Share:


The construction client satisfaction model: a PLS-SEM approach

    Serdar Durdyev Affiliation
    ; Ali Ihtiyar Affiliation
    ; Audrius Banaitis   Affiliation
    ; Derek Thurnell Affiliation

Abstract

The satisfaction of the client is of utmost importance in procuring future projects; however, anecdotally client satisfaction (CS) is not adequately considered in many developing countries. Factors associated with the influence of service quality (SQ) on construction client satisfaction and how it affects their behavioural intentions in Cambodia are investigated. A theoretical structural model was developed to investigate the influence of five SQ factors on CS and their links to the future behavioural intentions of the client. A partial least square approach of the structural equation modelling technique (PLS-SEM) was employed to analyse data collected from a questionnaire survey of 227 participants comprising the clients of small and medium size projects. The structural model adapts 22 attributes across five SQ factors, namely: reliability; responsiveness; assurance; empathy, and tangible factors. PLS-SEM outcomes confirmed that the future behavioural intentions of the client are influenced by their satisfaction over the service excellence provided by construction companies. Moreover, treating every client individually and demonstrating an approachable attitude towards their needs will increase their satisfaction with the experience they had with a contractor. Findings and recommendations of the study may be useful to construction companies who are seeking ways to improve CS in developing countries.

Keyword : client satisfaction, service quality, PLS-SEM, construction, Cambodia

How to Cite
Durdyev, S., Ihtiyar, A., Banaitis, A., & Thurnell, D. (2018). The construction client satisfaction model: a PLS-SEM approach. Journal of Civil Engineering and Management, 24(1), 31-42. https://doi.org/10.3846/jcem.2018.297
Published in Issue
Mar 7, 2018
Abstract Views
5054
PDF Downloads
4104
Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

References

Abdullah, M. A.; Manaf, N. H. A.; Yusuf, M. B. O.; Ahsan, K.; Azam, S. M. F. 2014. Determinants of customer satisfaction on retails banks in New Zealand: An empirical analysis using structural equation modeling, Global Economy and Finance Journal 7(1): 63–82. https://doi.org/10.21102/gefj.2014.03.71.04

Ahmed, S. M.; Kangari, R. 1995. Analysis of client-satisfaction factors in construction industry, Journal of Construction Engineering and Management 11(2): 36–44. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0742-597X(1995)11:2(36)

Al-Gahtani, S. S.; Hubona, G. S.; Wang, J. 2007. Information technology (IT) in Saudi Arabia: Culture and the acceptance and use of IT, Information & Management 44(8): 681–691. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.im.2007.09.002

Aliakbarlou, S.; Wilkinson, S.; Costello, S. B. 2017. Exploring construction client values and qualities: Are these two distinct concepts in construction studies?, Built Environment Project and Asset Management 7(3): 234–252. https://doi.org/10.1108/BEPAM-06-2016-0023

Amin, M.; Isa, Z. 2008. An examination of the relationship be¬tween service quality perception and customer satisfaction: A SEM approach towards Malaysian Islamic banking, International Journal of Islamic and Middle Eastern Finance and Management 1(3): 191–209. https://doi.org/10.1108/17538390810901131

Arslan, G.; Kivrak, S. 2009. Critical factors to company success in the construction industry, International Journal of Human and Social Sciences 4(8): 561–564.

Babakus, E.; Boller, G. W. 1992. An empirical assessment of the SERVQUAL scale, Journal of Business Research 24(3): 253–68. https://doi.org/10.1016/0148-2963(92)90022-4

Ban, O.-I.; Tara, I. G.; Bogdan, V.; Tuşe, D.; Bologa, S. G. 2016. Evaluation of hotel quality attribute importance through fuzzy correlation coefficient, Technological and Economic Development of Economy 22(4): 471–492. https://doi.org/10.3846/20294913.2016.1144657

Barrett, P. 2000. Systems and relationships for construction quality, International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management 17(4/5): 377–392. https://doi.org/10.1108/02656710010298409

Brandon-Jones, A.; Silvestro, R. 2010. Measuring internal service quality: Comparing the gap-based and perceptions-only approaches, International Journal of Operations and Production Management 30(12): 1291–1318. https://doi.org/10.1108/01443571011094271

Byrne, B. M. 2009. Structural equation modeling with AMOS: Basic concepts, applications and programming. 2nd ed. London: Routledge.

