WOLAITA SODO UNIVERSITY

COLLEGE OF BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS

DEPARTMENT OF MARKETING MANAGEMENT

ASSESMENT OF STUDENTS’ PERCEPTION TOWARDS THE MOBILE SERVICE

QUALITY OF ETHIO TELECOM (IN CASE OF WOLAITA SODO UNIVERSITY
STUDENTS)

A SENIOR RESEARCH PROPOSAL SUBMITTED TO DEPARTMENT OF

MARKETING MANAGEMENT IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF REQUIREMENT
FOR BACHELOR OF ART DEGREE IN MARKETING MANAGEMENT

BY: EKIRAM ZEYNU

ID NO UGR/66861/14

ADVISOR: HABTWOLD (MSC)

January 2025
WOLAITA SODO, ETHIOPIA
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Contents
TABLE OF CONTENTS.............................................................................................................................i
ABSTRACT.................................................................................................................................................iii
CHAPTER ONE..........................................................................................................................................1
INTRODUCTION.......................................................................................................................................1
1.1 Background of the study....................................................................................................................1
1.2 Statement of the Problem...................................................................................................................2
1.3 Objective of the study........................................................................................................................2
1.3.1 General objective of the study.....................................................................................................2
1.3.2 Specific Objectives of the study..................................................................................................2
1.4 Research Questions............................................................................................................................3
1.5 Scope of the Study.............................................................................................................................3
1.6 Significance of the study....................................................................................................................3
1.6 Limitations of the study.........................................................................................................................4
1.8 Organization of the STUDY..............................................................................................................4
CHAPTERTWO..........................................................................................................................................5
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE...................................................................................................5
2.1 Theoretical Reviews..........................................................................................................................5
2.1.1 Service........................................................................................................................................5
2.1.2 Service Characteristics................................................................................................................5
2 4.6. Network quality.........................................................................................................................8
2.4.7. Convenience..............................................................................................................................8
CHAPTER THREE.....................................................................................................................................9
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY.................................................................................................................9
3.1 Description of study area.......................................................................................................................9
3.2 Study Design......................................................................................................................................9
3.3 Research Method...............................................................................................................................9
3.4 Population..........................................................................................................................................9
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 3.5 Sampling Size and Techniques........................................................................................................10
3.6 Data Collection Method...................................................................................................................10
3.7 Data Analysis and Interpretation......................................................................................................10
3.8 Ethical consideration...........................................................................................................................11
4. TIME SCHEDULE AND BUDGET PLAN..........................................................................................11
4.1 Time Schedule.................................................................................................................................11
4.2. Budget Breakdown.........................................................................................................................12
REFERENCE............................................................................................................................................12
APPENDICES...........................................................................................................................................14

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 ABSTRACT
The research was conducted to assess students‟ perception towards the mobile service quality of
Ethio Telecom (ET) in the case of Wolaita Sodo university students. And the size of the study
would be 165 and a questionnaire was administered to students of Wolaita Sodo University at
college of Business and Economics personally to evaluate their perception towards the mobile
service quality of the company. Both descriptive and inferential statistics was used to find mean
score and to test hypothesis and to investigate research problem, objectives and questions

Key Word: Service quality, Customer perception

iii
 CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the study

Service as “An activity or series of activities of more or less intangibles nature that normally, but
not necessarily, take place in interactions between the customer and service employees and/ or
physical resources or goods and or systems of service provider, which are provided as solutions
to customer problems". Whereas KotlerET.al. (1999) defined service as any activity or benefit
that one party offers to another which is essentially intangible and does not result in the
ownership of anything, and it may or may not be tied to a physical product. A sound
infrastructure in the telecommunication (telecom) sector is vital for sustainable economic growth
of a country. In the era of improved mobile communication technology, vast Number of changes
are generated in facilitating communication and the transfer of information from business to
business, business to customers, employers to employees among others. Consequently, the
utilization of mobile phones in communication and information transfer leads to providing more
and more added value services. Service quality is generally visualized as the sum of customer
perceptions of the service experience (Johns, 1992). The difference between service quality and
satisfaction is perceived service quality, is a global judgment, or attitude, relating to the
superiority of the service, whereas satisfaction is related to the specific transaction
(PARASURAMAN, Valarie, ZEITHAML & Berry, 1988). Customers form service expectations
from many sources, such as past experiences, word of mouth, and advertising. In general,
customers compare the perceived services with the expected service (VOSS, PARASURAMAN
& GREWAL, 1998). Marketers need to understand that customers are more than mere
consumers of service quality output; they are co-producers of the quality process (GRONROOS
& OJASALO, 2004).

The introduction of telecommunication in Ethiopia dates back to 1894. Ethiopian

Telecommunications Corporation is the oldest public telecommunications operator in Africa.
The Mobile service provision has begun in 1999 with a capacity of 36,000 lines in Addis
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Ababa. By the end of December 2004, the number of subscribers reached about 207,000. ETC‟s
mobile service includes prepaid services, satellite mobile phone services, International mobile
roaming services, short message services and Voice mail services. Call diverting, call barring
and call waiting services are also obtainable from Ethio mobile.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

In most services, quality occurs during service delivery, usually in an interaction between the
customer and contact personnel of the service firms. For this reason, Zeithaml, Valerie A., Berry,
Leonard L., and Parasuraman (1988), said service quality is highly dependent on the
performance of employees, an organizational resource that cannot be controlled to the degree
that components of tangible good can be engineered.

Currently, customers are complaining about the mobile network that is becoming worse as time
goes on and being charged for service provision which did not take place for cell phones.
According to industry observers, Ethio Telecom has started a systematic marketing strategy to
maximize its profit margin. It is known as a „give-and- take approach‟ because it puts the burden
of expenses on the consumer.

