Government-run Huduma Centres offer the best customer service in the public sector, a survey has shown. The one-stop shops emerged winners at this years’ Service Excellence Awards. They were followed by NHIF and NSSF in the first and second runners up positions.
In the telecommunications sector, Safaricom took the top honours, followed by Airtel. Esser’s Yu network, which recently sold its network and customers to the former two networks finished the podium positions standings.
Equity Bank beat the region’s biggest lender by asset base, KCB to the top position in the banking sector. Cooperative Bank took the second runners up position. In the supermarkets category, Nakumatt Holdings emerged the winners followed by Naivas and Tuskys respectively.
The University of Nairobi had the best customer service. Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology completed the top honours. Mr Julius Kipnge’etich, Chief Operating Officer, Equity Bank, and board member of the Institute of Customer Service (ICS), speaking at the inaugural event said: “It is time we recognize we recognize exceptional customer service as a strategic instrument of growth of businesses. Customers are a huge component in creating a perfect referral stem to their networks.”
According to ICS, the awards recognize and celebrate the success of corporates and individuals that provide exemplary customer service. They are based on mobile phone survey that sourced information directly from the customers. They were based on the Net Promoter Score, a system that uses key questions to establish if respondents are likely to recommend a product or service to their networks.
The survey had 6,000 respondents. Mr Muema Muindi, Managing Director Kenya Orient Insurance who was the chief guest during the award ceremony held in a Nairobi hotel said the awards would raise the profile of customer service and act as an incentive for companies to appreciate and act on customer feedback.