Cameran, M.; Moizer, P.; Pettinicchio, A. 2010. Customer satis¬faction, corporate image, and service quality in professional services, The Service Industries Journal 30(3): 421–435. https://doi.org/10.1080/02642060802236111

Caro, L. M.; Garcia, J. A. M. 2007. Measuring perceived service quality in urgent transport service, Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services 14(1): 60–72. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2006.04.001

Chin, W. W. 1998. The partial least squares approach to structural equation modelling, Modern Methods for Business Research 295(2): 295–336.

Chin, W. W. 2010. How to write up and report PLS analysis, in Handbook of partial least squares. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer, 655–690.

Das, A.; Kumar, V.; Saha, G. C. 2010. Retail service quality in context of CIS countries, International Journal of Quality and Reliability Management 27(6): 658–683. https://doi.org/10.1108/02656711011054542

Doloi, H.; Iyer, K. C.; Sawhney, A. 2011. Structural equation model for assessing impacts of contractor’s performance on project success, International Journal of Project Management 29(6): 687–695. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2010.05.007

Durdyev, S.; Ihtiyar, A.; Ismail, S.; Ahmad, F. S.; Abu Bakar, N. 2014. Productivity and service quality: Factors affecting in service industry, Procedia - Social and Behavioural Studies 109: 487–491. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2013.12.494

Durdyev, S.; Ismail, S. 2016. On-site construction productivity in Malaysian infrastructure projects, Structural Survey 34(4/5): 446–462. https://doi.org/10.1108/SS-12-2015-0058

Durdyev, S.; Ismail, S.; Bakar, N. A. 2013. Construction productivity in Turkmenistan: Survey of the constraining factors, International Journal of e-Education, e-Business, e-Management and e-Learning 3(1): 18–23.

Durdyev, S.; Ismail, S.; Kandymov, N. 2017c. Structural equation model of the factors affecting construction labor productivity, Journal of Construction Engineering and Management (in Print).

Durdyev, S.; Mbachu, J. 2011. On-site labour productivity of New Zealand construction industry: Key constraints and improvement measures, Construction Economics and Building 11(3): 18–33. https://doi.org/10.5130/ajceb.v11i3.2120

Durdyev, S.; Mbachu, J. 2017. Key constraints to labour productivity in residential building projects: Evidence from Cambodia, International Journal of Construction Management (in Print). https://doi.org/10.1080/15623599.2017.1326301

Durdyev, S.; Omarov, M.; Ismail, S. 2017a. Causes of delay in residential construction projects in Cambodia, Cogent Engineering 4(1): 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311916.2017.1291117

Durdyev, S.; Omarov, M.; Ismail, S.; Lim, M. 2017b. Significant contributors to cost overruns in construction projects of Cambodia, Cogent Engineering 4(1): 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311916.2017.1383638

Durdyev, S.; Sherif, M.; Lay, M. L.; Ismail, S. 2017d. Key factors affecting construction safety performance in developing countries: Evidence from Cambodia, Construction Economics and Building 17(4): 48–65. https://doi.org/10.5130/AJCEB.v17i4.5596

Eager, D.; Vernon, M.; Zahorjan, J. 2001. Minimizing bandwidth requirements for on-demand data delivery, IEEE Transactions on Knowledge and Data Engineering 13(5): 742–757. https://doi.org/10.1109/69.956098

Fajgelbaum, P.; Grossman, G. M.; Helpman, E. 2011. Income distribution, product quality, and international trade, Journal of Political Economy 119(4): 721–765. https://doi.org/10.1086/662628

Ferreira, F. A. F.; Spahr, R. W.; Sunderman, M. A.; Banaitis, A.; Ferreira, J. J. M. 2017. A learning-oriented decision-making process for real estate brokerage service evaluation, Service Business 11(3): 453–474. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11628-016-0315-4

Fischgrund, J.; Omachonu, V. 2014. Quality in construction: Identifying the gaps, International Journal of Construction Engineering and Management 3(2): 65–73. https://doi.org/10.5923/j.ijcem.20140302.04

