Dennis Darlak

Private Club Member Perspectives of Service Quality: an Exploratory Investigation of the Private Club Sector of the Hospitality Industry Dennis Darlak

There has been no published academic research reported in the literature on member perceptions of service in private clubs. The private club may be considered to be unique because the members are also the owners of the club in which the events occur. The intent of this work was to determine if and to what extent members of private clubs have unique perceptions about the services they are afforded by the clubs to which they belong and of which they hold ownership or in which they have a vested interest. Country club members are demanding greater value from their clubs through improvements in cuisine and other modernizations. Strategic analysis of private club member views using the Critical Incident Technique provide a high level of insight into the basis for negative and positive service encounters. This work is an exploratory research study of member perceptions of service provided in private clubs. A study of these perceptions will be of value to club managers and hospitality students, and can be used to improve not only the services provided in private clubs to their members, but to increase the value of the private club to members.