Customers happy with services, quality

Africa Moyo
OVER 70 percent of customers are satisfied with the service and quality of products they receive from the various service providers in the country, a new study has revealed. The study, which is for the period 2016 /2017, covers 11 sectors including telecommunications, hospitality, medical aid, insurance, print media, airlines, banks, parastatals and internet service providers.

For each company, the Zimbabwe Customer Satisfaction Index (ZimCSI) score was based on a sample of 270 customer interviews. According to the ZimCSI, which was prepared for the Chartered Institute of Customer Management (CICM), the hospitality sector got the biggest endorsement (78,8 percent) while struggling national airliner, Air Zimbabwe, scored the least (61,7 percent).

“. . . analysis carried out revealed the national index to be staggered at 70,2 percent. This means that more customers found in Zimbabwe are happy with the services they are receiving from their current service providers,” reads the study in part, which was launched on October 4. In the hospitality industry, players who participated in this study are Meikles, Holiday Inn, Monomotapa, Cresta Lodge, Elephant Hills, Kingdom, and Leopard Rock and Jameson Hotel respectively. Having noted this notion, it can be asserted that Leopard rock, Elephant Hills, Monomotapa and Holiday inn are significantly above the index mark of the hospitality sector.

The medical aid sector scored 78,7 percent, which was marginally below the hospitality sector, but above national level, spurred by First Mutual, Generation Health, Flimas, Liberty Health and Cimas. Heritage and perennial strugglers Premier Service Medical Aid Society (PSMAS), were below the perking order. The study also reveals that long term insurance sector scored 76,6 percent driven by Old Mutual and Fidelity Insurance ,while the short-term insurance category, hit the 74,3 percent mark spurred by NicozDiamond, Zimnat, CBZ and Eagle Insurance.

Clarion Insurance, Tristar, Champions and Alliance Insurance had slightly lower rankings. The telecommunications sector – which is dominated by Econet, NetOne and Telecel – generated an industrial index of 68,4 percent. There is cut-throat competition in the telecommunications sector at the moment, with NetOne trying to cover up ground on Econet, particularly on the number of subscribers.

The formal retail sector had a score of 66,7 percent, with Pick ‘n Pay and OK Zimbabwe Limited dominating. In the financial services sector category registered the second lowest CSI of 64,7 percent. Banks such as Stanbic Bank, MBCA, NMB, Ecobank and Barclays scored above the overall national index while Standard Chartered, CBZ, Agribank, BancABC, Steward Bank, CABS, FBC, ZB and POSB are below the industrial index.

Air Zimbabwe, which is working towards refreshing its operations, recorded the lowest CSI of 61,7 percent. This is over 10 percent below the national index. The researchers said Air Zimbabwe’s rankings eventually had an impact on the overall performance of the national CSI. The ZimCSI is an independent economic indicator based on the modelling of customer evaluations of the quality of goods and services purchased in Zimbabwe.