unique importance of quality to service firms and have demonstrated its positive ... telecommunications markets among developing countries of the world. In the.
107
An Empirical Study to Identify Service Quality Dimensions in the Indian Mobile Telecommunications Services Sector
Vikas Gautam PhD Scholar, The ICFAI University, Dehradun
Dr. Abhay Kumar Tiwari, Faculty Member, The ICFAI University, Dehradun
An Empirical Study to Identify Service Quality Dimensions in
the Indian
Mobile Telecommunications Services Sector ABSTRACT As the Indian government opened telecommunication sector for foreign players, it has also become increasingl y competitive. In such an environment, marketers are concerned about how to increase or maintain market share through better service qualit y. The paper presents the results of an empirical study in Dehradun, India that determines the dimensions of service qualit y in the Indian mobile
telecommunication
industry,
from
the
consumers’
perspective.
Exploratory factor anal ysis revealed 8 dimensions made up of 32 different attributes derived from literature. The eight dimensions were Emplo yee Performance, transmission Qualit y, Competitiveness, Credibilit y, Reliabilit y, Ethics & Critical Thinking Journal (Volume 2012 Issue 2)
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Support Attributes, Operational Efficiency, and Convenience. The sample comprised of 411 respondents. Key
Words:
Service
qualit y,
Indian
mobile
telecommunication
sector,
exploratory factor anal ysis.
INTRODUCTION Service organizations in India are facing tough competition in the global market because of liberalization and globalization of the Indian econom y. Hence, it is helpful for service organizations
to
know the customer service qualit y
perceptions in order to overcome the competitors and attract and retain the customers. Because of the globalization and liberalization of Indian econom y, Indian service sector has been opened for Multinational companies. In order to overcome the competition and to retain the world class service standards, Indian companies have been forced to adopt qualit y management programs.
Nerurkar (2000) analyzed the SERVQUAL dimensions in India and concluded that service qualit y should form the basis for all customer retention strategies. Services are defined as: the activities, which are involved in producing intangible
products
as
education,
entertainment,
food
and
lodging,
transportation, insurance, trade , government, financial, real estate, medical, consultancy, repair and maintenance like occupation. Qualit y has become a strategic tool for obtaining efficiency in operations and improved business performance (Babakus and Boller, 1992; Garvin, 1983; Phillips, Chang and Buzzell, 1983). This is true for the services sector too. Several authors have discussed the unique importance of qualit y to service firms and have demonstrated its positive Ethics & Critical Thinking Journal (Volume 2012 Issue 2)
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relationship with profits, increased market share, return on investment, customer satisfaction, and future purchase intentions (Rust and Oliver, 1994). One obvious conclusion of these studies is that firms with superior qualit y products outperform those marketing inferior quality products. In services marketing literature, service qualit y has been concisel y defined as the overall assessment of a service by the customers. Service qualit y is playing an increasingl y important role in the present environment where there is no further scope for the companies to differentiate themselves other than the qualit y of the service provided by them. Delivering superior service qualit y than the competitors is the key for the success of any organization. But, the companies face difficulties in measuring the qualit y of services offered to the customers. Qualit y has become a strategic tool in obtaining efficiency in operations and improved performance in business. This is true for both the goods and services sectors. However, the problem with management of service qualit y in service firms is that qualit y is not easil y identifiable and measurable due to inherent characteristics of services which make them different from goods. With a large population, low telephone penetration levels, a considerable rise in consumers’ income, and spending owing to strong economic growth, India has emerged as an attractive business market in the world. In
case of
India,
the mobile telecommunication
industry turned
highl y
competitive since the government deregulated this sector. This decision of regulation opened the doors for private and foreign players to operate in the Indian market. The growth of operators in the Indian market has accelerated rapidl y from one operator in public sector to fifteen players in all over India. Consequentl y, the competition among these telecom players in India in obtaining and maintaining customers remains critical in spite of the fact that the Ethics & Critical Thinking Journal (Volume 2012 Issue 2)
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customers have been very selective now in determining their choices based on the costs paid to receive the services and benefits obtained. In order to attract new customers and to retain the existing customers, mobile telecom service providers in Indian market are employing a variet y of ways such as providing customers with excellent services, modern looking equipments, courteous, skilful, well trained personnel, and supportive operative s ystems. Service providers expect that with excellent service, customers will be satisfied and if satisfied, they will become lo yal customers for the organization. The
significant
growth
of
service
providers
in
the
field
of
mobile
telecommunication sector has caused the appearance of buyer’s market. Buyer’s market is that t ype of market, where supply exceeds demand. In this situation of bu yer’s market, the customers get more bargaining power. Therefore in this situation, the service providers have to be very effective and efficient in their operations because customers now have choices in determining the service provider they want. In the context of customers, the need for excellent services always keeps on changing. With the passage of time, the level of service qualit y also varies. The interest in services marketing research on service qualit y and customer satisfaction has grown tremendousl y. A good number of researches have been conducted b y appl yi ng related theories and methods in the service industry. SERVQUAL and SERVPERF frameworks have been tested by various researches in different service setups to get reliability and validit y, and also to suggest the superiorit y of one scale over other. Many researchers from all over the world tried to develop different scales to measure service qualit y and customer satisfaction in different service environments. INDIAN MOBILE TELECOMMUNICATION MARKET: A GLANCE
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The mobile telecommunication service sector all over the world has been witnessing loft y growth rates in subscriber base in past ten years. In developing countries, this t ype of service is capturing an increasing share of the overall telecommunications market. India is one of the fastest growing mobile telecommunications markets among developing countries of the world. In the last five years, Indian telecommunication service market has grown from 13 million subscribers in 2003 to about 687.71 million subscribers in September, 2010, registering an unexpected annual growth rate (Telecom Regulator y Authorit y of India, September, 2010). According to the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), the Indian Cellular market is broadl y divided into four circles (zones) as follows:
S.N.
