Service Quality and Customer Satisfaction in the Banking Institutions in Machakos County, Kenya
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Date
2025-04
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Publisher
Kenyatta University
Abstract
The banking sector is the biggest and most rapidly expanding segment within the service business. Customer satisfaction serves as a foundation for firms to enhance their connections with consumers, so enabling them to accomplish their long-term goals and create lasting success. The research seeks to establish connections between the current gaps in order to create a comprehensive and precise understanding of the quality of services and its impact on customer satisfaction in the banking sector of the Kenyan market. The objective of this study is to examine the impact of service quality aspects on customer satisfaction in Kenyan financial institutions. The objectives of this study aimed to assess various dimensions of service quality and customer satisfaction within commercial banks in Machakos County, Kenya. Specifically, the study sought to determine how reliability of service, assurance of service, tangibles of service, empathy in service delivery, and responsiveness affect customer satisfaction. The study used structured questionnaires to achieve its objective, the target respondents were the bank customers. The data was analysed using descriptive statistical analyses. The study comprehensively explored customer satisfaction in the banking sector across five critical dimensions of service quality: Reliability, Assurance, Tangibles, Empathy, and Responsiveness. Reliability emerged as crucial, influencing satisfaction through consistent service delivery and adherence to promised timelines. Assurance, characterized by transparent communication and privacy protection, significantly shaped customer perceptions. Tangibles, such as modern facilities and user-friendly interfaces, played a vital role in enhancing overall satisfaction by meeting evolving customer expectations. Empathy varied in impact but underscored the importance of personalized customer interactions, while responsiveness highlighted the need for banks to streamline processes to address customer inquiries promptly and efficiently. Recommendations include enhancing reliability, maintaining transparent communication, upgrading physical and digital facilities, fostering empathy in customer interactions, and optimizing responsiveness through technological advancements. Future research could further explore cultural influences, technological innovations, and regulatory impacts on service quality to refine banking practices and enhance customer satisfaction globally. The reliability and accuracy of the study were ensured through a pilot test for just a small sample of banking customers like the target population. In the pilots that were tested, the aim was to assess the class of the structured questionnaire and understand clarity, relevance, and comprehensiveness. After the pilot test, I made some minor adjustments to enhance the research instrument based on the feedback from the pilot test. A stratified random sampling design was used because the population was stratified by various commercial banks that operated in Machakos County. Each stratum was then randomly sampled to ensure representation and to decrease sampling bias. Expert evaluation of the resource was done to validate the research instruments through a question looking at questionnaire items to determine whether they correspond to the study objectives and whether banking professionals and academic supervisors did it.
Description
A Research Thesis Submitted to the School of Business, Economics and Tourisms in Partial Fulfilment for the Award of Degree in Master of Business Administration (Strategic Management Option) of Kenyatta University, April 2025.
Supervisor
Chrispen Maende