Leigh De Bruin, Mornay Roberts-Lombard, Christine de Meyer-Heydenrych
Abstract
The study investigates internal people’s influence on employees’ perceived ability to secure service quality for external customers in the Islamic banking sector of Oman. Furthermore, the influence of perceived service quality on customer satisfaction is explored. Data were collected from respondents through online and in-person administered questionnaires, with 272 questionnaires collected and analysed through structural equation modelling. The results indicate the limited ability of Islamic bank leadership to empower employees and develop them through service skill development. Yet, employees perceive themselves as being able to deliver on external customers’ service needs through their current performance. The results inform Islamic banking leadership of the need to become more informed of internal marketing as an employee development strategy and to empower employees to better deliver on the service expectations of external customers. Through such an approach, the overall experience of customers with the banking brand can be enhanced. The study contributes to knowledge on internal marketing through an in-depth focus on internal people and their influence on service quality and customer satisfaction, especially since limited research on employee empowerment and its importance in the service quality-customer satisfaction chain has been explored in Oman, as a Middle Eastern emerging market.