1
Name of Circle
A
Names of States
Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnatka
2
B
Andaman and Nicobar, Haryana, Kerala, Madh ya Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh (E), Uttar Pradesh (W), West Bengal
3
C
Assam,
Bihar,
Himachal
Pradesh,
Jammu
and
Kashmir, Orissa, North Eastern States 4
Four Metros
Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata
Table 1
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Table 2 Mobile Telecommunication Services Providers in India as of 30 Sep 2010 Name of Operator
Subscriber Base
Market Share
Rank
Bharti Airtel
143,292,272
21.34%
1
Reliance Communications
117,337,370
17.37%
2
Vodafone
115,553,042
17.08%
3
Tata Teleservices
79,071,716
11.47%
4
BSNL
78,321,735
11.31%
5
Idea
74,213,507
10.84%
6
Aircel
46,515,378
6.64%
7
Unitech
11,267,660
1.05%
8
Sistema
6,638,470
0.86%
9
MTNL
5,311,254
0.81%
10
Loop
2,983,299
0.45%
11
Videocon
4,482,272
0.43%
12
Stel
1,642,272
0.22%
13
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HFCL Infotel
1,022,944
0.13%
14
Etisalat
56,583
0.005%
15
All India
687,710,364
100%
Source: http://www.trai.gov.in/WriteReadData/trai/upload/PressRel
OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY Objective of the stud y is to identify the service qualit y dimensions / attributes in the Indian mobile telecommunications services sector. SCOPE OF THE STUDY The scope of the problem to be explored is restricted to the identification the service qualit y dimensions / attributes in the Indian mobile telecommunications services. The object of the current research is the mobile telecommunication services in Dehardun, a capital cit y of Uttarakhand, India, in which the mobile telecommunication service customers will serve as unit anal ysis. The choice of customers as respondents to meet the objectives of the present research work needs to fulfil the following criteria: 1. Must not be emplo yee of the mobile telecommunication services provider. 2. Must not be retailer of mobile telecommunication services provider. 3. Must be the customer of the mobile telecommunication services provider for at least six months. 4. Must be an active customer.
THE LITERATURE REVIEW Ethics & Critical Thinking Journal (Volume 2012 Issue 2)
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This chapter presents the theoretical foundation, based on the pertinent literature to the present research work by first reviewing the service qualit y concept, followed by criticism of SERVQUAL scale, service qualit y attributes and
service
quality
attributes
of
telecommunication
services.
SERVICE
QUALITY CONCEPT Services are described as something that can be bought and sold, but cannot be dropped on your feet. Various authors have defined services in different ways, but all contain a common theme of intangibilit y and simultaneous production and consumption. Quinn, Baruch, and Paquette (1987) proposed definition for services as follows: “Most authorities consider the services sector to include all economic activities whose output is not a ph ysical product or construction, is generall y consumed at the time it is produced, and provides added value in forms (such as convenience, amusement, timeliness, comfort, or health) that are essentiall y intangible concerns of its first purchaser”. Man y authors (for ex ample Gronroos, 1990, Bitran and Lojo, 1993, Parasuraman et.al., 1993 and Zeithaml and Bitner, 1996) prescribed definitions for services and concluded that for most of the services, there are four basic characteristics that differentiate them from the goods are:
1.
Services are of intangible nature; however degree of intangibilit y varies from service to service.
2.
Services are produced and consumed simultaneousl y to some extent.
3.
Services are activities or series of activities as compared to goods.
4.
The participation of consumer of service is essential to some extent.
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To understand services completel y all these four basic characteristics of services namel y Intangibilit y, Heterogeneit y, Simultaneous production and consumption, Perishabilit y need to be considered by the consumers. From customer point of view, the most flamboyant impression of service occurs in the moment of truth or popularly known as service encounter, when the customer directly interacts with the service firm. From the organization point of view, each moment of truth presents an opportunity to prove its potential as a quality service provider and to increase customer loyalt y. Moments of truth reflect the extent of service qualit y offered by the organizations
for
their
customers,
and
add
to
the
customer
overall
satisfaction about the qualit y of service. Every moment of truth involves an interaction between a customer and a service provider. Service encounter is a period of time during which customer directl y interacts with a service (Shostack, 1985). This interaction between service provider and customer need not be direct interpersonal
interaction.
