Assessing the Efficacy of E-procurement Practices in Enhancing Customer Satisfaction: A Tanzanian Public Procurement Case Study from User Perspectives
An Overview on Business, Management and Economics Research Vol. 9,
10 February 2024,
Page 1-19
https://doi.org/10.9734/bpi/aobmer/v9/7426C
This study aimed at examining users’ perception on the effect of e-procurement practice on customer E-procurement is a technological system that was introduced for the purpose Practice on of increasing efficiency in procurement. Following emergent of this new technology people within the organization (users) had some expectations re old manual procurement system. E-Procurement practices shape customer satisfaction in public procurement within Tanzania is vital for our community. It tackles the essential task of modernizing procurement through electronic methods, reflecting a global shift towards efficiency. By delving into users' perceptions, the study not only aids successful implementation in the transparent and efficiency-focused public procurement sphere but also provides valuable insights specific to Tanzania, contributing to both local and international understanding. The study adopted explanatory sequential mixed method involving both quantitative and qualitative data that were collected in two different phases. The population of study included user staff working in five selected procuring entities whereby questionnaires were used to collect quantitative data from respondents who were approached by using simple random sampling technique. Also, qualitative data collected from Heads of Departments through interview guide were analyzed by using content analysis in relation to five service quality dimensions. The dimensions included tangibility, responsiveness, reliability, empathy and assurance as independent variables that were regressed on customer satisfaction (dependent variable) that contained Yes and No responses. From the population, a sample size of 350 respondents were calculated through using Yamane (1967) formula, In order to determine user’s satisfaction on procurement service delivery, data were analyzed in two steps: first, the mean difference between perception and expectation of customers was computed (P-E). The obtained value was divided by total number of items to get index score for each service quality dimension.
Reliability, Empathy and Assurance) on dependent variable (customer satisfaction). The study concluded that there is a significant relationship between use of e-procurement and increase in customer satisfaction in procurement. Therefore, it is recommended that chief executive officers in public organizations should take e-procurement as a solution to improve service delivery to their customers.