Service Quality and Operational Performance of Registered Auto Garages in Mombasa County, Kenya

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to establish the effect of service quality practices on operational performance of auto-garage in Mombasa, Kenya. The study sought to achieve two objectives: To determine the extent of adoption of service quality dimensions’ practices by auto-garage in Mombasa County, Kenya and to determine the relation between service quality dimensions and performance of auto-garage in Mombasa County, Kenya. The study achieved a response rate of 90%. Therefore, this response rate was considered excellent and deemed fit for the study. On the extent of adoption of service quality dimensions, Service quality dimensions; Tangible elements, Reliability, Responsiveness, Assurance and Empathy were used to evaluate service quality adoption. All these service quality dimensions were found to be adopted by the auto garages in Mombasa County. They all had a value of 4 on the average means on the Likert Scale. On operational performance, cost, flexibility, quality, speed and dependability all had a value of 4 which implies that they respondents agreed to these. Increase in tangible elements leads to increase in operational performance of registered auto garages in Mombasa. Increase in reliability leads to increase in operational performance of registered auto garages in Mombasa. Increase in responsiveness leads to increase in operational performance of registered auto garages in Mombasa. Increase in assurance leads to increase in operational performance of registered auto garages in Mombasa. Increase in empathy leads to increase in operational performance of registered auto garages in Mombasa. The value of the adjusted R-square implies that 85.2% of the total variance of operational performance is explained by the independent variables of the study. This means that 14.8% of the total variance of operational performance cannot be explained by the model. The study recommends that policy makers should ensure that all auto-garages in Kenya fully adopt service quality practices as one way of ensuring that the government gets maximum revenue from these firms and this will lead to better and improved lives of Kenyans.