Synopsis on Voice of customer analysis using Q.F.

Introduction:

Due to the proposed electricity act –2003 the electricity distribution industry will became
increasingly competitive, & the utilities need to learn how to maintain and expand their customer
base. From a company perspective, reducing costs and offering lower rates or other pricing
options may be only a partial answer. Meeting customer expectations for quality of service as
well as cost will also be important. However, companies should not assume that what they
consider to constitute quality of service is the same as what customers define as quality as
service. Understanding the values, knowledge, and decision-making processes of a changing
customer base provides insight into what customers want from their utility company. The
customer's perception of what constitutes quality of service may not be the same as the service
provider's. Thus, the "relative perceived quality," based on the customer's judgments, can be the
single most important factor in affecting the long-run performance of a business. In fact, while
efforts to respond to customer values may constrain earnings in the short-run, it is essential to
long-term success Customer satisfaction will become a key factor in a company's ability to
compete in a non-monopolistic economy. In part, customer satisfaction will be determined by
their perceptions of service quality.

Understanding the values, knowledge, and decision-making processes of a changing

customer base provides insight into what customers want from their utility company. Customer
values include such concepts as quality and reliability of service. Thus, in order to continue to
meet their mandate to provide "safe, reasonable, and adequate" service, the distribution
companies must consider ways in which they can effectively measure and evaluate the quality of
utility service.
Electricity utilities have to realize that they must understand the levels of service quality
provided throughout their distribution systems. Additionally, utilities must be able to determine
if the levels provided are appropriate. This is certainly becoming more prevalent as utilities
contract with specific customers to provide service of specified quality level over some period of
time. This ‘Voice of customer analysis using QFD’ project is an effort to comprehend levels of

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service quality to be provided to consumers and to determine the levels of quality that can be
reasonably expected. This report focuses on analyzing “The Voice Of Customer (V.O.C)” using
QFD (Quality Function Deployment) technique for B.S.E.S.Ltd, which is one of the major
private electricity distribution companies in Mumbai. Particular attention is focused on placing
the concept of quality of service, which is true voice of the customers. Suggestions are also made
as for formulating Guaranteed service standards.

Problem:
B.S.E.S started to devise a strategy to differentiate its services when the TATA POWER
COMPANY (TPC) started aggressive marketing in supply area of B.S.E.S. Within few months
of its operation nearly 10% of the existing industrial consumers switch over to TPC. Also TPC
started clinching new projects coming up in the supply area of B.S.E.S. Considering the
cannibalizing effect of The TPC & the further threat of possible new entrant in coming years, it
became imperative for B.S.E.S to maintain it’s customer base by meeting customers'
expectations in a cost-effective and profitable manner. So apart from lowering the tariff rates or
giving rebates, the strategies formulated by B.S.E.S to establish a niche in the competitive
marketplace is to differentiate its services from others.
When offering services, which are essentially the same to the customer, this
differentiation must be based on quality or reliability of service. But the problem was that the
technical indicators of efficient services, which were currently used by the utility, were not
cheaper and easier to measure. Also such technical indicators fail to understand the utility what
exactly the customer want. So managing service quality cost-effectively raises difficult
questions:
• How do physical or technical measures of service reliability and power quality relate to
customer satisfaction?
• What other aspects of service drive satisfaction? And how can you determine which
service-quality investments will give you the best return in terms of improvement in
customer satisfaction

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Objectives of Study :
The objective of the project is to
1. Gathering voice of customer using QFD techniques
2. Analyzing the voice to know customer preferences & performance values on
overall satisfaction, reliability, customer service performance, understanding of
service, & commercial quality.
3. Constructing house of quality.
4. Formulating guaranteed service standards.
5. Suggesting a customer service plan.

Methodology for data collection:

The data is to be collected through surveys by taking a proper sample of the customer
base of B.S.E.S by segmentation of the customer base.

Analysis of data & inference:

Analysis is to be done by
• Segmentation of Results
• Classification of respondent
• Rating Questions.
• The Mean Results
Following tools are used for analysis purpose
• Affinity Diagrams
• Hierarchy Diagrams
• Matrices and Tables The Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP)

The Expected Benefits of Study:

a. Integration of customer service delivery activities

b. Deciding the K.P.A & K.P.I for service satisfaction
c. Process integration

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d. System integration
e. Customer Charter &
f. Formalizing the Claims & Complaints Management

Key References

• Mazur, Glenn. 1993. QFD for Service Industries: From Voice of Customer to Task Deployment.
In Transactions from the Fifth Symposium on Quality Function Deployment, Ann Arbor, MI:QFD
Institute.
• Mazur, Glenn. 1994. Comprehensive QFD for Service Organizations. Ann Arbor, MI: Japan
Business Consultants, Ltd.
• Mazur, Glenn. 1995a. Comprehensive QFD. Ann Arbor, MI: Japan Business Consultants, Ltd.
• Pollitt, C. "Bringing Consumer Into Performance Measurement: Concepts, Consequences, and
Constraints," Policy and Politics, Vol. 16, No. 2, 1988, p. 78-87.
• The Seven New QC Tools: Practical Applications for Managers. Tokyo: 3A Corporation. Nelson,
Dale. 1992. The Customer Process Table: Hearing Customers’ Voices Even If They’re Not
Talking.

Aniruddha. Shrikant. Manerikar

Membership No: S 22423(21)