Research on Service Quality Improvement: the case of C Bank

Lei Fan

1.Introduction

The intent of this essay is to identify the most important factors in explaining service quality variations of a commercial bank. Based on the “four gaps” model， the author did surveys with staff members. From the qualitative data of the questionnaire study， the author located critical factors for C bank in delivering service. The results can be used for developing solutions to narrow these gaps.

Key words： Service quality， Private banking， Four gaps model

2. Research Methodology

In recent years， service in banks has attracted extensive interest due to its universality. Using the four gaps model illustrated in Figure1 ， I designed a questionnaire to target the key factors affecting the service quality of C bank. I phoned employees and recorded their answers. I chose these interviewees from different departments to see the service process from different perspective.

3. Research Object

I choose the retail banking service of C bank as my research object. C Bank is one of the earliest emerging commercial banks in China. At the end of 2018， the bank had 1410 subbranches in 146 cities in China. Retail banking business include personal deposit business， personal loan business， wealth management and other individual-related service. The reason for choosing retail banking is that it is prevalent and easy to see. Moreover， instead of relying on the financial products the bank provides， retail banking business is more dependent on the performances of employees.

4. Detailed Findings

4.1 Inadequate Cooperation. Strict assessment systems hinder cooperation within the bank. As all of the interviewees mentioned， C bank lays heavy stress on the volume of business. Under such circumstance， it is not surprising that interviewees report they often find it hard to function as a team and accomplish team goals.

4.2 Employee-job fit problem. C bank faces the problem of employee individual variations. The majority of C bank employees own fair university backgrounds or necessary job skills. However， banking service is not only complex but also highly variable. Complaints may occur in various situations， such as when the contact employee is not familiar with the procedure， or fails to handle unexpected matters， or fails to satisfy consumers requirements promptly.

4.3 Technology-job fit problem. Nowadays， Fin-Tech companies have established various online wealth management platforms in which clients can almost handle all their businesses by a click of mouse. Although C bank has invested a great amount of money in upgrading its online banking software， the range of online functions are far from enough.