Exploring the Effects of Service Recovery Strategies in the Electricity Supply Industry in Zimbabwe

Abstract

This study has been necessitated by challenges encountered in the electricity supply sector that has affected service delivery with high costs borne by the consumers. The authors attempt to address these challenges by way of service recovery. Literature shows that service recovery strategies can help organisations mitigate service failure effects. A positivist approach was taken to fully describe the events and data collected on the relationships between customer satisfaction and recovery process. The authors drew information from a sample of 384 respondents. Findings revealed that the power utility company used as a case study does not promptly attend to the following problems; power cuts that relate to noncritical sectors, dead connections and that the customers receive estimated bills before they are connected to pre-paid meters. The study therefore concludes that the power utility has failed to implement service recovery strategies effectively to reduce the effects of service failure.