Develop the Parameter Corresponding Table

The determinants of e-service quality were correlated with the 39 TRIZ engineering parameters, and the determinants of service quality in e-commerce are classified into 29 categories as shown in Table 4.4. Specifically, the study of Domb et al.

(1998) which compared several different translations of the 39 features of Altshuller’s contradiction matrix was also our reference when we reviewed the content of each parameter in this case example. The parameter corresponding table for e-commerce is shown in Table 4.6. In this table, there is one specific feature emphasized which is not just one property category of e-service quality corresponding to one TRIZ engineering parameter for some pairs of mapping relationship. If the analogical explanations for these categories of e-service quality are similar, we infer that these categories of e-service quality correspond to the same TRIZ engineering parameter. The reason for the parameter mapping results is shown as the following description.

Categories 18 and 22 correspond to TRIZ parameter No. 9

In e-business society, the efficiency of navigability of a Web site, including its online convenience, linkage, completeness, even the storage capability of the Web site, is concerned with the ease and speed of accessing the site. The interpretation of “speed”

in TRIZ refers to the velocity of an object or the rate of a process, and it can be analogously recognized as the efficiency process to navigate the Web site. The response time or processing time of the site can be referred to as the velocity of a process.

Therefore, categories 18 and 22 are corresponded to the same TRIZ parameter “speed”.

Table 4.6 The Parameter Corresponding Table for E-Commerce

Category Determinants of E-Service Quality

Parameter

Number Parameter Name in TRIZ 18 Performance 25 Site effectiveness and

functionality 29 Web store policies

11 Stress or pressure

3 Aesthetic design 12 Shape

4 Assurance 13 Stability of the object’s

composition

21 Reputation 14 Strength

14 Empathy 17 Temperature

6 Compensation 23 Loss of substance

19 Price 26 Amount of substance

2 Adequacy 20 Reliability 28 Trust

27 Reliability

5 Communication 28 Measurement accuracy

23 Security 30 Object affected harmful

factors

17 Perceived risk 31 Object generated harmful factors

26 System availability 32 Ease of manufacture 9 Convenience

35 Adaptability or versatility 27 Systems integration 36 Device complexity

15 Incentives 39 Productivity

Categories 8 and 13 correspond to TRIZ parameter No. 10

In TRIZ, “force” is any interaction that is intended to change an object’s condition.

Referring to the contents of a Web site, items such as quality of information, up-to-date information, and even the visible effort to solve the customer’s problem define the e-service provider, and all the addressed subjects will interact with the customer’s

willingness to stay online. The efforts of the Web site to satisfy online customers are likened to the force intending to change an object’s condition. Therefore, categories 8 and 13 might be ascribed to the TRIZ parameter “force.”

Categories 25 and 29 correspond to TRIZ parameter No. 11

In TRIZ, “stress or pressure” is defined as the exercise of force on a unit, or the effect of forces on an object. Concerning Web site design or site effectiveness in terms of online service, a good Web site design is well organized and easily searchable, providing consumers with uncluttered screens, fast presentations, and all other elements which make a consumer’s experience at the Web site meaningful. If we look at the consumer as the object, the functionality and effectiveness of the Web site’s design, even the Web site’s policies, will actively influence the consumer’s intention to stay online. Hence, the functionality or effectiveness of a Web site design seems like a stress or pressure acting on the consumers. Therefore, the TRIZ parameter “stress or pressure”

is possibly considered to be similarly explained by the site design.

Category 3 corresponds to TRIZ parameter No. 12

In TRIZ, “shape” is defined as the external contour or aesthetic appearance of a system. The attributes, for instance, the aesthetic design or appearance of a Web site, deal with the visual attractiveness, the sound effects, the clarity and readability of texts, and the site creativity with multimedia and color graphics are all the critical features of the external aesthetic appearance of a Web site. Therefore, we define the aesthetic design or appearance of a Web site as comparable with the TRIZ parameter “shape.”

