The purpose of this research is to identify the factors affecting the level of service in the railway industry and to determine the necessary measures to improve the current level of service. This survey was conducted among Spoornet Import/Export customers nationally. Researches service quality in the rail transport industry using the Servqual methodology.
INTRODUCTION
BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
As far as the import/export market is concerned, transport costs usually consist of road; sea and railway. For Spoornet to be successful, it must consider the new playing field and the triggers necessary for change.
MOTIVATION FOR THE RESEARCH
These changes occurred during the creation of the single European market and temporary moves towards democratization in Eastern European societies. The following factors currently affect Spoornet's position in the import/export container market and were one of the main reasons for focusing on this division of Spoornet.
IMPORTANCE OF THE STUDY
The research aims to help Spoornet understand the impact of poor service on customer satisfaction and then develop strategies to improve service quality. It is also the intent of this research to determine measurable service categories and identify areas where improvement in service quality and customer satisfaction can be achieved in the import and export container market.
THE PROBLEM STATEMENT
It is essential for Spoomet to realize these changes and adapt its capabilities accordingly to be successful. The extent to which Spoornet effectively serves the import and export market has crucial consequences for the growth of both the import and export sectors of the economy.
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Qualitative Approach
- Data Collection
- Sample
The questionnaire is intended to capture the respondent's views on service expectations and perceptions of the services provided by Spoomet. Factor analysis to test the reliability and validity of the questionnaire using the Cronbach Coefficient Alpha.
LIMITATIONS
Efforts were made to ensure that the questionnaire used in this study was valid and met the detailed criteria. This study used the Cronbach Coefficient Alpha technique to measure both the reliability and validity of the measuring instrument.
STRUCTURE OF THE STUDY Chapter Two - Literature Review
Chapter five discusses the findings of this study as well as the conclusions and recommendations. Recommendations will lead to narrowing or closing the gap identified in chapter four.
SUMMARY
As a result, numerous research projects have been carried out in the field of service quality, focusing on definitions of service quality as well as approaches to measuring service quality. As a service provider, Spoornet has realized that service quality is now essential to prevent the rapid decline in traffic that is currently transported by rail.
WHAT IS A SERVICE?
Service Characteristics
Some of these challenges are that services cannot be inventoried and fluctuations in demand are difficult to manage. Since services cannot be returned or resold, there is no need for strong recovery strategies when things go wrong (Zeithaml and Bitner, 2000).
THE SERVICE DELIVERY SYSTEM
Determinants of Service Quality
This refers to the willingness of the service provider to assist the customer and provide prompt and efficient service. This refers to the knowledge and courtesy of the employee and the ability of the company and its employees to instill trust and confidence.
FEATURES OF CUSTOMER SERVICE
Patrons may receive different service standards as staff interpret service requirements differently. These are the conditions of service performance that customers perceive to be beyond the service provider's control.
CUSTOMER SATISFACTION
Impact of Service Variability on Customer Satisfaction
It can also result from the comparison with the services offered by other providers, or even from the variability in service delivery within the same organization at different times of the day. Customer reactions to waiting in line, whether good or bad, can color customer perceptions of the organization and its offerings, as well as the service delivery process as a whole. It is therefore critical that in situations where waiting is unavoidable, service managers attempt to provide a high level of satisfaction with the waiting portion of the service experience.
Maister (1995) was one of the first to develop a framework that identified the factors that influence customer satisfaction with waiting.
Impact of Corporate Image on Customer Satisfaction
The research found that there were significant differences in customer satisfaction for a given wait time, depending on the time of day and how busy the stores were when the customer visited them. They found that customers tended to be more impatient at lunch and when their lunch break was limited than at dinner, when they could eat more at their leisure. They also found that customers were more tolerant of waiting in line when stores were busy because there was an identifiable reason for the wait, compared to when there were fewer customers and customers could not rationalize the length of their wait.
One of Maistro's (1995) claims was also that customers are more dissatisfied with a given wait before making the first contact with a service provider than with further waits in a single service.
Customer Satisfaction Conclusion
Within the field of customer satisfaction research, the field of research into those aspects of.
CUSTOMER BEHAVIOUR
Negativity bias can be dominant, where the transmission of negative feedback by the customer can be perceived as a greater potential for. This potential for a negative bias may be offset by the length of the customer-supplier exchange and the extent to which it involves interpersonal interaction at multiple points between the customer and the supplier's representative. Loyalty refers to the extent to which the customer intends to purchase again from the supplier who has created a certain level of satisfaction.
Zeithaml and colleagues (1996) found that the relationship between service quality and loyalty varies according to the position of the customer with respect to the tolerance zone.
A MODEL OF SERVICE QUALITY - SERVQUAL
- The Gap Model for Measuring Service Quality
- Explanation of Gaps
- The Servqual Instrument
- Servqual Dimensions
- Problems with Servqual
The Gap Model is a systematic approach to understanding how customers evaluate services and how service quality is constructed by the service provider. The intent of the instrument was to provide a means of assessing customer perceptions of service quality in service and retail organizations. These two points were for service users' expectations of service quality and service users' perceptions of service quality.
