Customer satisfaction with the electronic banking services in Zimbabwe: a case of Mashonaland West Province, Zimbabwe.

Abstract

With the constant advances in technology, it is expected that life should become easier in various way, one of these being that people would no longer have to wait in queues in banks as technology allows people to do most of their transactions by computer or cell phone. This research sought to gather information on customer satisfaction with the electronic banking (e-banking) facilities and services in Zimbabwe. The problem which was identified is that people spend a lot of time waiting in queues for services they could access much more quickly on e-banking platforms. Three e-banking platforms were examined, these being automated teller machines (ATMs), internet banking, and mobile banking (m-banking). The research took the form of a descriptive case study design. It also took a mixed method approach where both quantitative and qualitative data was used. Mashonaland West Province in Zimbabwe was the location for the study. Questionnaires were distributed in all seven districts of this province, on a pro rata basis depending on population size. According to the 2012 census survey in Zimbabwe, the total population of economically active people, between the ages of 15 and 64 years living in the province was 825 911 people. The researcher used Kredjice and Morgan’s table to calculate the sample size of 384 people. Two hundred and eighty-three (283) questionnaires were returned out of the three Hundred and eighty-four (384) questionnaires which were distributed, thus the response rate was 73.7%. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (version 20) was used to analyze the data. Results showed that e-banking services in Zimbabwe are satisfactory as there was not a single attribute of banking where the majority of people showed dissatisfaction. However, there is a need for Zimbabwean banks to continue to educate citizens on how to use e-banking facilities effectively. Internet banking had the lowest levels of reported user satisfaction with the problem emanating from a lack of internet access by the majority of citizens. There was also no significant gap realized between bank sector managers’ perceptions of customers’ needs and wants and the actual needs of customers. A model for adoption of electronic banking in Zimbabwe has been developed by the researcher and is made up of five key factors which determine the adoption of electronic banking in Zimbabwe, these are: education, accessibility, ease of use, friendliness, and security. These key factors determine the success of electronic banking in Zimbabwe. If this model is adopted it can assist Zimbabwe banks in new products development, improving service quality and therefore establish sustainable competitive advantage.