Gap 1: KnowledgeThe first and the m

Gap 1: Knowledge
The first and the most fundamental gap that may exist is between customers' real expectations
and managers' perception of those expectations. This gap reflects management's
lack of knowledge or understanding of customers. While there may be many
reasons for this lack of understanding, it is clear that no beneficial customer satisfaction
platform can be established without a thorough understanding of customer expectations,
how they are prioritized, and how they are formed. Since sales typically has
the major responsibility for customer interactions, knowledge regarding logistics expectations
is often difficult to obtain.
Gap 2: Standards
Even if full understanding of customer expectations exists, it is still necessary to establish
standards of performance for the organization. The standards gap exists when internal
performance standards do not adequately or accurately reflect customer expectations.
This is precisely the case in many organizations that develop their basic service
platform based on examination of internal operating capabilities or on a superficial examination
of competitive service performance.
Gap 3: Performance
The performance gap is the difference between standard and actual performance. If the
standard is a fill rate of 98 percent, based on research with customers regarding their
expectations, and the firm actually performs at 97 percent, a performance gap exists. It
should be pointed out that many firms focus their efforts to improve satisfaction by
eliminating the performance gap. It may be, however, that the dissatisfaction exists
due to a poor understanding of customer expectations in the first place.
Gap 4: Communications
The role of communications in customer satisfaction cannot be overemphasized. As
discussed previously, overcommitment, or promising higher levels of performance
than can actually be provided, is a major cause of customer dissatisfaction. There
should be no gap between what a firm is capable of doing and what customers are told
about those capabilities.
Gap 5: Perception
It is true that customers sometimes perceive performance to be lower or higher than
actually achieved. In logistics, many managers frequently lament, "We're only as
good as the last order." Thus, although performance over a long time period has been
very good, a late or incomplete or otherwise subpar delivery may result in a customer's
expression of extreme dissatisfaction.
Gap 6: Satisfaction/Quality
The existence of any one or more of the above gaps leads to customer perception that
performance is not as good as expected. In other words, these gaps result in customer
Part I Logistics in Suppl.~C hain Munagement
dissatisfaction. When building a platform for delivering customer satisfaction, a firm
must ensure that these gaps do not exist.