The results of a service quality audit help management to identify service strengths and weaknesses (gaps).
INTRODUCTION TO CONTAINERISATION
Container Descriptions
Due to the weight of liquids and most bulk cargoes, larger sizes are not used for tank containers. He also refers to the fact that a healthy and sustainable economy in South Africa was highly dependent on the ready availability of an efficient transport network at a reasonable cost. Groenewald (1980) provides a historical perspective on the unique achievement of the South African Railways and Ports in containerization, but also calls the period before that a period of uncertainty.
The author further points out that the different ports had their own set of variables that dictated the best operational system.
Containerisation Concluded
34;The main problem seems to be the congestion experienced by SAR at the inland port. Spoornet, a division of Transnet, is a South African company with the vision of being the world champion in transport and logistics solutions, contributing to South Africa's ideals and being a driving force behind Africa's economic renaissance. Spoornet is one of the founding members of SARA (Southern African Railway Association) and also plays a leading role in Africa.
DEVELOPMENT OF SPOORNET
COMPANY BACKGROUND
TSSN is based on the core business of producing a logistics capacity and marketing this capacity (two streams). Although the business stream in TSSN is responsible for marketing (sales, customer relations and after-sales service), the production stream and all support services are supposed to have customer orientation as the primary objective. In the late 1990s, customers began to demand differentiated services, negotiated prices and guaranteed services that were delivered reliably and predictably.
This means that the railway today finds itself competing with an industry in the midst of an implosion where only a few of the biggest blue chip players have a long-term view of the role of transport in the economy and the global movement from basic transport to integrated freight logistics solutions with an emphasis on operational efficiency and service quality across the entire supply chain.
FREIGHT LOGISTICS SOLUTIONS
Other factors that prompted the move to improve service quality were increased global participation and direct shipments for exports instead of only carrying traditional rail traffic. The adoption of FLS was intended to deliver a holistic product, supported by freight transport, its core competencies, and by railways, its main investment, with the aim of becoming a leader in supply chain management. Spoornet operates in a typical industrial market, which requires intimacy with customers rather than mass marketing to ensure success.
COMMERCE
PROJECT PREDICTABLE SERVICE
Management of the shipment with predictable arrival and departure times and is achieved via a Freight Booking System.
SPOORNET CHALLENGES
OVERVIEW OF THE SOUTH AFRICAN CONTAINER MARKET
- Intermodal Service Offerings
Export traffic - this involves the management of containers leaving South Africa via our ports with a destination overseas. The majority of all containers in South Africa are handled by Portnet's Durban container terminal, followed by the ports of Cape Town and Port Elizabeth (table 3.1). South Africa's major urban/industrial complex is not on the coast, but about + -500km/minland which makes transport costs a major consideration.
There are eight major container rail contracts with the major container companies in South Africa.
Three Train Traffic Categories
- PREVIOUS SPOORNET SURVEYS
- SUMMARY
- QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS
- Service Quality at Spoornet
- Customer Perception of Service Quality and its impact on Customer Satisfaction at Spoornet
- The Impact of Customer Contact on Service Satisfaction
- Employee Characteristics that Influence Customer Satisfaction
- FINDINGS OF PREVIOUS SPOORNET RESEARCH
- QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS
- Demographic Statistics
- Frequency and Percentage: Expectation Statements
- Correlation
- Comparison of Mean Expectations and Perceptions Scores
- Comparison of Mean Expectations and Perceptions Scores based on Gender
- Expectation and Perception Scores Based on Length of Time as a Customer
- Summary
- RESEARCH CONCLUSIONS
- RECOMMENDATIONS
- CONCLUSION
Both quantitative and qualitative analysis will provide a good understanding of the current level of service quality in Spoomet. Many factors combine to influence the customer's perception of service quality. The customer's loyalty can also affect his perception of the quality of the services offered.
A building of trust must take place as it is a critical component of the customer service employee's behavior. Customers have certain expectations of the customer service representative in these voice-to-voice encounters. The aspect that complements these qualities in the customer service representative in providing an adequate level of service is that of the service environment which also the.
BmLIOGRAPHY
Carman, J.M (1990), Consumers Perceptions of Service Quality: An assessment of the SERVQUAL dimensions, Journal of Retailing, Vol. The Impact of Customer Service Representatives on Consumer Perceptions of Value", International Journal of Service Industry Management, Vol. Parasuraman, A; Zeitharnl, V; Berry, L.(1985), A Conceptual Model of Service Quality and Its Implications for Future Research, Journal of Marketing.
SERVQUAL: a multi-item scale for measuring consumer perceptions of service quality", Journal of Retailing, Vol. 1994), Alternative scales for measuring service quality:.
QUESTIONNAIRE
SECTION A: GENERAL
Indicate the degree to which you think a shipping company should possess the characteristics described in each statement.