Interaction
may
happen
without
nay
human
interaction element. A service encounter occurs every time a customer interacts with the service firm. There are three general t ypes of service encounters: remote encounter, phone encounters, and face-to-face service encounters. A customer may face any of these encounters individuall y or in combination in his/her interaction with service provider. Remote encounters occur when customer interacts with the organization through internet website or with a mail order service through automated dialin ordering. In remote encounters, the tangible evidence of the service and the qualit y of the technical processes and s ystems become the primary bases for judging qualit y of the services being provided by the service provider. Retail purchases, airline and railway ticketing, repair and maintenance troubleshooting are few examples of services available through internet. Ethics & Critical Thinking Journal (Volume 2012 Issue 2)
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In insurance and telecommunication organizations, the most type of service encounter between customer and the service provider occurs over the telephone, so here enters the phone encounter. In phone encounters, tone of voice, knowledge of emplo yees, and efficiency and effectiveness on handling issues of customers becomes important criteria to evaluate service qualit y in these encounters. A face to face service encounter is one that occurs between end consumer of service and emplo yee of a service organization. In this type of service encounter, both verbal and non verbal behaviours are important determinants of service qualit y, as tangible attributes of service qualit y come into picture in interaction process. In this t ype of service encounter, the customers also play an important role in creating service qualit y for themselves through their own behaviours during interaction process. As per the above discussion, to judge the qualit y of service it is imperative to have interaction between service providers and service consumers. In addition to product, place, price, and promotion, process, people, and service-scapes are also considered to evaluate the quality of services. Hartline and Jones (1996) found that many factors within service encounters can establish perceived value, whereas perceptions of qualit y and value may help in determining organizational effectiveness. Table 3 Reliability of SERVQUAL Study
Research
Reliability
(Author &
Instrument
(Cronbach’s
Year)
Factor Structure
alpha values)
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Carman, 1990
Four modified
Mean of 0.75
Five to Nine factors
0.64 to 0.88
Four factors
0.80 to 0.93
Five factors, but different
SERVQUALs using 12-21 of original items Brensinger
Original 22
and Lambert,
items
1990 Parasuraman,
Original 22
Zeithaml, and
items
from a priori model.
Berry, 1991
Tangible dimension splits into two factors, while responsiveness and assurance dimensions loaded on a single factor
Finn and
Original 22
Lamb, 1991
items
Babakus and
Original 22
Boller, 1992
items
Cronin and
Original 22
Taylor, 1992
items
Kettinger and
Original 22
Lee, 1994
items
0.59 to 0.83
Poor fit for Five factor model
0.67 to 0.83
Five factor model not supported two factors
0.85 to 0.90
Unidimensional structure
Mean of 0.87
Four factor model, tangibles dimension dropped
Pitt, Watson,
Original 22
and Kavan,
items
0.62 to 0.87
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Financial institution seven factor model with tangibles
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1995
and empathy split into two; Consulting firm five factors, not matching the original; information s ystems service firm three factor model
Source: Van Dyke, T.P., L.A. Kappelman, and V.R. Prybutok. 1997. Measuring information s ystems service qualit y: Concern on the use of the SERVQUAL questionnaire. MIS Quarterly, 21, p202. Van Dyke, T.P., L.A. Kappelman, and V.R. Prybutok in 1999 summarised all the empirical and theoretical findings related to the critique of SEVQUAL instrument, and presented them in a tabled form by referencing various studies based on gap scores. Table 4 Problems identified in the literature Issue
Problem
Literature
Use of gap
Poor choice as a measure of a complex
Lord, 1958; Wall
score
ps ychological construct.
and Payne, 1973; Johns, 1981; Peter, Churchill, and Brown, 1993
Reliabilit y
Cronbach’s alpha overestimates the
Lord, 1958; Wall
reliabilit y of different scores.
and Payne, 1973; Johns, 1981;
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Prakash and Lounsbury, 1983; Peter, Churchill, and Brown, 1993 Discriminant
Given the high correlation between the
Cronin and Taylor,
validit y
difference score and the perception score,
1992; Peter,
it is difficult to demonstrate that the
Churchill, and
difference score is measuring something
Brown, 1993
unique from the perception components. Spurious
Correlations between the gap scores and
Peter, Churchill,
correlation
other variable are artifacts of correlations
and Brown, 1993
with the components. Variance
Expectation scores are consistentl y
Peter, Churchill,
restriction
higher than Perception scores. This leads
and Brown, 1993
to a s ystematic variance restriction, which is problematic for many t ypes of statistical anal ysis. Validit y
The perception component of the
Parasuraman et. al.,
perception minus expectation scores
1988; Brensinger
performs better as a predictor of
and Lambert, 1990;
perceived overall qualit y than the
Cronin and Taylor,
difference score itself.
