Thursday, March 10, 2011, 7:30 p.m.; Sunday, March 13, 2011, 7:30 a.m.

Why does it pay to be nice to your waiter? Because if you don’t, he’ll spit in your soup. That’s a concern not only for diners, but managers, who know that great customer service is key to building brand and customer loyalty. Most companies hope their employees are behaving in a friendly, professional and patient manner toward customers, and fulfilling their requests. But sometimes employees actively sabotage customers.

In this edition of Smith Business Close-Up with the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, Hui Liao talks about her recent study that delves into the causes of employee sabotage.

Liao, associate professor of management and organization, currently researches service behavior/quality, leadership, high performance work systems, workforce diversity, organizational justice and justice climate, and multilevel theory and method. She has conducted field research in various cultural settings including the United States, Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Europe, the UAE, and other cultural contexts, involving both small business and multinational companies’ worldwide operations. She has received numerous honors and awards for her work and her research has appeared in the field’s top journals.