Pre-requisite: 55305
The primary objective of this unit is to prepare students to function as effective managers in an increasingly service-oriented economy. Service organisations require a distinctive approach to marketing strategy, both in its development and execution. These distinctive needs and problems of service organisations are addressed by building and expanding on ideas from Marketing Management and Buyer Behaviour to make them specifically applicable to service industry settings. The course will cover the nature and classification of services, competitive trends, acquiring and using marketing information in services, aligning strategy and service provision with customer requirements, achieving service performance that meets the needs of internal and external customers, managing promises to the customers, relationship marketing and perceived quality in services. Students will have the opportunity to study the nature of services through a variety of learning methods. They include participant observation of service encounters, case analysis of the management and marketing practices of service organisations and developing a marketing plan or performing a quality audit for a new or existing service offering.