APPLIES TO ACADEMIC YEAR 2014/2015

VHL 3688 Service and value oriented management in retail

Responsible for the course
Odd Gisholt

Department
Department of Strategy and Logistics

Term
According to study plan

ECTS Credits
7,5

Language of instruction
Norwegian

Introduction
The retail trade is undergoing major changes in most retail industries. Changes in customer needs and purchasing patterns, technological changes, trade flows and management and, above all, environmental issues and the globalization of players in trade, are just some of the characteristics. Parallel to this, increases in the internal complexity of new communication management and organizational forms and new requirements for management constitute additional challenges.

This means that today's leaders in the retail trade must have thorough knowledge of the characteristics and conditions that are essential to creating outstanding and lasting results for a business. It is about a fundamental understanding that there are complex interpersonal systems and processes that determine whether we humans can work well together, achieve our goals, create satisfied customers and thus good results. Who we are, what our values ​​are and how we live by these are crucial to the outcome.

Learning outcome
Acquired knowledge
In the course students learn that service and value-based management is to focus attention on how the employees in their meeting with the customer give the brand a content that distinguishes the business from others and provide a competitive advantage.

This involves knowledge in the following areas:

• A basic understanding of the new leadership challenges the retail and service businesses are facing and the consequences for employees, customers and management.
• Students will acquire basic knowledge in leadership, communication and interpersonal relationships.
• They should be familiar with important matters concerning the leader's function as a decision-maker, leading figure and role model.
• Students become familiar with important issues, theories and practical tools of relevance in new and challenging management situations.
• Awareness of identity, values ​​and vision, and how they are cardinal factors related to leadership.
• Understand that a strong brand is created through the way your business is perceived, and how this controls customer satisfaction and loyalty.

• Demonstrate the ability to adapt them to the retail industries characterized by changes in many dimensions.
• See the changes in light of the strategic choices managers in retail trades must take to ensure greater appeal among customers and thus achieve greater differentiation and business success in tomorrow's market.
• Apply relevant models and tools to help create a healthy, sustainable and value-based corporate culture, which focuses on customer satisfaction, employee satisfaction and quality as the key driving forces for modern corporate value creation.
• Contribute to the planning and implementation of good value processes, targeted on strengthening identity and values.
• Ability to apply knowledge of the organization-driven branding to create a strong identity and pride in their own business.
  

• Students will develop a critical and reflective attitude to established strategic and operational areas and an awareness of continuous improvement.
• Increase awareness of the importance of the fact that the store consists of people, goods and technologies that interaction, and thus emphasizing the importance of creating harmony, mental balance and financial security for management, employees and the retailer’s customers.
• The employee is the organization's most important asset. This commits the students as future leaders to always developing attitudes characterized by seeing opportunities and solutions related to what specifically can be done for employees to succeed in their jobs and thereby affect results.

• From authoritarian to value-based management – does the retail industry require a paradigm shift?
• What is a value-based corporate culture for a retail business?
• Organization-driven branding from an inside-out perspective.
• Customer insight and understanding of customers as crucial factors in the service and value perspective.
• Service Management as a management philosophy towards store staff and customers.
• The importance of new technologies in branding (user control, openness, transparency).
• What creates customer satisfaction and loyalty?
• ROI (return on investment) - how to measure the impact of service and value-based management?