Fornell, C.; Larcker, D. F. 1981. Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error, Journal of Marketing Research 18(1): 39–50. https://doi.org/10.2307/3151312

Forsythe, P. 2015. Monitoring customer perceived service quality and satisfaction during the construction process, Construction Economics and Building 15(1): 19–42. https://doi.org/10.5130/ajceb.v15i1.4172

Forsythe, P. J. 2016. Construction service quality and satisfaction for a targeted housing customer, Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management 23(3): 323–348. https://doi.org/10.1108/ECAM-05-2015-0076

Foster, S. T.; Ganguly, K. K. 2013. Managing quality: Integrating the supply chain. 5th ed. Harlow, Essex: Pearson Education Limited.

Gold, M. S.; Bentler, P. M. 2000. Treatments of missing data: A Monte Carlo comparison of RBHDI, iterative stochastic regression imputation, and expectation-maximization, Structural Equation Modeling 7(3): 319–355. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15328007SEM0703_1

Gunning, J. G. 2000. Models of customer satisfaction and service quality as research instruments in construction management, in Proceedings of the 16th Annual Association of Researchers in Construction Management Conference, 6–8 September 2000, Glasgow Caledonian University, 21–30.

Hadidi, L.; Assaf, S.; Aluwfi, K.; Akrawi, H. 2017. The effect of ISO 9001 implementation on the customer satisfaction of the engineering design services, International Journal of Building Pathology and Adaptation 35(2): 176–190. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJBPA-01-2017-0004

Hair, Jr. J. F.; Hult, G. T. M.; Ringle, C.; Sarstedt, M. 2013. A primer on partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). SAGE Publications, Inc.

Hashim, K. F. 2012. Understanding the determinants of continuous knowledge sharing intention within business online communities: PhD thesis. Auckland University of Technology.

Henseler, J.; Ringle, C. M.; Sinkovics, R. R. 2009. The use of partial least squares path modeling in international marketing, Advances in International Marketing 20: 277–319. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1474-7979(2009)0000020014

Hsu, Y. H.; Juan, Y. K. 2016. ANN-based decision model for the reuse of vacant buildings in urban areas, International Journal of Strategic Property Management 20(1): 31–43. https://doi.org/10.3846/1648715X.2015.1101626

Ihtiyar, A. 2017. A conceptual framework to explain transition of intercultural communication conflict, social environment and personality, Journal of Management, Economics, and Industrial Organization 1(1): 37–50.

Ihtiyar, A. 2018. The role of social environment and personality: validation of antecedents of intercultural communication competence and its effects on customer satisfaction, Journal of Management, Economics, and Industrial Organization 2(1): 33–59.

Ihtiyar, A.; Ahmad, F. S. 2012. Measurement of perceived service quality in the food retail industry of Turkey, International Business Management 6(2): 249–255. https://doi.org/10.3923/ibm.2012.249.255

Ihtiyar, A.; Ahmad, F. S. 2014. Intercultural communication competence as a key activator of purchase intention, Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 150: 590–599. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.09.078

Jani, D.; Han, H. 2008. Investigating the key factors affecting behavioral intentions: Evidence from a full-service restaurant setting, International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management 23(7): 1000–1018. https://doi.org/10.1108/09596111111167579

Kale, S.; Arditi, D. 2002. Competitive positioning in United States construction industry, Journal of Construction Engineering and Management 128(3): 238–247. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9364(2002)128:3(238)

Kang, G.; James, J. 2004. Service quality dimensions: An examination of Grönroos’s service quality model, Managing Service Quality: An International Journal 14(4): 266–277.

Karna, S. 2004. Analysing customer satisfaction and quality in construction – the case of public and private customers, Nordic Journal of Surveying and Real Estate Research 2: 67–80.

Kärnä, S.; Junnonen, J.; Sorvala, V. 2009. Modelling structure of customer satisfaction with construction, Journal of Facilities Management 7(2): 111–127. https://doi.org/10.1108/14725960910952505

Kettinger, W. J.; Park, S. H.; Smith, J. 2009. Understanding the consequences of information systems service quality on IS service reuse, Information & Management 46(6): 335–341. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.im.2009.03.004

Kotler, P.; Armstrong, G. 2013. Principles of marketing. 15th Global Edition. Pearson.

