ASSESSING SERVICE QUALITY GAP OF PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SECTOR COURIER COMPANIES IN INDIA: A COMPARATIVE STUDY

Abstract

Antecedent studies in various Indian service sector reveals that the Private sector has edged over the public sector in terms of overall service quality. However, a discernible study has been conducted so far on the level of service quality of courier services in both public and private sectors in India. The aim of this paper is to observe the customers’ and service providers’ expectations towards courier services, satisfaction level towards service quality and to explore the gap between the expectation level and actual performance between both sectors. The research utilized the SERVQUAL model as a basis to ascertain the gaps associated with the service quality of Public courier and Private courier services in India. The results reveal that both the sectors have high expectations regarding their services, but the private couriers have able to meet up the expectation level of the customers except Tangibility and Assurance aspects and there exists an expectation gap between Public and Private Sector Courier Companies regarding the service quality offered.