Service failures in a cruise line context: Suggesting categorical schemes of service failures

Abstract

This paper reports a study on service failures carried out on the prestigious Norwegian Coastal Voyage (NCV) or the Hurtigruten which is the brand name. Service failures are studied from the perspective of the service employees. Seven tour conductors participated in the study and in the research personal, face-to-face, in-depth interviews were carried out using an interview guide as a data collection tool. The respondents provided descriptive accounts of 51 service failure incidents which were used to develop a classification scheme of service failures. The service failure classification scheme consists of two main categories: 1. Service failures on excursions; 2. Service failures on the ships (while at sea or at harbour). The paper describes and discusses a set of sub categories within the main categories. The case study may advance the knowledge field of service failures particularly relevant for a high contact service like a cruise operation.