English (United Kingdom)

https://curated-unify.zendy.io/wp-json/zendy-region/v1/featured_content/oa?rat=en

https://curated-unify.zendy.io/wp-json/zendy-region/v1/highlighted_journal/

Global: Zendy Plus annual

Presents the access of premium content as premium feature

Premium Content

Presents the keyphrase highlighting as premium feature

Keyphrase Highlighting

Presents the summarisation as premium feature

Summarisation

Insights

Presents the pdf analysis as premium feature

PDF Analysis

Presents the zaia usage as premium feature

ZAIA

Global: Zendy Tools annual

Global: Zendy Free Plan

Global: Zendy Tools monthly

Global: Zendy Plus monthly

Service quality is no doubt one of the criteria used by existing customers or potential customers to make decision of their continued patronage or choice of service provider. However, knowledge gap of regulatory requirements cum standards among bank employees especially the frontline personnel have been reported as a factor which has contributed to inconsistent service quality delivery and service delivery failure to bank customers in Nigeria. It is against this background that this study assessed the extent to which knowledge of banking services among the frontline personnel is significant to quality of service delivery in the Nigerian Commercial Bank. The study employed survey research design through which primary data were collected from four hundred and seventy-two (N=472) bank customers of Union Bank Nigeria Plc. in Lagos State. Data was obtained through structured questionnaire. The data gathered were analyzed with both descriptive and inferential statistics. Results revealed that service quality delivery remains significant in the commercial bank and that there is a significant relationship between knowledge of banking services among frontline personnel and quality of service delivery in the Nigerian commercial bank. Based on the findings, the study concluded that knowledge of banking services among frontline personnel significantly influenced banking services delivery to customers and that the adequacy of the knowledge in banking services are significant to ensuring efficient quality service delivery in commercial bank. It was subsequently recommended that management of the banks should always train their staff while frontline personnel should promote knowledge sharing among themselves so as to continuously deliver quality services to customers. Corresponding author: Akinbode James Olalekan Email addresses for corresponding author: akinbodejo@gmail.com First submission received: 31st March 2017 Revised submission received: 29th October 2017 Accepted: 27th November 2017 Introduction Quality of service delivered to customers has been argued to be critical to customers’ satisfaction, customer retention and contribute to continued existence of the business organization that provides the service (Okoe, Adjei, & Osarenkhoe, 2013; Grönroos & Ravald, 2011). This is because customers’ perpetual demand for improved service quality has kept organizations in the service industry that desire survival in the highly competitive markets on their toes to continue to seek ways to provide high quality services or products. This is the reason why many of the organizations in the service industry including banks have adopted quality service delivery as one of their strategic tool for surviving in this highly competitive business environment. However, studies have identified gaps in the quality of service to customers in many industries and specifically the banking industry (Okoe, Adjei, & Osarenkhoe, 2013; Gandhi, 2010). Although many factors have been identified to be responsible for the lacuna between customers’ expectations and perceptions of service delivery in service industry, the contribution of employees’ knowledge in ensuring efficient service delivery to customers has been a global discussion over decades (Ahmed, 2011; Zhang, 2008). Precisely, front-line personnel no doubt play an important role in interacting with customers to deliver service. Frontline personnel are employees in front office who are often first Journal of Business and Retail Management Research (JBRMR), Vol. 12 Issue 3 April 2018 www.jbrmr.com A Journal of the Academy of Business and Retail Management (ABRM) 161 contact in the organization located behind the counter, phone desk, or open floor. Therefore, their job related knowledge would count on their ability to address customers request at all times. In this wise, a good quality service might not sell itself if the representative of the service provider is deficit in knowledge or lack adequate knowledge of the services to either provide service or address the complaints of existing customers. Commercial banks exist to offer some banking services such as account openings, deposit mobilization, advancing of loans, agency services such as making payments, collecting receipts, among others and general utility services such as issuing letters of credit, safe custody of valuables, among others. With the importance of this financial institution, customers cannot be left at the mercy of poor or inconsistent service delivery as currently been experienced by bank customers in Nigeria. Instances of inaccurate information supplied by frontline personnel have been experienced by customers. This shows that frontline personnel are expected