Lee, S. K.; Yu, J. H. 2012. Success model of project management information system in construction, Automation in Construction 25: 82–93. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon.2012.04.015

Lessing, B.; Thurnell, D.; Durdyev, S. 2017. Main factors causing delays in large construction projects: Evidence from New Zealand, Journal of Management, Economics, and Industrial Organization 1(2): 63–82.

Li, T. H. Y.; Ng, S. T.; Skitmore, M. 2013. Evaluating stakeholder satisfaction during public participation in major infrastructure and construction projects: A fuzzy approach, Automation in Construction 29: 123–135. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon.2012.09.007

Lloyd-Walker, B.; Walker, D. 2011. Authentic leadership for 21st century project delivery, International Journal of Project Management 29(4): 383–395. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2011.02.004

MacKenzie, S. B.; Podsakoff, P. M. 2012. Common method bias in marketing: Causes, mechanisms, and procedural remedies, Journal of Retailing 88(4): 542–555. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretai.2012.08.001

Maloney, W. F. 2002. Construction product/service and customer satisfaction, Journal of Construction Engineering and Management 128(6): 522–529. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9364(2002)128:6(522)

Mardani, A.; Streimikiene, D.; Zavadskas, E. K.; Cavallaro, F.; Nilashi, M.; Jusoh, A.; Zare, H. 2017. Application of structural equation modeling (SEM) to solve environmental sustainability problems: A comprehensive review and meta-analysis, Sustainability 9: 1814. https://doi.org/10.3390/su9101814)

Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF). 2016. Cambodia macroeconomic monitor mid-year assessment 2016 [online], [cited 15 March 2017]. Available from Internet: http://www.mef.gov.kh/documents/shares/CMM_Mid-2016-Assessment-English-Version.pdf

Nadiri, H.; Gunay, G. N. 2013. An empirical study to diagnose the outcomes of customers’ experiences in trendy coffee shops, Journal of Business Economics and Management 14(1): 22–53. https://doi.org/10.3846/16111699.2011.631742

Oliver, R.; Linda, G. 1981. Effect of satisfaction and its antecedents on consumer preference and intention, Advances in Consumer Research 8: 88–93.

Osei-Kyei, R.; Chan, A. P. C.; Javed, A. A.; Ameyaw, E. E. 2017. Critical success criteria for public-private partnership projects: international experts’ opinion, International Journal of Strategic Property Management 21(1): 87–100. https://doi.org/10.3846/1648715X.2016.1246388

Othman, A. 2015. An international index for customer satisfaction in the construction industry, International Journal of Construction Management 15(1): 33–58. https://doi.org/10.1080/15623599.2015.1012140

Padma, P.; Rajendran, C.; Lokachari, P. S. 2010. Service quality and its impact on customer satisfaction in Indian hospitals: Perspectives of patients and their attendants, Benchmarking: An International Journal 17(6): 807–841. https://doi.org/10.1108/14635771011089746

Parasuraman, A.; Zeithaml, V. A.; Berry, L. L. 1988. SERVQUAL: A multiple-item scale for measuring consumer perceptions of service quality, Journal of Retailing 64(1): 12–40.

Preece, C.; Tarawneh, S. 1997. Service quality for client satisfaction on design & build projects, in Proceedings of the 13th Annual Association of Researchers in Construction Management Conference, 15–17 September 1997, King’s College, Cambridge, 264–274.

Rezaei, S. 2015. Segmenting consumer decision-making styles (CDMS) toward marketing practice: A partial least squares (PLS) path modeling approach, Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services 22: 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2014.09.001

Roldan, J. L.; Sanchez-Franco, M. J. 2012. Variance based structural equation modelling: Guidelines for using partial least squares in information systems research, Chapter 10, in Research Methodologies, Innovations and Philosophies in Software Systems Engineering and Information Systems. IGI Global, 193–221.

Rouse, A.; Corbitt, B. 2008. There’s SEM and “SEM”: A critique of the use of PLS regression in information systems research, in Proceedings of the 19th Australasian Conference on Information Systems, 3–5 December 2008, Christchurch, New Zealand, 845–855.