1992, 1994; Babakus and Boller, 1992; Boulding et. al., 1993
Ambiguit y of
Multiple definitions of expectations
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Teas, 1993, 1994
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‘expectation’
result in a concept that is loosel y defined
construct
and open to multiple interpretations. These various interpretations can result in serious measurement validit y problems.
Unstable
A theoretical construction combined with
Carman, 1990;
dimensionalit y the use of gap scores raise questions
Brensinger and
about the true factor structure of the
Lambert, 1990;
service qualit y construct.
Finn and Lamb, 1991; Parasuraman et. al., 1991; Babakus and Boller, 1992; Cronin and Taylor, 1992
Source: Van Dyke, T.P., L.A. Kappleman, and V.R. Prybutok. 1999. Cautions on the use of the SERVQUAL measure to assess the qualit y of information s ystem services. Decision Sciences, 30(3), p879. In a more recent stud y, Sanjay K. Jain, and Garima Gupta (2004) supported the argument that overall service qualit y is determined by perception onl y rather than the difference between expectation and perception. They empiricall y tested superiorit y
of
perception
based
SERVPERF
scale
and
Expectation
and
Perception difference score based SERVQUAL scale in Indian context with reference to fast food restaurants. They came out with the conclusion that SERVPERF scale is more convergent and discriminant valid explanation of the service construct possesses greater power to explain variations in the overall
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service qualit y scores,
and
are
also
more parsimonious data collection
instrument. The concept of service qualit y could not be well explained and understood without elaborating each attribute that make up the service qualit y. Service Quality Attributes Of Mobile Telecommunication Services Service qualit y has received a great deal of attention from both practitioners and academicians in the world. Lehtinen and Lehtinen (1982) conceptualized service qualit y as three dimensional construct namel y; physical, interactive, and corporate. Service qualit y is the perception which results from comparison of expectations
of
customers
and
performance
of
service
in
actual
part
(Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry, 1985). In their further studies in this area, they pointed out that perceptions are not based onl y the outcomes of services, but it involve the service delivery process. Service
qualit y
comprises
of
attributes
like;
performance,
features,
conformance, reliabilit y, durabilit y, aesthetics, serviceability, and customers’ perceived qualit y (Garvin, 1988). SERVQUAL conceptualized as an instrument to measure the service qualit y consisting of the five dimensions namel y; tangibles, reliabilit y, responsiveness, assurance, and empathy (Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry, 1988). But over the years SERVQUAL was criticized by many researchers across the world like; Carman, 1990, Cronin and Taylor, 1992, Babakus and Boller, 1992, and Strandvik and Lijander, 1994. The measurement of perceived service qualit y may remain a challenge for the researchers across the world. Past researches had suggested that dimensionalit y of service qualit y might depend upon t ype of service setup under study (Cronin and Taylor, 1992, Babakus and Boller, 1992). Ethics & Critical Thinking Journal (Volume 2012 Issue 2)
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Based on the above mentioned background, many studies had investigated different attributes, which help customers in determining service qualit y perceptions (Danaher and Gallagher, 1997; Woo and Fock, 1999; Johnson and Sirikit, 2002; Wang, Lo, and Yang, 2004; Moon-Koo Kim, Myeong-Cheol Park, and Dong-Heon Jeong, 2004, Olorunniwo, and Hsu, 2006; Lai et. al., 2007; Abdolreza Shih, Sanjit Kumar Roy, and Shirshendu Gangul y, 2008). A study in the New Zealand telecom services industry by Danaher and Gallagher (1997) conducted to conceptualize attributes required in personnel delivering the services to the consumers. Responses were collected from the respondents to find contributing factors of service qualit y in telecom services sector. The dimensions which emerged in their study were; friendliness, competency, clarit y of voice, and time taken to respond. Authors found that compared to voice clarit y and time taken to respond, competency and friendliness influence overall service qualit y. The exploratory study conducted by Woo and Fock (1999) reported the different attributes of telecom service qualit y as perceived by the customers. The stud y was conducted in the Hong Kong mobile phone services sector. Four factors were obtained b y conducting exploratory factor anal ysis with twent y attributes to assess mobile phone service qualit y. Authors mentioned four factors namel y; customer service, pricing policy, transmission qualit y and network coverage, staff competence. Johnson
and
Sirikit
(2002)
examined
the
applicabilit y
of
SERVQUAL
dimensions in Thai telecommunication industry. Data for the study were gathered from both landline and mobile users. The results suggested that the service
qualit y
concept
in
the
Thai
telecommunication
industry
is
a
multidimensional construct of service qualit y. Authors concluded the study that among five service qualit y dimensions, (tangibles, reliability, responsiveness,
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assurance,
empath y)
tangibles
dimension
emerged
as
most
significant
