Customer Satisfaction at Coles Supermarkets - Case Study Example

Customer Satisfaction at Coles Supermarkets and How it May be Managed using an Information System Name Institution Abstract Customer satisfaction is crucial for the mere survival and success of every business enterprise. A lot of research on the field of customer satisfaction has been conducted in the past few years. It has come up with various recommendations on what business institutions should do to improve customer satisfaction. Consequently, those businesses that constantly adopt such recommendations gain a competitive edge over those that do not. A recent case study undertaken on Coles Supermarkets seeking to establish how customer satisfaction may be managed by use of information systems came up with very crucial findings. This proposal argues that argues that based on this research, an information system should be developed applied to manage customer satisfaction at Coles Supermarket. It also makes detailed recommendations on how this could be done. Although other researchers have previously delved on the subject of customer satisfaction management in business firms, most of their work did not address the role of information system in the process. This is what necessitated carrying out the case study on Cole Supermarkets. The research would aim at evaluating how an information system could be put in place to aid in management of customer satisfaction. This was a justifiable endeavour owing to the crucial role of customer satisfaction in business firms in today’s competitive market. To ensure that the case study gave viable results, sensitive data collection techniques were employed. The acquired data was therefore guaranteed to have validity and reliability. Moreover, complex statistical analysis of this data was undertaken to ensure that the deductions made indeed reflect the actual state of Coles Supermarkets in regard to customer satisfaction. Motivated by the increasingly growing urge for business firms to incorporate customer opinion and attitudes in their managerial decisions, the case study evaluated how online customer satisfaction can be managed by use of information systems. The research came up with important findings that are presented in this proposal together with recommendations for the management of Coles supermarkets. This proposal first discusses the rationale for the case study and then details how it was undertaken before finally presenting the results of the research. Finally recommendations based on the research findings are presented. They elaborate on how information systems may be used to manage customer satisfaction at Coles Supermarkets. Introduction Experts affirm that due to the current elevated competition and shrinking of markets, companies are now keener to deploy strategies for attracting new customers as well as keeping existing ones. However, keeping existing clients has been proved to be more cost effective than acquiring new ones. Most companies therefore adopt this option. The key to doing so is recognising the crucial value of customer satisfaction. It is therefore the duty of companies to not only achieve high customer satisfaction but also maintain it. Doing so requires continuously assessing the level of customer satisfaction and putting in place measures to respond to its decline. If the process is to be undertaken efficiently and with ease, an effective information system should be deployed to track customer satisfaction and provide the management with reports on the same that could help in making managerial decisions. While measuring and keeping track of customer satisfaction is a necessity for survival of any firm in the current business climate, little has been done to address the subject in many firms. To keep up with the current competition, Coles Supermarkets, like any other firm, needs to invest in projects that address this problem. Conducting the case study on Coles Supermarkets was the first step for them in the right direction. The analysis of the data collected in the case study will provide clear insight on how an information system could actively measure and track customer satisfaction levels. This would in turn serve as a strategic tool of success for the business. However, customer satisfaction is merely an individual’s opinion and may therefore not be easily quantified. Collecting such biased data could prove challenging and the data cannot be guaranteed to have optimum validity. Moreover, frameworks formulated to evaluate opinionated data such as customer satisfaction are not very effective since what one person considered satisfactory may not be satisfactory to another person. However, with complex statistically analysis, it is possible to overcome or suppress the delimitations and come up with effectively valid and reliable data. As researchers have established, ‘the gulf between satisfied customers and completely satisfied customers can swallow a business’ (Mathews, 1995). Recommendations from the case study, if put in effect, could potentially revolutionize the performance of Coles Supermarkets in the ever stiffening competition in the global market. Literature Review Intensive research has been carried out in the field of customer satisfaction management since it is applicable to almost every public financial sector. While such research present insight on the need of customer satisfaction and provides important guideline on improving it, most fail to recognize how information systems could revolutionize the process. It was therefore necessary to carry out further research in the field with the aim of investigating how information systems could be deployed to aid in the management of customer satisfaction. The research came up with crucial recommendations on what the management of Coles supermarkets could do to improve customer satisfaction management. This could be reliably generalized for nay business firm, making the case study an important contribution to current literature. Dr. J.T. West (2006), founder of the National Business Research Institute has documented results from research taken to establish the role of customer satisfaction on business performance. He and other experts in the field have proved the importance of customer satisfaction. They have also made extensive literature on this subject and proposed an effective survey that may be taken to evaluate customer satisfaction. The case study on Coles followed this endorsed surveys because they have been proved to work effectively. Most of these researchers however have not clearly addressed the role that information systems play in management of customer satisfaction. The case study on Coles Supermarkets addressed this short coming and filled the knowledge gap regarding the use of information systems for customer satisfaction management. It has made significantly made substantial contributions to existing literature. Methodology To conduct the case study, data was collected to attempt to answer the questions of the research: how customer satisfaction may be managed using information systems? Questionnaires, interviews and survey are the techniques employed for data acquisition. They included self administered paper questionnaires as well as telephone and in-person surveys with customers. Already existing data that reflects customer satisfaction such as that found on suggestion notes, customer call logs (if existent) and company e-mails containing customer complaints and complements was also be considered. This data acquisition methodology is arguably very effective since it is timely and sufficiently effective. Participants in the case study were customers and staff of Cole Supermarkets. Subjects were selected from customers who volunteered to participate in the case study. Others were customer care representatives who handle customers daily through telephone calls or company e-mails. They therefore have important second hand information about customers that may be used in the research. Due to the careful design of data collection methodology, the data acquired is arguably valid and reliable. This data was then organised and analysed statistically to establish how an information system may be used to manage customer satisfaction. Results The case study established that the satisfaction of customers at Coles is dependent mainly on three factors: shopping experience, complaint management and advertisements. It also affirmed that information systems should be employed to drive each of these three determinants of satisfaction. The following graph summarises the relative value that customers accord to each of these determinants. Discussion The following recommendations can be drawn from the results of the survey: The management of Coles Supermarkets should deploy an information system to constantly gather and analyse data to track levels of customer satisfaction and generate reports that could contribute significantly to managerial decisions. Such a system should include online surveys on customer websites, human personnel to conduct statistical analysis as well as computing equipments to aid the process. An intensive advertisement campaign to brand the firm and promote trust in customers should be undertaken. This should instil in the customers a high regard for the company, which a very significant determinant of customer satisfaction. Existing digital communications systems should be used to form a network for promoting the company. They may include but not limited to e-mail campaigns, short message service campaigns. A customer complaints response system should be instituted to rapidly deal with customer complains forwarded via e-mail and telephone calls. This system should ensure that customer dissatisfaction is addressed as soon as it is expressed. Finally information systems should be applied to improve customer shopping experience which would in turn improve customer satisfaction. Such initiatives may include use of electronic payment methods which are more reliable than conventional cash methods. These proposals, if implemented, could greatly improve customer satisfaction management in Coles. Data from the proposed information system could be used to help the management make crucial decisions on the administration of Coles Supermarkets. In the long run Coles will have a competitive edge over other firms in market. Reference List Mathews, D.K., 1995. Discovery Driven Planning. Harvard Business Review, [Online] Available at < http://hbr.org/1995/07/discovery-driven-planning/ar/1 > [Accessed 11 September 2012]. West, J.T., 2007. Measuring and Managing Customer Satisfaction, [Online] Available at < http://www.nbrii.com/customer-survey-white-papers/measuring-and-managing-customer-satisfaction/> [Accessed 11 September 2012]. Read More