Sarstedt, M.; Ringle, C. M.; Henseler, J.; Hair, J. F. 2014. On the emancipation of PLS-SEM: A commentary on Rigdon (2012), Long Range Planning 47(3): 154–160. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lrp.2014.02.007

Sheth, J. N.; Sethia, N. K.; Srinivas, S. 2011. Mindful consump¬tion: A customer-centric approach to sustainability, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science 39(1): 21–39. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-010-0216-3

Sosik, J. J.; Kahai, S. S.; Piovoso, M. J. 2009. Silver bullet or voodoo statistics? A primer for using the partial least squares data analytic technique in group and organization research, Group & Organization Management 34(1): 5–36. https://doi.org/10.1177/1059601108329198

Soto-Acosta, P.; Popa, S.; Palacios-Marqués, D. 2016. E-business, organizational innovation and firm performance in manufacturing SMEs: an empirical study in Spain, Technological and Economic Development of Economy 22(6): 885–904. https://doi.org/10.3846/20294913.2015.1074126

Sunindijo, R. Y.; Hadikusumo, B. H.; Phangchunun, T. 2014. Modelling service quality in the construction industry, International Journal of Business Performance Management 15(3): 262–276. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJBPM.2014.063026

Taleb, H.; Ismail, S.; Wahab, M. H.; Mardiah, W. N.; Rani, W. M.; Amat, R. C. 2017. An overview of project communication management in construction industry projects, Journal of Management, Economics, and Industrial Organization 1(1): 1–9.

Torbica, Z. M.; Stroh, R. C. 2001. Customer satisfaction in home building, Journal of Construction Engineering and Management 127(1): 82–86. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9364(2001)127:1(82)

Trivellas, P.; Dargenidou, D. 2009. Leadership and service quality in higher education: The case of the Technological Educational Institute of Larissa, International Journal of Quality and Service Sciences 1(3): 294–310. https://doi.org/10.1108/17566690911004221

Urbach, N.; Ahlemann, F. 2010. Structural equation modeling in information systems research using partial least squares, Journal of Information Technology Theory and Application 11(2): 5–40.

Vandermerwe, S. 1994. From tin soldiers to Russian dolls: creating added value through services. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann.

Vargo, S. L.; Lusch, R. F. 2004. Evolving to a new dominant logic for marketing, Journal of Marketing 68(1): 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkg.68.1.1.24036

Vera, J.; Trujillo, A. 2013. Service quality dimensions and superior customer perceived value in retail banks: An empirical study on Mexican consumers, Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services 20(6): 579–586. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2013.06.005

Vesel, P.; Zabkar, V. 2009. Managing customer loyalty through the mediating role of satisfaction in the DIY retail loyalty program, Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services 16(5): 396–406. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2009.05.002

Wall, T. D.; Payne, R. 1973. Are deficiency scores deficient?, Journal of Applied Psychology 58(3): 322–326. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0036227

Womack, J. P.; Jones, D. T.; Roos, D. 2008. The machine that changed the world. New York: Simon and Schuster.

Wong, K. K. K. 2013. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) techniques using SmartPLS, Marketing Bulletin 24(1): 1–32.

Wu, C. H.; Liang, R. 2009. Effect of experiential value on customer satisfaction with service encounters in luxury-hotel restaurants, International Journal of Hospitality Management 28(4): 586–593. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2009.03.008

Yang, J.; Peng, S. 2008. Development of a customer satisfaction evaluation model for construction project management, Building and Environment 43(4): 458–468. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2006.07.044

Yasamis, F.; Arditi, D.; Mohammadi, J. 2002. Assessing contractor quality performance, Construction Management and Economics 20(3): 211–223. https://doi.org/10.1080/01446190110113693

Yonn, R. 2017. The effects of Cambodia economy on ASEAN economic moving forward, Journal of Management, Economics, and Industrial Organization 1(2): 1–16.

Zhang, L.; Chen, X.; Suo, Y. 2017. Interrelationships among critical factors of work flow reliability in lean construction, Journal of Civil Engineering and Management 23(5): 621–632. https://doi.org/10.3846/13923730.2016.1217921

Zulu, S.; Chileshe, N. 2010. Service quality of building maintenance contractors in Zambia: A pilot study, International Journal of Construction Management 10(3): 63–81. https://doi.org/10.1080/15623599.2010.10773150