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A validation Study of House of Quality key performance indicators areas. For this research study we planned to perform a benchmark study to compare the activities and performance of the online union with direct competitors and other e-services in different areas. Potter (1994) mentioned that the starting point for benchmarking will be that the organization must change and will have to change radically. As noticed in the previous sections, the online union is the first online labour representative organization in Holland. Other union organizations in Holland are (yet) not working with this online concept. Although in this case, it has to be mentioned that competitors FNV and CNV are developing new campaigns which make use of new media types like the internet. However, they do not offer online services in a separate entity. At the moment De Unie has planned to start a benchmark study based on the concept of the balanced score card in January 2008. Due time constraints and the practical start of a benchmark by De Unie within two months we were not able to conduct a suitable benchmark study and therefore results of a competitive assessment are not included in the current research study. 4.1.1 Interviews with employees of the online union In order to gain information from an organizational perspective, three interviews with union experts were conducted. As mentioned in section 4.3.1, knowledge of the interviewed experts will be used for the classification of service aspects for the online union. Therefore the most relevant people to interview are union experts whose function is nearly related to the online union. To assess a complete overview of information, experts in different hierarchical positions and with different functions were interviewed. A complete list of interviewed experts as well as an extensive summary of the interview results can be found in appendix 5. This section will discuss the explored service characteristics which will be used as input for the planned interviews with members of the online union as well as for the final questionnaire in phase II. As mentioned before; due a decline in the number of members, unions are searching for new concepts that focus on a younger population of members like for example young professionals. De Unie also focuses on the “new type of worker” and therefore differentiates from other union organizations in Holland. These new type of workers are defined to have a high affinity with digital environments like the internet and will use IT as an enabler of work. They are also individualistic in terms of searching and gathering for information and knowledge. According to the interviewed experts, by the use of the internet an online union is able to function as a valuable “partner” for the new type of workers. Valuable in way that it is able to integrate different parties into the network of De Unie in order to facilitate an environment that provides knowledge and information that is in shape with the needs of the members. 50
A validation Study of House of Quality key performance indicators By the absence of a formulated strategy and communication plan it is difficult for the online union to recruit and retain new members. For De Unie it is also unclear which sectors of work are represented in the online union. The degree of participation of the members is perceived to be very small. A few interaction components are available but nearly used (for instance; Hyves communicator). In order to create a network of relationships De Unie planned to integrate interaction tools like a forum and different platforms that creates opportunities to connect members. Also the involvement of third parties like for example Stageplaza 1 are aspects planned for the near future. Union experts mentioned the custom-made character of the online union to be a critical advantage over the traditional unions. Different from the traditional union, a relative small membership contribution has to be paid on a yearly basis instead of a monthly contribution fee. This contribution allows members to pose one query for advice. After this they will have to pay for each query separately. Experts also noticed the lack of current information offered on the website of the online union. 4.1.2 Interviews with the members of the online union The results of the interviews with union experts were used as input for the interviews with the members of the online union. Interviews with members were conducted in order to classify their needs and to identify the performance drivers of the online union. A list of interviewed members and an extensive summary of the results are available in appendix 6. The results of the interviews in combination with the results of the interviews with the union experts are used to compose the online survey. The exploratory interviews with the members identified several performance aspects of an online union that can be divided into five different categories that, according to the members, determine the overall performance. The categories (dimensions) will be discussed below. For each dimension a proposition was formulated to test its influence on the overall performance of the online union. Information: interviewed members mentioned the importance of information provided by the online union. Interviews showed out that information is the main criteria to visit or contact the online union. Therefore, members expect the online union to provide up to date information, information that is trustworthy but also information that is relevant and useful for them. Besides this the information must be easy accessible. Proposition 2: Information will positively influence the overall performance of the online union. 1 Stageplaza; mediating organization for student internships. 51
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