An empirical assessment of customer satisfaction and quality of service: comparing SERVQUAL and SERVPERF

This paper assesses the validity and reliability of two instruments measuring quality of service, the SERVPERF and SERVQUAL scales, replicated in a novel cultural settings, a Portuguese energy company. To provide insights and strategies for managerial intervention, a relation between customers’ satisfaction and quality of service is established. The empirical study suggests a superior convergent and predictive validity of SERVPERF scale to measure quality of service in this settings when comparing to SERVQUAL. The main differences of this study with previous ones, are that this one resorts on a confirmatory factor analysis, the validation of the instruments is performed by using the same measures suggested by their creators and extends the line of research to a novel cultural settings, a Portuguese energy company. Concerning the relationship between service quality and customers’ satisfaction, all of the quality of service attributes correlate almost equally to the satisfaction ones, with a lower weight concerning tangibles.

Factors Influencing the Implementation of the Balanced Scorecard in Portugal: Empirical Evidence From Privately Owned and Publicly Owned Organizations

In this paper we aim to identify and analyze a set of variables that can potentially influence the adoption and knowledge of the Balanced Scorecard (BSC) in Portugal. Hypotheses were tested using data obtained from a questionnaire sent to 591 publicly-owned organizations (local governments, municipal corporations and hospitals) and 549 privately-owned organizations (large companies and small and medium enterprises) in Portugal. The results allow us to conclude that although the majority of respondents claimed to know the BSC, its use in Portugal is still limited and very recent, particularly in the public sector organizations. However, it should be noted that its use has increased in Portugal in recent years. The study also reveals that in spite of the noticeable differences between public and private sector, the BSC is used in the public sector after a few adjustments to the traditional model. Using as theoretical framework the contingency and institutional theories, we found that decentralization, vertical differentiation and the degree of higher education are associated with the implementation of the BSC.

The Knowledge and Use of the Balanced Scorecard in Portugal: Empirical Evidence of the 250 Largest Companies

Balanced Scorecard (BSC) is recognized, both in the academic and business world, as one of the most powerful strategic management accounting tools. Thus, we launched in October 2004 a questionnaire survey applied to the 250 largest Portuguese companies aiming at observing the knowledge, use, and companies’ characteristics which are adopting this management instrument. Despite the majority of the companies inquired recognize BSC more as a strategic management tool than a performance valuation system, the results show that there is still a reduced and recent utilization of BSC in Portugal. Similarly to other countries Portugal is still in the initial state of BSC utilization. Our work has shown that the companies that use more BSC belong mainly to the secondary sector of industry. Nevertheless, unlike other studies, we did not get empirical evidence on the influence of variables such as geographical localization, dimension and internationalization, in the use and knowledge of BSC in Portugal.

Disclosure of Intangible Assets: an Empirical Study of Financial Corporations in the Iberian Peninsula

The purpose of this paper is to analyse, firstly, to what extent intangible assets in the consolidated accounts of seven Portuguese banks and seven Spanish banks between 2006 and 2009 are disclosed and, secondly, to analyse what the most influential factors are in the above mentioned disclosure. In order to do this, before reviewing the existing literature and on the basis of other studies on this topic, a disclosure index has been created based on the requirements related to the intangible assets as stated in IAS 38. Then, two statistical analyses have been made: a univariate one for each of the explanatory variables and a multivariate one, in which all variables have been analysed. Both analyses led to the conclusion that the disclosure index of intangible assets is 0.96, where the bank dimension and the internationalization degree are the variables that are considered explanatory of the variation of the disclosure index in the regression analysis.

Determinant factors of the implementation of the balanced scorecard in Portugal: empirical evidence in public and private organizations

In this article we aim to identify and analyze a set of variables that can potentially influence the adoption of the Balanced Scorecard (BSC)in Portugal. Hypotheses were tested using data obtained from a questionnaire sent to 591 publicly-owned organizations (local governments, municipal corporations and hospitals) and 549 privately-owned organizations (large companies and small and medium enterprises) in Portugal, with an overall response rate of 31.3%. The results allow us to conclude that although the majority of respondents claimed to know the BSC, its use in Portugal is still limited and very recent, particularly in the public sector organizations. However, it should be noted that its use has increased in Portugal in recent years. Using as theoretical framework the contingency and institutional theories, we found that decentralization, vertical differentiation and the degree of higher education are associated with the implementation of the BSC.

