality is represented by six types of interaction. Empirical data from professional service firms in Hong Kong support this six-dimensional model. Our study contributes to the growing service quality research literature by offering an approach to measurement that comprehensively taps the exchange and interaction dimensions of business-to-business professional service quality. The paper concludes by identifying managerial uses of the approach as well as directions for future research.