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PurposeThis paper seeks to review service quality factors of the airline industry, and to rank these factors in Iranian society. It aims to introduce a fuzzy TOPSIS approach for this purpose.Design/methodology/approachThe research was conducted among graduate students of the University of Tehran, Iran. In order to meet the objectives of the study, Fuzzy TOPSIS approach was used. Required information was gathered through a questionnaire.FindingsThe results show that “Flight safety”, “Good appearance of flight crew” and “Offering highest possible quality services to customers 24 hours a day” are the most important airline service quality factors in the eyes of Iranian customers. Interestingly, “the possibility of checking flight schedule via telephone” has been selected as the least important quality factor by respondents. Research findings also announce that the majority of Iranian potential travellers prefer airplane as their transportation means. However, at the moment, they are mostly using buses as their first choice.Practical limitations/implicationsThe paper considers graduate university students as its sample society. Although university students are a group of airlines' potential customers, the paper findings might not be generalised to all groups of airline customers and further studies might be essential to see if the same ranking of service quality dimensions will be found within other groups of customers having other career backgrounds. The paper will be helpful in enabling airline industry policy makers to identify the key service quality factors in the eyes of Iranian customers.Originality/valueThe concept of ranking airline service quality factors using a Fuzzy TOPSIS is a new approach. The study is the first application of a fuzzy approach to examine and rank customer expectations of airlines' service quality.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the importance of service quality aspects from the perspective of University of Tehran Central Library users. It also aims to measure how successful the library has been in meeting users' needs by providing good and reliable services.Design/methodology/approachThe research was conducted among library users. In order to meet the objectives of the study, SERVPERF methodology was used. Information was gathered via questionnaires which consisted of structured questions. All the closed ended questions were designed to elicit responses on a five‐point Likert scale to measure both respondent satisfaction and perception of service quality.FindingsThe results show that, although University of Tehran Central Library has conducted several programs for improving its services, because of the lack of identifying the most important aspects of service quality in their customers' ideas, the efforts for providing customer satisfaction has failed to a great extent.Practical implicationsThis paper will be helpful to libraries planning to implement a quality management system to improve their quality service and increase customer satisfaction through continuous improvement.Originality/valueThe concept of service quality assessment through SERVPERF is relatively a new concept among Iranian libraries and there is a lack of previous studies using this methodology in assessing perceived quality of academic libraries. Thus, this paper can be used as a guide for academic libraries that are interested in measuring customer satisfaction in order to excel in offering high quality services.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to provide a system based on the data flow diagram (DFD), which can be used to help urban policy makers reduce the consequences of natural disasters.Design/methodology/approachThe paper considers the socio‐technical perspective of government information systems and management, and draws on the collection and analysis of several public reports, media papers, and expert opinions published in the aftermath of the earthquake in Bam, Iran in December 2003, as one of the most destructive urban disasters in Iran and worldwide.FindingsConsidering the rescue and disaster management activities after Bam earthquake, the paper examines and discusses how important a clear DFD‐based system for managing urban disasters is. Moreover, the DFD model is suggested as an expert system to better handle and manage operations and different organizations involved in the rescue process.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper requires a practical pilot implementation of DFD‐based system.Practical implicationsThe authors believe that the research outcomes and results can assist governments and public managers in preparing and developing a disaster management system in controlling the consequences of urban disasters such as earthquake.Originality/valueThis research reveals the importance and necessity of having a comprehensive and well‐planned system to be prepared for controlling and managing urban disasters and their consequences. Moreover, the results are based on the observations and interviews made in the city of Bam, right after the earthquake, so it provides an invaluable understanding about the specific conditions of the city after that deadly disaster.

PurposeOrganizations and businesses have evolved tremendously during the last years. Previously, the focus of organizations was on goods and production, however, later on this perspective has changed to a more knowledge and intellectual capital focus nowadays. As such, concepts of organizational knowledge and know‐how, as well as stakeholders and society rights are increasingly being raised and discussed in recent studies. This paper aims to present the fundamental questions on the importance of undertaking sustainable development roles by organizations and the effects that it can have on the organizations. The paper will also discuss how organizations can benefit from acting to their sustainable development roles and consider it as a means of competitive advantage, rather than an organizational threat.Design/methodology/approachIn‐depth literature review as well as years of experience of authors in the field has been used to develop this research.FindingsIt is concluded that despite some initial limitations for the organizations in undertaking their sustainable development roles, they will benefit from the positive image that is created for their organization as well as other benefits and competitive advantages in the long run.Practical implicationsIt is necessary for organizations to be aware of their sustainable development roles and undertake their responsibilities toward the society.Originality/valueAfter the recent global economic meltdown, the question whether sustainability and organizational commitments toward sustainable development can help organizations gain a competitive advantage to better survive in the challenging world of today, is yet to be further discussed. This paper is an attempt to investigate this in more detail.