dimension. Wang, Lo, and Yang (2004) conducted an empirical study in the China’s mobile communication market. They focused on measurement model of service qualit y based on SERVQUAL model, but with reasonable modifications to reflect industry specific attributes and culture of China. These modifications were based on focus group discussions and expert opinions. Network qualit y was created using two items resulted from focus group discussions and expert suggestions. Service qualit y scale was pilot tested with 80 respondents from China’s respondents. Exploratory factor anal ysis of 22 items resulted into six factors namel y; tangibles, reliabilit y, responsiveness, assurance, empathy, and network qualit y. Consequentl y with the help of disaggregate approach, authors identified key drivers of service qualit y, customer value, and customer satisfaction and the effect of customer perceived sacrifice on customer value was emphasized. They also checked for moderating effect of customer value on relationship between service qualit y attributes and customer satisfaction. Results of their study were indicating impact of service qualit y attributes and customer satisfaction on behavioural intentions statisticall y. Moon-Koo Kim, M yeong-Cheol Park, and Dong-Heon Jeong, (2004) conducted an empirical stud y in Korean mobile telecommunication services sector. The stud y was intended to investigate the effects of different features of service qualit y and switching barriers on customer satisfaction and customer loyalt y. They proposed a structural model for their study and tested the model with structural equation modelling technique. A sample of 350 respondents was collected by field survey approach of data collection in Korea. In the structural model, they found that service qualit y Ethics & Critical Thinking Journal (Volume 2012 Issue 2)
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indicators like; customer support, call qualit y, value added services had positive and significant impact on customer satisfaction. Also results provided evidences of positive and significant effects of customer satisfaction and switching behaviour on customer lo yalt y in Korean mobile telecommunication services sector. Olorunniwo, and Hsu, (2006) constructed to examine about the possibilit y that the t ypology of a service measurement scale may find the nature of service qualit y construct. Study was conducted in retail banking sector with primary data of 317 respondents from United States Metropolitan area. Confirmator y factor anal ysis resulted into five dimensions contributing to service qualit y (responsiveness, tangibilit y, reliabilit y, knowledge, and accessibilit y). Results showed that satisfaction mediates the impact of service quality on behavioural intentions. SERVQUAL instrument is a valid and reliable means for measurement of service qualit y (Lai, et. al., 2007). Authors conducted an empirical study in China’s mobile communication industry in 2007. Study was intended to test the applicabilit y of SERVQUAL scale. Exploratory factor anal ysis and confirmatory factor anal ysis results proved SERVQUAL scale as valid and reliable instrument to measure service qualit y. In their study, authors identified one more dimension to Five dimensional SERVQUAL construct, and the six dimensions were; tangibles,
reliability,
responsiveness,
assurance,
empathy,
and
service
convenience. Abdolreza, Ro y, and Gangul y (2008) conducted an empirical study in Indian mobile telecommunication services sector and concluded that reputation is intertwined with the perceived service qualit y and customer satisfaction, and with the help of public relation campaigns and innovative communication strategies, positive corporate reputation can be build and maintained, which ultimatel y help to increase customer satisfaction. The main objective of the Ethics & Critical Thinking Journal (Volume 2012 Issue 2)
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research was to identify the underl ying factors of service qualit y that determine customer satisfaction, repurchase intention and recommendation of mobile service to others. Primary data for the stud y were collected in Indian cities namel y Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, and Hyderabad. 32 variables related to service qualit y were considered for the stud y, which were identified from the past literature. Exploratory factor anal ysis and multiple regression anal ysis were used to derive the conclusions. Based on values of beta coefficients hierarchy of factors was framed.
In
their
anal ysis
relational
qualit y,
competitiveness,
reliabilit y,
reputation and transmission qualit y factors emerged as significant predictors of customer satisfaction.
In hierarchy of factors competitiveness, relational
qualit y, and reliability were more important than rest factors. SUMMARY Earl y conceptualizations of service qualit y are based on the disconfirmation concept in the literature of physical goods. Gronroos (1983, 1984) defined service qualit y in terms of functional and technical quality. Later in 1988, Parasuraman,
Zeithaml,
and
Berry
proposed
five
dimensions
(tangibles,
reliabilit y, responsiveness, assurance, empathy) of service qualit y ‘SERVQUAL’ based on their empirical research conducted in different service industries. In view of the fact that perception of service qualit y is based on multiple dimensions, but there is no general concurrence over nature or content of dimensions. Various researchers across the world proposed different numbers of dimensions in service qualit y construct based on their empirical studies in different service environments. Gronroos in 1983, proposed two dimensions; Parasuraman,
Zeithaml,
and
Berry
in
1985,
proposed
ten
dimensions;
Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry in 1988, proposed five dimensions Rust and Oliver in 1994 proposed three dimensions; Kettinger and Lee in 1994 proposed Ethics & Critical Thinking Journal (Volume 2012 Issue 2)
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four dimensions; Avkiran in 1994 proposed six dimensions; Stafford in 1996 proposed seven dimensions; Bahia and Nantel in 2000 proposed six dimensions; Sureshchandar, Chandrasekharan, and Anantharaman in 2002 proposed five dimensions of service qualit y. Till today the conceptualization and measurement of service qualit y perceptions have been the most controversial topics in the literature of services marketin g including SERVQUAL measure of service qualit y. A review of literature has shown conceptual and measurement problems with SERVQUAL scale. The issues of concern are use of gap score (difference between expectation and perception score); applicabilit y of SERVQUAKL measure to different service industries and countries; ambiguous constructs; low validit y
and
reliabilit y;
non-uniform
dimensionalit y.
