Microsoft Word 2007 ichrie conference Proceedings Final-Final 06-06-07. doc

Employee identification 
Many service organizations consist of working groups, in the form of work teams, departments and shift 
groups (Baker & Huyton, 2001; Lashley & Lee-Ross, 2003; Riley, 1996). These departments all have interrelated 
activities. Failing to understand, consider and proactively manage the linkages between departmental functions can 
often leave “broken chains and tribal warfare” (Gummesson, 1991, p. 65). This negative internal perception by 
employees can spill across the satisfaction mirror and negatively impact customer perceptions. 
Research by social and organizational psychologists suggests that, in order to understand perceptions and 
interactions in an organizational context, it is important to study how people define themselves in terms of group 
memberships (Haslam, 2004). Social psychologists are particularly interested in the way the psychological process 
of individuals are affected by organizational life. Mutual support among and between employees has been suggested 

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