Category 4 corresponds to TRIZ parameter No. 13

In TRIZ, the “stability of the object’s composition” is interpreted as the integrity and the relationship of a system’s constituent elements. The assurance concerned in e-business service can be looked at as the ability of the Web site to ensure the trust and

confidence of customers. The company needs to ensure that their employees are very knowledgeable about their operations, courteous in their responses, and are able to convey trust and confidence to users. Therefore, the task of e-service providers is to ensure the willingness of a consumer to stay online, and to uphold their trust and confidence in the system. Therefore, the “stability of the object’s composition” can be analogically explained by the assurance of the service system in e-business.

Category 21 corresponds to TRIZ parameter No. 14

In TRIZ, “strength” is defined as the extent to which the object is able to resist change in response to force. The organizational reputation of an e-service provider relies on its ability to maintain a customer’s perceived satisfaction, as well as its good reputation or consistent image. This can be recognized as the particular strength of service providers to prevent probable changes in the customer’s attitude or preference.

Therefore, we assign organizational reputation to correspond to the TRIZ parameter

“strength.”

Category 14 corresponds to TRIZ parameter No. 17

In TRIZ, “temperature” is defined as the measured or perceived thermal condition of the object parameters. In Web site service, providing individualized attention to customer concerns and requests rather than issuing a generic auto reply shows empathy which communicates a message of willingness to take the customer’s perspective, to understand his/her annoyance, and to handle the individual complaint. Even though there is no direct human interaction in virtual operations, certain elements of human contact are involved, say through the e-mail communication which is also critical in serving customers. The service provider should realize the diverse and changing needs of customers. Therefore, it can be seen as perceiving the thermal changes in the object’s parameters, and thus corresponding to the parameter “temperature” in TRIZ.

Category 6 corresponds to TRIZ parameter No. 23

In TRIZ, the “loss of substance” is defined as the loss of some of a system’s materials, substances, or subsystems. The compensation or service recovery for e-service providers is recognized as the degree to which the site compensates customers for problems, or it also refers to the process of redressing the loss of customers in the event of a failure within the service process. The process of regaining a customer’s confidence is an incredibly difficult task because customers who are let down by a service failure can become more demanding when the company tries to resolve the problem. The service failure resulting in compensation is recognized as the loss of customer satisfactory elements of a service system. Therefore, the parameter “loss of substance” in TRIZ can be explained by compensation or service recovery in e-service operations.

Category 19 corresponds to TRIZ parameter No. 26

A competitive price is an essential determinant of an e-service operation. From customers’ point of view, price is one of the most important motivations for engaging in online shopping, and it is concerned with the monetary value which the consumer is able to afford. In TRIZ, the definition of “amount of substance” is the quantity of a system’s materials, substances, parts, fields, or subsystems. The quantity of a system’s materials can be recognized as the amount of monetary value which exists in the e-service processes, and it is the price which a consumer is willing to pay. Therefore, price in e-service can be compared to the meaning of “amount of substance” in TRIZ.

Categories 2, 20, and 28 correspond to TRIZ parameter No. 27

In TRIZ, “reliability” is defined as the system’s ability to perform its intended functions in predictable ways and conditions. In e-business, it refers to the ability to perform the promised service accurately and consistently, including frequency of

updating the Web site, prompt replies to customer inquiries, and accuracy of online purchasing and billing, which can all be referred to as part of the company’s responsibility. Therefore, these three categories relating to the adequacy or fulfillment of a trusted service for online consumers can be compared to “reliability” in TRIZ.

Category 5 corresponds to TRIZ parameter No. 28

In TRIZ, “measurement accuracy” is defined as the closeness of a measured value to the actual value of a property of a system. Communication in Web site service intends to keep customers properly informed in a language they can understand.