Because
of
above
mentioned issues SERVQUAL measure, applied in different service settings, produced sundry results. After the description of perceived service qualit y, service qualit y attributes, and service qualit y attributes of telecommunication services, then customer value as one of the constructs, which is closel y related to service qualit y requires to be elaborated. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY RESEARCH DESIGN To create a research design for the study appropriate measures and model are considered as per requirement of the research work. Since present research work will be based on primary data, which is to be collected from Indian mobile telecommunication services users with the help of structured questionnaire, a field based survey design will be used as data collection method. SOURCES OF DATA Ethics & Critical Thinking Journal (Volume 2012 Issue 2)
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Primary data will be collected with the help of structured questionnaire b y employing field survey method.
POPULATION FOR THE STUDY The population for this research consists of subjects, who have experience with mobile telecom services in the state of Uttrakhand. RESEARCH INSTRUMENT In the context of current study, structured questionnaire with closed-ended questions will be used and responses will be measured on 5 – point Likert’s scale. The survey instrument for service qualit y attributes was developed based on a thorough literature review. As shown in table below, the variables included in the study have been extensivel y used in previous studies. Table 5 Service Quality Attributes Sr.
Item of the Scale
Literature
No. 1
2
Emplo yees are efficient and competent Cronin, [knowledgeable and skilful]
2000
Emplo yees are easil y approachable
Cronin,
Brady
and
Hult,
Brady
and
Hult,
Brady
and
Hult,
Brady
and
Hult,
2000 3
Emplo yees
are
courteous,
polite
respectful 4
and Cronin, 2000
Emplo yees listen to customers and are Cronin,
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willing to help 5
Emplo yees
2000
are
pleasant,
friendl y
and Caruana, 2002
caring 6
The compan y makes efforts to understand Caruana, 2002 the specific needs of customers
7
The
compan y
provides
individual
and Caruana, 2002; Johnson and
personal attention to the customers 8
Sirikit, 2002
The compan y performs any service right Caruana, 2002 first time
9
All the records are maintained accuratel y Wang and Lo 2002; Lai et al. by the cellular compan y
2007; Johnson and Sirikit, 2002
10
The compan y provides accurate and timel y Ndubisi and Wah, 2005 information
11
The services provided the company is Olorunniwo and Hsu, 2006 prompt
[low
waiting
time
and
quick
response] 12
When
there
are
problems,
the
service Lai et al. 2007
provider is s ympathetic and reassuring 13
Complaint resolution or fault repair is fast
Athanassopoulos
and
Iliakopoulos, 2003 14
Emplo yees in the offices are neat and Caruana, 2002 clean
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15
Physical facilities of offices are visually Caruana, 2002 appealing
16
The operating hours are convenient for the Wang and Lo, 2002 customers
17
The
advertisements
and
promotional Aydin and Ozer, 2005
campaigns of the compan y are effective 18
The
network
is
up-to-date
and
low Olorunniwo and Hsu, 2006
congestion problem [even in peak traffic hours] 19
The cellular compan y provides service Caruana, 2002 reliabl y, consistentl y and dependabl y
20
The cellular compan y is trustworthy and Caruana, 2002 its emplo yees are believable and honest
21
The compan y fulfils its promises
22
The services provided b y the company are Athanassopoulos competitive
23
Caruana, 2002 and
Iliakopoulos, 2003
The pricing of the services are reasonable Host and Andersen, 2004 and competitive
24
There is enough variet y of pricing plans Kim et al. 2004 available
25
The range and variet y of Value Added Aydin and Ozer, 2005 Services (SMS, Ring tones etc.) provided is comprehensive and competitive
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26
The call qualit y (voice clarit y) is good and Kim et al. 2004 call drops are minimal
27
The coverage area of the company is wide
Aydin and Ozer, 2005
28
The compan y has sufficient presence in Aydin and Ozer, 2005 different geographical areas through own offices or dealers, franchises
29
It is eas y and convenient to take up a new Lai et al. 2007 cellular
connection
as
well
as
and
eas y
get
recharges and top-ups 30
The
billing
is
accurate
understand 31
to Levesque
and
McDougall,
1996
The cellular compan y has reputation and Aydin and Ozer, 2005 good image
32
The compan y is innovative and forward Aydin and Ozer, 2005 looking
SAMPLING PLAN The data will be collected through a schedule. A multistage cluster sampling method (Probabilit y sampling method) was employed for this research work. The stud y was conducted in the cit y of Dehardun in Uttrakhand, the northern state of India. Sixt y wards are considered as clusters, and seven clusters out of total sixty clusters in Dehradun were selected randoml y. From these seven wards, a total of 350 respondents were selected.