An empirical assessment of customer satisfaction and quality of servisse: Comparing Servqual and Servperf

This paper assesses the validity and reliability of two instruments measuring quality of service, the SERVPERF and SERVQUAL scales, replicated in a novel cultural settings, a Portuguese energy company. To provide insights and strategies for managerial intervention, a relation between customers’ satisfaction and quality of service is established. The empirical study suggests a superior convergent and predictive validity of SERVPERF scale to measure quality of service in this settings when comparing to SERVQUAL. The main differences of this study with previous ones, are that this one resorts on a confirmatory factor analysis, the validation of the instruments is performed by using the same measures suggested by their creators and extends the line of research to a novel cultural settings, a Portuguese energy company. Concerning the relationship between service quality and customers’ satisfaction, all of the quality of service attributes correlate almost equally to the satisfaction ones, with a lower weight concerning tangibles.

A relevância do relatório de auditoria para os investidores institucionais, analistas financeiros e analistas de crédito

In the 70s, a new line of research focused on the study of the influence of the audit report on the decision process of investors, financial analysts and credit analysts. Notwithstanding the numerous studies that have been carried out, results have not been consistent. Given the above, and considering the lack, in Portugal, of a research of this nature, it seems urgent to carry out a study that allows the analysis of the use of the audit report, as well as its influence on the decision making process of Portuguese stakeholders. For that purpose, in the light of the positivist research paradigm, a questionnaire was designed, which was administered by mail and on the Survey Monkey platform to a sample of institutional investors, financial analysts and credit analysts. The statistical analysis of the data obtained was undertaken with resource to the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences and SmartPLS 2.0. Corroborating the literature review and the assumptions of the Agency Theory and the Stakeholder Theory, used in the theoretical framework of analysis, empirical evidence has shown that the audit report influences the decision of institutional investors, financial analysts and credit analysts, and that the opinion expressed in that document is the most determinant factor of this influence. In addition to this factor, it was found that the degree of utilization of the audit report, as well as the value ascribed to this document, determine its influence in the decision process of research groups studied. Only in the case of institutional investors, the results did not reveal a correlation between the utility ascribed to the audit report and the influence of this document in their decision making process. In turn, the statistical inference of the model explaining the degree of use of the audit report revealed that it is conditioned by the perceived quality of the information enclosed in the audit report, the utility assigned to the audit report on the decision process, as well as the relevance of the other sources of information used by stakeholders. Therefore, this study allowed proving the importance of the audit report to its users. As a result, we believe to have filled a gap in national literature and to have contributed to the enhancement of international literature. The importance that this document has for the development of any country is, therefore, shown, and it is urgent to maintain rigor in the selection of its staff, in the development of its standards, and especially in the development of audits. Moreover, we also consider that this research may contribute to the improvement of the audit report, insofar as it will help professional bodies to understand the information needs and perceptions of stakeholders.

Relationships between NPM, the use of PM practices and the organizational performance: empirical evidence from government agencies

Purpose – this paper has two main purposes: (1)explore if government agencies more oriented to NPM postulates are more willing to use PM practices and to improve their performance; and (2) investigate whether the fit between the use of PM practices and the organizationa performance is dependent upon from the capacity of agencies to adapt its structures to changes introduced by NPM reforms. Design/methodology/approach - this paper is based on the survey method and provides empirical evidence from Portuguese government agencies.Findings (mandatory) - Our findings suggest that government agencies that made structural arrangements under the NPM reforms are more willing to use PM practices and will perform better than other agencies. In addition, this paper show that therelationship between the use of PM practices and the organizational performance is dependent upon from the agencies capacity to adopt new structural arrangements under the NPM reforms.Practical implications – this paper has three main contributions: (1) contribute to knowledge about the relationship between the introduction of NPM changes in the use of PM practices; (2) contribute to clarify whether agencies more oriented to NPM postulates are improving performance; and (3) help to clarify the way the organizations should adapt their structures for to be more effective in the use of PM practices. Originality/value - The quantitative empirical research, based on the unique survey applied to Portuguese government agencies on this field, allow us to add to prior research mainly based on case studies and oriented to local governments (Budding, 2004).