Although it is provided using text, color, graphics, and animation rather than contact through personnel, communication can also be used to describe services, feedback, and the linkage which enable the processes of informing and listening to customers, and which facilitates the service providers to tailor products and services to meet customers’

expectations. When the communication process is well performed by service providers, customers’ expectations can be met more easily. The objective of communication for a service provider is to target the level of customer satisfaction and to provide a closer perceived value to the actual satisfactory value. Therefore, we suggest the category of communication to correspond to the parameter “measurement accuracy” in TRIZ.

Category 23 corresponds to TRIZ parameter No. 30

In TRIZ, “object affected harmful factors” is defined as the susceptibility of a system to externally generated harmful effects. In online transactions, security is always a major consideration when deciding whether or not to buy items online. It is also concerned with the degree to which the site is safe or is able to protect customer information, even including assurance that shopping behavior data are not shared and that credit card information is secure. This means that online service providers must ensure that there is no harm which can result from the transaction process, and this

concept is possibly connected to the parameter “object affected harmful factors” in TRIZ.

Category 17 corresponds to TRIZ parameter No. 31

In TRIZ, “object generated harmful factors” is described as the aspects of an object or system that produce an adverse effect on external elements. The perceived risk is generally considered to be the potential advent of a problem in the online service system, and it might pose a possible detriment to products. Therefore, the perceived risk in the e-service process can be corresponded to the TRIZ parameter “object generated harmful factors.”

Category 26 corresponds to TRIZ parameter No. 32

In TRIZ, “ease of manufacture” is defined as the degree of facility, comfort, or effortlessness in manufacturing the object. In terms of system availability, Internet users usually prefer to easily and conveniently access various services provided by Internet companies. Because most customers use the Internet for speed and convenience, they expect that access to the Web site will always be possible as a necessary determinant of the e-service environment. The availability of the system can be compared to the ease in manufacturing an object. Therefore, we related the availability of e-service to the parameter “ease of manufacture” in TRIZ.

Categories 9 and 12 correspond to TRIZ parameter No. 33

In TRIZ, “ease of operation” is defined as the simplicity of an operation by the intended user. In e-service processing, the system ensures convenience for users, in terms of unrestricted trading hours, absence of queues, availability of more alternatives, and faster transactions, and Web-based stores should also make it easy for customers to proceed through the whole purchasing process by minimizing technical difficulties.

Most importantly, the contents of the Web site should be concise and easy to understand,

and should ensure functionality, accessibility of information, ease of ordering, and ease of navigation. All the features mentioned above relate to convenience in e-service operations, and they can be recognized as the explanatory meaning of the parameter

“ease of operation” in TRIZ.

Categories 1, 7, 10, and 24 correspond to TRIZ parameter No. 34

In TRIZ, “ease of repair” refers to the convenience, comfort, simplicity, and time to repair faults, failures, or defects in a system. For e-service providers, feedback enables the identification of the best solution for a customer’s concerns, notification about delays, feedback about procedures, and decisions. Furthermore, customer services or individual handling responses are intended to facilitate non-standardized operations which are customized to the problem and the requests of the complainants. It refers to completely addressing the issue in order to restore customer satisfaction after the complaint. From this point of view, we conclude categories 1, 7, 10, and 24 in Table 4.3 to be mapped up with the parameter “ease of repair” in TRIZ.

Categories 11 and 16 correspond to TRIZ parameter No. 35

In TRIZ, “adaptability or versatility” is defined as the extent to which a system positively responds to external changes and can be used in multiple ways in a variety of circumstances. In the customization of an e-service system, customers actively request the system to change according to their requirements, and this feeds information back to the service provider, allowing the provider to adjust the system interactively to accommodate customers’ requirements. It is critical for businesses to engage customers in a personalized dialogue to learn more about their needs and to anticipate their future preferences. In personalization, service providers actively build personal profiles of customers and provide service offerings tailored to customers’ individual needs.

Therefore, in an e-service process with customization which positively responds to

external changes, processes can be used in multiple ways in a variety of circumstances.

The TRIZ parameter “adaptability or versatility” is applicably matched with the properties of customization and interactivity of the e-service process.