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A pilot stud y was conducted to ascertain the suitabilit y of the research instrument (n=88) in Indian mobile telecommunication setting, because all the items were taken from literature. Reliabilit y check has been performed to know the suitabilit y of the construct for this industry. After ascertaining the suitabilit y of construct, the questionnaire was administered to the customer’s sample size of 350 respondents. Out of these circulated questionnaires, incomplete questionnaires were kept out of study. Onl y completel y filled questionnaires were considered for the anal ysis. A total of 343 questionnaires were found to be suitable for the study. Since pilot stud y results were in the favour of the construct, those responses were also included in the sample. Therefore total sample size for the study was 411. DATA PRESENTATION DATA ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS The SPSS software package 17.0 version was used for anal yzing the data collected for this stud y. The Microsoft –Excel software package was also used to make some basic computations like calculation of the mean values etc. RELIABILITY AND VALIDITY ANALYSIS RELIABILITY Reliabilit y coefficient tested b y using Cronbach’s alpha anal ysis. In order to measure the reliability for a set of two or more constructs, Cronbach alpha is a commonl y used method where alpha coefficient values range between 0 and 1 with higher values indicating higher reliabilit y among the indicators (Hair et al., 2008). Therefore, 1 is the highest value that can be achieved. In accordance with the Cronbach’s alpha test, the total scale of reliabilit y for this stud y varies from 0.704 to 0.952, indicating an overall higher reliabilit y Ethics & Critical Thinking Journal (Volume 2012 Issue 2)
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factors. The reliabilit y of this study is substantial in every perspective (See table 6), as the highest reliabilit y value that can be achieved is 1.0. Table 6 S.N.
Name of Construct
No. of Items
Cronbach’s alpha
1
Service qualit y attributes
32
.935
2
Customer value
2
.704
3
Customer satisfaction
3
.781
4
Customer lo yalt y
8
.866
5
Overall
45
.952
VALIDITY Validit y is the degree to which a measure accuratel y represents what it is supposed to (Hair at al., 1998). According to Nunnal y (1978), there are three type of validit y that can be assessed: content validit y, predictive validit y, and construct validit y. Content validit y is the assessment of the correspondence between the individual items and the concept (Hair et al., 2008). The current stud y addressed the content validit y through the review of literature, and adapting instruments used in previous research. Construct validit y of all the constructs used in the present study was evaluated by employing explorator y factor anal ysis. EXPLORATORY FACTOR ANALYSIS The results obtained from survey respondents of the study had been thoroughl y anal yzed and the outputs of the results have been clearl y explained. Appl ying Ethics & Critical Thinking Journal (Volume 2012 Issue 2)
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SPSS 17.0 version, the Principal Component Anal ysis (PCA) was carried out to explore the underl yi ng factors associated with the items. The constructs validit y was tested appl ying Bartlett’s Test of Sphericit y and the Kaiser–Mayer–Olkin (KMO) measure of sampling adequacy anal yzing the strength of association among variables. The KMO measure of sampling adequacy was first computed to determine the suitabilit y of using factor anal ysis. It helps to predict whether data are suitable to perform factor anal ysis.
KMO is used to assess which variables to drop from the model due to multicollinearit y problem. The value of KMO varies from 0 to 1, and KMO overall should be 0.60 or higher to perform factor anal ysis. If this does not have achieved, then it is necessary to drop the variables with lowest anti image value until KMO overall rises above 0.60. Result of the Bartlett’s test of Sphericit y and the KMO revealed that both were highl y significant and eventuall y concluded that these variables was suitable for the factor anal ysis (See table 7below). Table 7 KMO and Bartlett's Test Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure .723 of Sampling Adequacy. Bartlett's Test of Sphericit y Approx. Chi-Square
8983.732
Df
496
Sig.
.000
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Deciding upon the number of factors that can be retained is difficult but initial runs-based on Eigen values showed eight factors. To determine the minimum loading necessary to include an item in its respective constructs, Hair et al. (2008) suggested that variables with loading greater than 0.40 is considered significant, loading greater than 0.40 more important, and loading 0.50 or greater are very significant. For this study, the general criteria were accepted items with loading of 0.40 or greater. Not a single item or variable had been dropped out under this circumstance which means the factor anal ysis ran on an ultimate success. The exploratory factor anal ysis resulted into eight factors with 69.624% of total amount of variance extracted. The values of the following Table indicate the affiliation of the items to a factor. Generall y, the factor is the natural affinit y of an item for a group. The higher loading (factor) indicates the stronger affiliation of an item to a specific factor. The findings of this study indicate that each of the items was homogeneousl y loaded to the eight different factors. That means each of the items that loaded into eight different factors.
