Methods of conducting a service audit at the regional level

This article continues the series of publications of authors, in which they presented a description of the conceptual basis of auditing service, its methodological foundations, recommendations for the standardization and separate objects and processes. The article presents the description of a new approach to the application of the concept and methodology service audit. Previously the audit service was viewed solely as a method of monitoring the adequacy, service quality and its conformity with the needs of the target consumer groups, designed for individual enterprises and their associations. Developing the service audit issues, the authors propose opportunities in research at the meso- level (at the regional level). Methodology service audit was used in the project to study service within the boundaries of one of the tourist destinations in Russia. The difference is in the fact that the method of service audits, including secret shopper method, was applied to a diverse set of objects constituting the regional tourism infrastructure. This methodological tool was the same for all objects, which required a determination common to a variety of enterprises of the conditions and elements of service of tourists. This approach allowed creating a unified database of the obtained primary information, and later conducting a comparative study. The article presents some results of using the service audit methods, data and conclusions regarding the completeness and quality of the tourism service destination, obtained with its help. The results of the service audit of the regional tourism infrastructure describe the quality of service in such elements of the tourist infrastructure, as hotels and other accommodation facilities, catering facilities, objects and means of entertainment, objects of cognitive, business, medical, sports and other purposes. The authors also presented a brief description of the methodology of used approach. Experience showed that such a project has all the advantages of using the method of mystery shopping, including relatively low cost, the shortening of studies, etc. the Conclusions resulting from the project were of interest to investors and regional tourism administrations.