to have detailed understanding of various bank services and its processes, knowledge of core banking system, regulatory laws, customer requirements, and various technology platforms in the bank, among others in order to deliver excellent service. For the fact that existing customers are well informed about different kinds of services and their associated benefits, Kumasey (2014) remarked that this makes their expectations of service quality delivery high. With increase in customers’ awareness of different banking services available from other banks, customers expect better and improved service delivery from their own bank. In line with this view, to an average customer; the efficiency of the service delivery system is captured in the reliability of the service delivery system (accuracy of service provided), and responsiveness of the service delivery system (timely reaction to customers' needs). All these would not be possible with frontline personnel deficit knowledge in banking services. Therefore, the central issue is to assess the extent to which frontline personnel knowledge in banking services contribute to quality service delivery to customers. The pertinent questions are: 1. Of what relevance is quality service delivery to customers in the commercial banks? 2. Can there be differences in the service delivery of a bank at branch levels? 3. What is the relationship between knowledge of banking services among frontline personnel and quality service delivery? Literature Review Service is a process consisting of a series of more or less intangible activities that normally, but not necessarily always, take place in interactions between the customer and service employees and/or physical resources or goods and/or systems of the service provider, which are provided as solutions to customer problems (Gronroos, 1984). Kotler and Keller (2012) described it as ‘any intangible act or performance that one party offers to another that does not result in the ownership of anything’. Therefore, service varies in sectors. In the banking industry, different types of services have emerged but can be categorised into three major arms namely; general banking (accounts opening, deposit management and cash handling), credit (loan disbursement and loan management) and foreign exchange (foreign currency and remittance management) (Masukujjaman & Akter, 2010). The services constituted the expectations of the customers and the extent to which these expectations are met informs their judgment of service quality. Jayaraman, Shankar and Hor (2010) summarised service quality as the difference between customer’s expectations for the service encounter and the perceptions of the service received. Therefore, service quality delivery is the extent to which service provider is able to meet the expectations of customers of service required. Ramseook-Munhurrun, Lukea-Bhiwajee and Naidoo (2010) noted that service delivery occurs during the interactions between contact employees and customers. In this regards, employee’s knowledge level of what the customer’s require would be necessary to meet customers’ needs. Dingle (1995) described knowledge as the understanding of fundamental principles required to accomplish a task. This was further clarified by Su-Chin, Jui-Shin and Hung-Chun, (2012) when they noted that it refers to a body of information about the theoretical and practical understanding of a subject. Ployhart and Moliterno (2011) define knowledge as the “understanding of principles, facts, and process". Within the banking industry, employees especially those in the frontline are expected to be knowledgeable in banking services. Services such as investment advice, savings, deposits, transfers of Journal of Business and Retail Management Research (JBRMR), Vol. 12 Issue 3 April 2018 www.jbrmr.com A Journal of the Academy of Business and Retail Management (ABRM) 162 fund, loans and project financing, partnership funding, lending, client portfolio, among others are areas an average frontline personnel should be well informed about. Therefore, this knowledge-based approach encapsulates knowledge of facts and concepts, procedural knowledge of how to deliver services to customers effectively in the banking industry. Service quality gaps model of Zeithaml, Berry and Parasuraman (1988) and knowledge based theory of Grant (1996) were explored to explain the importance of frontline understanding of banking services towards ensuring effective service quality delivery. According to Zeithaml et al. (1988), it is assumed that service performance gap is the incongruity between expectations from service and its actual delivery by service providers which are often represented by the frontline personnel who serve as the link between the organization and customers. While a number of factors can be responsible for the service quality incongruity, knowledge gap of frontline personnel could be more disastrous. Such incongruity has been responsible for poor or low service quality delivery to customers. In his own account, Grant (1996) believed that individual knowledge can propel effective quality service delivery. Contemporary managers are aware of this and that is why knowledge is cherished as one of the leading emerging r

Knowledge of Banking Services among Frontline Personnel and Quality of Service Delivery in the Nigerian Commercial Bank