Zim 2018 customer satisfaction at 64% …as CICM looks to carry out Africa-wide CSI Writer Zimbabwe’s customer satisfaction index ranking for 2018 has declined by 11, 8 percentage points to 63, 7 percent. This is according to the latest the National Customer Satisfaction Index (NCSI), which is carried out by the Chartered Institute of Customer Management (CICM) in collaboration with Select Research (Pvt) Limited. The inaugural NCSI, which was launched last year, indicated a ranking of 75, 5 percent. The index is a national indicator on how companies are performing in terms of customer satisfaction at sectorial level. The NCSI essentially measures the quality of economic output as a complement to traditional measures of the quantity of economic output. It is the country’s scientific standard of customer satisfaction. Zimbabwe’s top-rated companies in 16 key economic sectors in terms of customer satisfaction in the following sectors were showcased and honored at a classy event earlier this month. The sectors included: airlines, banks, courier services, electronic payment, energy, food outlets, funeral policy, and government parastatals. Other sectors included hospitality, internet service provider, long term insurance, medical aid, retail, retail clothing, short-term insurance and telecommunications. The top performing sector, according to the 2018 NCSI, was food outlet sector with a ranking of 68, 6 percent, which was above the average ranking.
The courier services sector came in second at 67, 6 percent, just below the average ranking, followed by the hospitality and the long-term insurance sectors at 67, 3 percent and 65, 7 percent, respectively. The energy sector rounded off the top 5 sectors with a ranking of 65, 5 percent. The NCSI concept worldwide is based on the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) model, a multi-equation econometric model developed by the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI). The retail sector came in sixth position with a ranking of 65, 2 percent, followed by the internet service provider sector with a ranking of 65, 1 percent. The short-term insurance and medical aid sectors came in eighth and ninth positions, with rankings of 64, 8 percent and 64, 3 percent, respectively. The funeral policy sector closed off the top 10 performing sectors in terms of customer satisfaction with a ranking of 64, 3 percent. CICM chief executive Dr Ricky Harris said customer satisfaction is now recognised as the single most important factor affecting a company’s profitability is customers’ satisfaction with its products and service, hence the significance of the NCSI. She said the NCSI - an independent national benchmark of customer satisfaction of the quality of products and services – is therefore critical insofar as benefits players in both the public and private sectors within the local economy, as well as foreign investors eyeing the country’s markets. “Local firms can use the NCSI as a tool to optimize customer satisfaction, which in turn drives customer loyalty and thereby corporate profitability. The Index also is used for competitive and cross-industry benchmarking. “It’s also critical for foreign investors who need to understand the relationship between a company’s current condition and its future capacity to produce wealth. In capitalistic free markets, sellers that do well by their customers are rewarded by more business from buyers and more capital from investors,” said Dr Harris.
NCSI is the only cross-industry benchmark measure of customer satisfaction in Zimbabwe, and CICM has indicated plans to carry out an Africa-wide customer satisfaction index survey. “We are currently working to set up CSI for Africa,� said the CEO.