Customer Service Quality Measurement in Co

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    CUSTOMER SERVICE QUALITY MEASUREMENT IN CO-OPERATIVE BANKS

    Customer is the backbone of a business. He is also a core component of a

    business. Mahathma Gandhi aptly stressed the significance of the customer in a business.

    According to him,

    A customer is the most important visitor on our premises.

    He is not depended on us, we are dependent on him.

    He is not an interruption to our work; He is the purpose of it.

    He is not an outsider on our business; He is a part of it.

    We are not doing him a favour by serving him- He is doing us favour by giving an

    opportunity to do so.

    This is a strong indication that a business cannot survive without customers and a

    well built customer base. The extension of proper consideration to the customers with care and

    affection thus becomes a pre-requisite for the survival and success of a business. Thus, to create,

    to win and to keep customers is one of the prime concerns of business organisations operating in

    the present fast changing and turbulent environment. To achieve this, customers and their needs

    are to be cared for with tolerance and attention. The banking sector, one of the major service

    sector components is not an exception to this. The customer is the prime-mover of banking

    activities. In the global competition, one of the biggest challenges for banks is to meet the rising

    customer needs and expectations

    Customer service in banks refers to the delivery of services of the type required

    by customers in a manner which would provide them maximum satisfaction. It is one area which

    has acquired greater significance in banking industry. Caring of customers and providing of

    better quality of services to them are indispensable for the banks to gain a niche in the marked

    and to thrive, sustain and increase profitability. For ensuring quality in providing services to

    customers, while designing the marketing mix for the banks the focus of attention should be

    given to customers, because customer is the fifth factor of production. In this endure the banks

    should identify customers needs, develop products and services to satisfy their aspirations, price

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    them properly, deliver them at the appropriate time and place, collect the feedback to gauge the

    satisfaction as well as dissatisfaction level and to incorporate changes and redesign them if

    required. Banks should adopt this procedure as an integral part of their operational agenda to

    make the customers more attentive and loyal. Innovations and introduction of customer friendlyschemes at appropriate times make the banks to come and stay with the customers very closely

    and to enrich their relationship. The uniqueness and pace in the inauguration of novel schemes

    and provision of varied services to quench even the minute requirements of the customers,

    attract the attention of existing as well as prospective customers and enable the banks to

    build a strong and heavy customer base.

    Managing and excelling in customer relationship is the major concern of all

    service sector organisations. This is of high relevance as far as banking organisations areconcerned, the banking customers usually being sensitive in nature. Any wrong step on the part

    of the bank makes the relationship sour and distorted. Moreover the most important requirement

    for achieving better customer service is to maintain quality. Thus providing good quality service

    to the customers is the forerunner of cordial relationship with them.

    The word quality has many meanings. It is a difficult concept to be defined in a

    single definition. Quality can be viewed from two points of view: one from the view point of the

    service provider and another from the view point of the customer. From the view point of theservice provider quality means the setting up of standards or specifications in the manufacturing

    process as well as in the output which is totally objective and technical in nature. From the view

    point of the customer, service quality occurs only when the service firm provides services to the

    specifications that satisfy their needs. The idea of quality here is subjective and strongly linked

    to the needs and expectations of the customer. The requirements of individuals may differ from

    novice to expert and thus the term quality will have a subjective interpretation. The quality of a

    product may have the following interpretations for an end user.

    Transcendent Quality

    It is the innate or inherent excellence of the product as observed by an individual.

    It varies from person to person based on the background of the person.

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    ProductBased Quality

    The presence or absence of a specified product is the most important factor to

    determine this type of quality.

    UserBased Quality

    This quality can be decided based on how far the product is able to meet with the

    users expectations.

    ManufacturingBased Quality

    This quality is decided based on how far the product confirms to its design

    specifications.

    ValueBased Quality

    This quality depends upon the perception of the end- user and primarily thrives on

    personal satisfaction or dissatisfaction. This quality is decided by the perceptibility and

    preference of the concerned individual.

    Measurement of Quality of Customer Service

    Measurement of quality of customer service is a delicate issue. The banksconsider that they are providing better quality services to their customers if there are no

    complaints from the side of the customers. However it is not a scientific view. Based on a study

    it has been pointed out that there are two methods for measuring the quality of customer

    services. They are customer expectation surveys and conduct of mystery shops. R.K. Talwar,

    Chairman of a committee appointed by the RBI, identified the four factors which affected the

    quality ofcustomers services, namely, expectation of the customers, quality and job knowledge

    of bank personnel, employee motivation, and systems and procedures.

    On the basis of earlier studies and sharing of experience with the customers to

    identify the problem areas of customer service, the researcher opted to conduct a survey among

    the customers to assess their likes and dislikes as well as their perception on different aspects of

    customer service in co-operative banks has identified the following six dependent variables and

    their independent variables.

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    Dependent Variables(DV) Independent Variables(IV)

    Guidance facilities and amenities Display of identification board at the counter

    Display of May-I-Help you counter

    Display of time norms

    Adequacy of seating arrangements

    Provision of drinking water

    Availability of complaint and suggestion boxes

    Teller facilities

    Computerisation

    Time taken for various services Time taken for:

    Withdrawal of cash

    Deposit of cash

    Issue of a cheque book

    Getting a bank draft

    Collection of local cheque

    Collection of outstation cheque

    Regularity in dealings Updating pass book

    Legibility and accuracy of pass book

    Intimation of the maturity of fixed deposit

    Execution of standing instruction

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    Communication with customers

    Credit- related services Reason for choice of bank for borrowing

    Timeliness in sanctioning loans

    Timeliness in sanctioning overdraft

    Timeliness in sanctioning cash credit

    External influence for credit sanction

    Attitude of bank employees Employees behavior towards customer

    Customer complaints

    Promptness in counter service

    Customer feedback system Customer feedback mechanism

    Redressal of grievances mechanism

    Customer service committees

    Customer meet

    Effectiveness of customer meet

    Suggestion schemes

    The evaluation is made with the help of both objective and subjective

    criteria. In the objective criterion, an optional time for the transactions to be completed for

    different services is used and the quality of customer service is then measured by comparing with

    the actual time for the transaction to be opened

    The subjective criteria depend entirely on the attitude or perspective

    of individual customers regarding what is good and what is bad. The subjective criteria are of

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    two types. The first type would elicit a yes or no for answer to questions regarding adequacy

    of facilities. The second type has a rating scale, when asked to comment on various aspects of

    customer service. The different criteria may be(a) very good,(b) good,(c) fair,(d)bad and

    (e) Do not know.

    It is expected that such a comprehensive approach to evaluation ofcustomer service is an authentic way to ascertain the voice of the customers and then their choice

    into business process for conformance to customer expectations.