Property management approaches and its relation to customer satisfaction-a survey of commercial high rise buildings in Nairobi Central Business District

Abstract

This study focused on property management approaches and its relation to customer satisfaction. It was motivated by increased competition in today's business environment which has forced businesses to critically relook at customer satisfaction as an important prerequisite for survival in business today. Moreover, studies on customer satisfaction have had little attention to the nature of property management services and their effect on customer satisfaction. The study aimed to establish the effect of in-house, outsourced and hybrid property management services on customer satisfaction.

The study filled the research gap on customer satisfaction with regard to property management services. This is because most of the studies on customer satisfaction have had little focus on property management services and customer role in influencing the direction in which competition in the areas goes. The study shed light on which kind of property management services yield the highest level of customer satisfaction. A recommendation towards the best methods of property management was recommended as per the study findings. This can act as a guide for property owners as they make decisions on the best management style to adopt.

The study adopted a descriptive survey in which comparative study design was used. Property managers and tenants (clients) of commercial high rise buildings within Nairobi Central Business District were the targeted population. Systematic sampling was used to select the buildings to participate in the study. A questionnaire was used to gather information. Data was analysed in both qualitative and quantitative techniques. Interpretation of data was done based on research objectives and presented in form of tables.

The study finding indicated that different property management approaches were prominently existent among commercial high-rise buildings in Nairobi's Central Business District. The approaches used were either outsourced, in-house, or mixed mode property management methods. ,The choice of the kind of property management approach used is determined by various reasons which among them include need for expertise knowledge, strategy to control cost, reduced employee turnover and customer satisfaction. Many customers seemed to clearly understand the service parameters that they expected from different property management approaches.

Outsourcing yielded the highest rating as far as customer satisfaction was concerned. In-house property management yielded the least rating as far as customer satisfaction was concerned. Mixed mode (hybrid property management approach) was second in the rating concerning customer satisfaction. The study recommended an adoption of the outsourcing approach as a strategy for achieving customer satisfaction in property management.

In cases where an in-house property management strategy is to be adopted, training on customer satisfaction was considered an important practice. It was also recommended that partnership between outsourced property managers and landlords be geared towards a common goal of increasing the level of customer satisfaction. A further study to establish the factors affecting choice of property management approaches among property owners was recommended.