Impact of Service Quality on Entrepreneurship

Abstract

Introduction: Entrepreneurs contribute in shaping the economic destiny of nations by creating wealth and employment, offering products and services and generating taxes for government, because of which entrepreneurship has been closely and directly linked to the economic growth of a country. Entrepreneurs convert ideas into economic opportunities through innovations which are considered to be a major source of competitiveness in an increasingly globalising world economy. This study examines the significant positive impact of service quality on entrepreneurial success.

Methodology: The study investigates key dimensions of service quality — reliability, responsiveness, assurance, empathy, and tangibles — to understand their specific influence on entrepreneurial growth and market penetration. It draws on the SERVQUAL scale developed by Parasuraman, Zeithaml and Berry (1988), which measures the discrepancy between consumers' perceptions and expectations, and on Zeithaml and Bitner (2003), who developed this model further by identifying the five service quality dimensions along with the scale used to measure them. The literature reviewed includes Liu, Burridge and Sinclair (2002) on trade, economic growth and inward foreign direct investment in China; Smallbone and Welter (2001) on entrepreneurs' contribution to economic development; and Hossain, Habibul Rahman and Habibullah on entrepreneurship development in Bangladesh.

Results & Discussion: Services marketing initiatives are identified as paramount to the growth of small businesses due to the integrative nature of stakeholder relationships in small business, which place emphasis on these relationships at a micro level as opposed to large businesses integrating at a macro level. These initiatives include service quality, the service profit chain, relationship marketing and best practice. Service quality is often conceptualised as the comparison of service expectations with actual performance perceptions, and Parasuraman et al. (1998) tend to delineate service quality using more cognitive items, whereas Edwards (1990) found that affective attitudes exhibited more change under affective means of persuasion, while Teas (1993) argues that service quality is a combination of transaction and overall attitude. Prioritising service quality supports customer satisfaction and loyalty, competitive advantage through differentiation and brand reputation, operational efficiency through the identification and elimination of inefficiencies, and financial performance through repeat business and higher customer lifetime value.

Conclusion: Entrepreneurship is the lifeblood of any economy and one of the important segments of economic growth. Indian entrepreneurs are more about overcoming barriers and obstacles, inspiring and surmounting in their fields. Innovation is a key factor through which an entrepreneur brings an overall change for the maximum social good. The entrepreneur, with vision and the ability to bear risk, can transform the economic scene of the country and plays a vital role in initiating and sustaining the process of economic development of a nation. The overall aim of an entrepreneurial development programme is to stimulate a person to adopt entrepreneurship as a career and to enable successful exploitation of opportunities for new ventures.