Links between organisational and customer variables in service delivery: Evidence, contradictions and challenges

Studies in services management from the different perspectives of marketing, operations, human resources and psychology support the existence of a variety of links between organisations and their customers. The basic premise asserts that organisational characteristics and practices are linked to employee attitudes that are reflected in service quality outcomes, customer satisfaction and loyalty and, consequently, profit. Empirical studies support many of these associations and streams of research link them into linear sequences. However, the evidence is not unequivocal and this review challenges it by highlighting the complexity and non‐linearity of many of the proposed links, and the existence of reciprocity between certain variables. In synthesising the evidence in relation to the proposed links, the paper also identifies conceptual and methodological issues, unanswered questions and potential future research.