Table 8 S.N. Name of Factor
Name of Item
Specific
needs
of
Eigen
Factor
Value
Loadings
Reliabilit y
0.561
customers Personal attention Sympathetic
0.503 and
0.611
reassuring
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Efficient
and
0.545
competent employees Easil y
approachable
0.527
emplo yees Courteous, 1
Emplo yee
and
Performance
emplo yees
polite
,
0.696
respectful 10.340
0.864
Helpful employees
0.788
Pleasant, caring, and
0.698
friendl y emplo yees Up-to-date and low
0.617
congestion network Good call qualit y 2
Transmission Qualit y
0.761
Wide coverage area
2.515
Sufficient
presence
in
different
0.772
0.821
0.656
geographical areas Competitive services
0.569
Competitive pricing
0.747
Enough
0.590
variet y
of
pricing plans 3
Competitiveness
Comprehensive competitive
and
2.221
0.587
0.762
value
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aided services Accurate
records
0.619
Accurate information
0.624
Reputation
0.617
maintained
and
image 4
Credibilit y
1.761 Innovative
0.731
and
0.754
and
0.720
forward looking Reliabilit y consistency 5
6
Reliabilit y
Support Features
Trust
1.600
0.578
Promises fulfilled
0.595
Employees neat and 1.352
0.587
0.767
0.704
clean Visuall y
appealing
0.573
ph ysical facilities of offices Effective
0.775
advertisements
and
promotional campaigns First
time
right
0.795
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Prompt service
0.502
Fast
complaint
0.504
Accurate and eas y to
0.654
resolution 7
Operational Efficiency
understand billing 1.305 Convenient operating
0.785 0.815
hours of company Convenience taking 8
Convenience
new
in
0.682
mobile
connection
or 1.186
0.711
recharge
DISCUSSION The purpose of the stud y was to identify the underl ying service related factors in the Indian mobile telecommunication context. Exploratory factor anal ysis resulted into eight factors namel y; Employee Performance, transmission Qualit y, Competitiveness,
Credibilit y,
Reliability,
Support
Attributes,
Operational
Efficiency, and Convenience. Eight items loaded on the employee performance dimension with variance of 32.311 percent, transmission qualit y with four items contributes a variance of 7.860 percent, competitiveness accounts for 6.904 percent variance with four items, credibilit y explains 5.504 percent with four items, reliabilit y for 5.000 percent variance with three items, support features for 4.224 percent variance
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with three items, operational efficiency for 4.077 percent variance with four items and convenience with two items contributes 3.708 percent variance. Exploratory factor anal ysis was conducted to fond underl ying dimensions for service qualit y. The first underl ying dimension for service qualit y is employee performance, which comprises items such as Specific needs of customers, Personal attention, Sympathetic
and
reassuring,
Efficient
and
competent
employees,
Easil y
approachable employees, Courteous, polite , and respectful employees, Helpful employees, Pleasant, caring, and friendl y employees. The second underl yi ng dimension for service qualit y is transmission qualit y, which comprises items such as Up-to-date and low congestion network, Good call
qualit y,
Wide
coverage
area,
and
sufficient
presence
in
different
geographical areas. The third underl ying dimension for service qualit y is competitiveness, which comprises items such as Competitive services, Competitive pricing, Enough variet y of pricing plans, and Comprehensive and competitive value aided services. The fourth underl ying dimension for service qualit y is credibilit y, which comprises items such as accurate records maintained, accurate information, Reputation and image, and Innovative and forward looking. The fifth underl ying dimension for service qualit y is reliabilit y, which comprises Reliability and consistency, Trust, and Promises fulfilled. The sixth underl ying dimension for service qualit y is support attributes, which comprises items such as Emplo yees neat and clean, visuall y appealing physical facilities of offices, and Effective advertisements and promotional campaigns.
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The seventh underl ying dimension for service qualit y is operational efficiency, which comprises items such as
First time right service, Prompt service, Fast
complaint resolution, and Accurate and eas y to understand billing. The eighth underl ying dimension for service qualit y is convenience, which comprises
items
such
as
convenient
operating
hours
of
company,
and
convenience in taking new mobile connection or recharge. CONCLUSIONS The current research has succeeded in identifying a list of dimensions that underpin service qualit y. In the fast paced environment that surrounds industries today, companies find themselves faced with the pressure to discover foolproof ways to manage their businesses. Mobile telecommunication industry in India is no exception and is undergoing revolutionary changes. Competition has been central to the agenda of all companies and it has become one of the enduring themes of our time. Major players in the market have to concentrate on retaining existing customers, which could offer huge business potential. Employee Performance, transmission Qualit y, Competitiveness, Credibilit y, Reliabilit y, Support Attributes, Operational Efficiency, and Convenience creates advantage, but the decisive test comes in how these are used by the players to differentiate themselves. The service qualit y dimensions provided could be a basis for differentiation for the different mobile telecommunication players, which could be developed into a Sustainable Competitive Advantage in the long run. These Non-monetar y instruments usuall y ascribed more potency than price changes, because they are difficult to imitate. An y reaction from the competitors to match any of these may require a change in the entire service strategy.
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