Abstract
Despite a rising interest in artificial intelligence (AI) technology, research in services marketing has not evaluated its role in helping
firms learn about customers’ needs and increasing the adaptability of service employees. Therefore, the authors develop a conceptual
framework and investigate whether and to what extent providing AI assistance to service employees improves service
outcomes. The randomized controlled trial in the context of tutoring services shows that helping service employees (tutors)
adapt to students’ learning needs by providing AI-generated diagnoses significantly improves service outcomes measured by academic
performance. However, the authors find that some tutors may not utilize AI assistance (i.e., AI aversion), and factors associated
with unforeseen barriers to usage (i.e., technology overload) can moderate its impact on outcomes. Interestingly, tutors
who significantly contribute to the firm’s revenue relied heavily on AI assistance but unexpectedly benefited little from AI in
improving service outcomes. Given the wide applicability of AI assistance in a variety of services marketing contexts, the authors
suggest that firms should consider the potential difficulties employees face in using the technology rather than encourage them to
use it as it is.