Category 27 corresponds to TRIZ parameter No. 36

In TRIZ, “device complexity” is defined as the number and diversity of elements and element interrelationships within and across the boundaries of a system. In e-service operation, systems integration can be seen as the internal integration of the system across departments within the company or with its business partners, or the integration of supply chains or systems between various critical e-service providers. The integration of service systems results in the complexity of the service relationships, and it can be analogically compared to the complexity of a device. Therefore, system integration is made to correspond to the parameter “device complexity” in TRIZ.

Category 15 corresponds to TRIZ parameter No. 39

In TRIZ, “productivity” is defined as the number of useful functions or operations performed by a system per unit time. In e-service operation, we describe incentive is the encouragement given by Web providers to consumers in the form of rewards or benefits for browsing over or using the Web site, for instance. As compared to competitors, one who owns this relative advantage will be perceived to achieve more responses than other service providers with services already available. In other words, the e-service provider which provides incentives produces more useful functions or operations performed by the original system at that time period, and this can be related to the parameter “productivity” in TRIZ.

After the parameter corresponding table was developed, we designed a questionnaire based on the parameter corresponding table, and seven experts who have years of practical experience in the fields of TRIZ, service quality, and e-commerce

were invited to complete our questionnaires. Although these experts’ help was not sufficient to cover all parts of the e-commerce sector; their professional opinions adequately indicated the reliable effect of our parameter mapping results. Before the experts started to fill out the questionnaires, we explained clearly the definitions of the 39 TRIZ engineering parameters and the reasons for mapping up the parameters in each pair. Each expert indicated his/her opinion by selecting either “Agree” or “Disagree” for each parameter mapping result in the blank provided for. The contents of designed questionnaire are displayed in the appendix. The result of the questionnaires is shown in Table 4.7.

Table 4.7 The Results of Questionnaires from Experts (A: agree, D: disagree)

Expert

Quality No. TRIZ Parameter

A D A D A D A D A D A D A D A D

Assurance 13 Stability of the

object’s composition ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■

Security 30 Object affected

harmful factors ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■

Perceived risk 31 Object generated

harmful factors ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■

After summing up 19 pairs of analogical mapping parameters, there is one mapping pair, “Empathy vs. Temperature”, to which only two experts agreed, while the rest of the pairs were approved by more than three experts. Therefore, we conclude that there are 18 pairs of parameter corresponding results which are analogically related.

Furthermore, in order to confirm the consistency in experts’ opinions on the parameter corresponding results, we assumed that the results of the 18 mapping groups correspond at random with the e-commerce industry, and that the assumptions of the Cochran test are met. The Cochran test was used to test the null hypothesis, and the following statements were hypothesized:

H0: There are no differences among experts’ opinions.

H1: There is a difference among experts’ opinions on the effectiveness of the parameter mapping results.

We used “1” to express agreement with the mapping result (“agrees with the mapping result”) and “0” to express disagreement with the mapping result (“disagrees with the mapping result”). The results were then tabulated with r rows representing the mapped numbers of TRIZ 39 parameters and c columns representing the c experts, with entries that are either zeros or ones. Let Ri represent the row totals, i=1,2,….,r, and let Cj represent the column totals, j=1,2,….,c, with N representing the total number of ones in the table. The result of questionnaires from seven experts is tabulated in Table 4.8.

Table 4.8 The Computing Data of Questionnaires

The test statistic is computed using the following equation:

785

The exact distribution of T is difficult to tabulate, so a large sample approximation is used instead. The number of blocks r is assumed to be large. Then the critical region of an approximate size 0.05 (α) corresponds to all values of T greater than 12.592, which is the 0.95 (1-α) quantile of a chi-square random variable with 6 degrees of freedom. The calculated statistic value of T which is 4.785 is smaller than the critical value 12.592. Therefore, the null hypothesis H0 cannot be rejected. We conclude that no significant difference among the experts’ opinions is detected, and that these 18 pairs of mapped parameters are formulated as the content of the parameter corresponding table