FOOD SERVICE DELIVERY AND CUSTOMER SATISFACTION IN PORT HARCOURT QUICK SERVICE RESTAURANTS: THE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT ROLE

Abstract

Customer satisfaction ought to be the main thrust of business; thereby placing a challenging role on the operations management thereof. This was highlighted in this study which sought to establish the the relationship between food service delivery and customer satisfaction of quick service restaurants in Port Harcourt. Food service delivery was dimensioned by service quality and affordable price; while customer satisfaction was measured with repeat visit and customer retention. It was hypothesized that the dimensions of food service delivery do not relate significantly with the measures of customer satisfaction. The study sample comprised 161 customers of 50 quick service restaurants in Port Harcourt. Mean and standard deviation techniques were used to analyze the responses which showed acceptable levels for each of the variables and their item scales. Four hypotheses were tested with the Pearson’s product moment correlation technique at 95% confidence level. The result indicated strong and direct correlations between the dimensions of food service delivery and measures of customer service. Consequently, it was concluded that food service delivery significantly relates to customer satisfaction. This had implications for both theory and practice in the sense that it lent credence to the disconfirmation theory; and highlighted the need for operations managers to ensure that customer satisfaction is of utmost importance to them. The study recommended that the management of operations in these firms should improve on the quality of service they render by training and motivating staff to render quality services tailored towards customer satisfaction. They should equally adopt affordable price structure that motivate customers and enhance better satisfaction in them.