This study will assess the students‟ perception towards service quality provided by Ethio
Telecom by using SERVQUAL Dimension. The SERVQUAL dimension comprises of 5
dimensions which are the reliability, responsiveness, assurance, empathy and tangible. In
addition, network quality and service convenience dimensions have been included as dependent
variables because of its importance and validation in earlier studies and service quality as
independent variable.

1.3 Objective of the study

1.3.1 General objective of the study
The major objective of this study will be to assess students‟ perceived service quality towards
the mobile service of Ethio Telecom in case of Wolaita Sodo University.

1.3.2 Specific Objectives of the study

The specific objectives of the study are:

 To identify the service quality dimensions as perceived by mobile service users/ students

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  To ascertain which aspect of service quality, have significant impact on students‟
satisfaction/perception.
 To identify the least and most important service quality dimensions as perceived by
mobile service users/ students in the Ethiopian mobile communications market.
 To find the relationship between independent variable (reliability, responsiveness,
assurance, empathy and tangible and network quality and service convenience) and
students‟ perception towards service quality provided by Ethio Telecom

1.4 Research Questions

This study seeks to answer the following research questions:

1. What is the level of Wolaita Sodo University students‟ perception towards service quality
provided by Ethio Telecom?
2. What are the most influential mobile service quality dimensions, in achieving a high level
of overall service quality as perceived by mobile service customers/ students?
3. What do mobile service customers/ students perceive to be the key dimensions of service
quality in mobile service?
4. Is there any relationship between independent variable (reliability, responsiveness,
assurance, empathy and tangible and network quality and service convenience) and
students‟ perception towards service quality provided by Ethio Telecom

1.5 Scope of the Study

The scope of the study will be focus on assessing prepaid students‟ perception towards
mobile service quality at Wolaita Sodo University from both graduate and undergraduate.

1.6 Significance of the study

First and for most, as it is well known customers are always there as on for the firm‟s existence.
So, this research will conduct to identify and analyze customers‟ perception towards mobile
telecommunication service of Ethio Telecom. Therefore, the result of this study will mainly help
the company to fix its problem there by improving its overall mobile phone service for a mutual
benefit. In addition, the study will add to knowledge base in this area and can serve as a spring
board for the future researchers, developmental workers and policy makers. Moreover, this
research can be used as a reference material for further investigation with more sample size, time
and resource assigned. Hopefully, it will be also served as a starting-point for upcoming research
3
in the area of consumers‟ perception of mobile phone service in Ethiopia as well as in other
developing countries.

1.6 Limitations of the study

It is very clear that every research have been facing some degree of limitation when conducting certain
investigation.

The research takes only wolaita sodo University launches because it was limited by financial problem and
lack of time

1.8 Organization of the STUDY

The study was focused on five chapters chapter one focus on an introduction, background of the
study, statement of the problem, research question, objective of the study i.e.

General objective and specific objective, research hypothesis, scope of the study, importance of
the study and their limitation and chapter two was focused on literature part and third chapter are
their methodological part and presentation part would be included in chapter four and finally,
conclusion and discussion parts were included in the last chapters

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 CHAPTERTWO

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

2.1 Theoretical Reviews

2.1.1 Service
Researchers have tried to define service and to explain what service constitutes. There are many
definitions regarding the concepts of service. Services are deeds, processes, and performances
(Parasuraman et al. 1985). And Gronroos (2000, p.46) defined service as: “An activity or series
of activities of more or less intangibles nature that normally, but not necessarily, take place in
interactions between the customer and service employees and/or physical resources or goods and
I or systems of service provider, which are provided as solutions to customer problems".
Whereas Kotler et. al. (1999) defined service as any activity or benefit that one party offers to
another which is essentially intangible and does not result in the ownership of anything, and it
may or may not be tied to a physical product.

2.1.2 Service Characteristics

According to Parasuraman et al. (1985) there are a number of unique characteristics that separate
services from tangible goods: The most common characteristics that have been found and
described by researchers are the following:

Intangibility

Services are not tangible; when you buy a service there is nothing to be shown as tangible.
Services are not things, but they are deeds or efforts. In essence the performances of most
services are supported by tangibles. In general, companies offer a combination of tangible and
intangible elements; the product is in many cases associated with service delivery.

Inseparability

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Another characteristic of services is that production is inseparable from consumption.
Inseparability is taken to reflect the simultaneous delivery and consumption of services.
Customers participate in the production process or delivery process; there is an interaction
between the service provider, the service environment and the customer. This enables consumers
to affect or shape the performance and quality of the service (Gronroos, 1978).

Heterogeneity

Services are not homogeneous and are less standardized and uniform. Heterogeneity reflects the
potential for high variability in service delivery. For example: the quality and essence of service
can vary from producer to producer, from customer to customer, and from day to day, and
people's performance fluctuates up and down. Service industries tend to differ regarding the
extent to which they “people based” or “equipment based” (Thomas, 1978).

Perishability

The fourth characteristic of services highlighted in the literature is perishability. In general,

services cannot be inventoried and carried forward to future time. For example: motel rooms not
occupied, empty tables in a restaurant, airline seats not purchased, and telephone line capacity
not used can be seen a revenue opportunity lost forever. Services depend on time which makes
them very perishable (Gronroos, 1978).

Service Quality

The service quality from the customer‟s perspective means how well the service meets or
exceeds expectations. Because of the customer-oriented market, service quality is generally
defined from the customer‟s perspective, which is usually termed as perceived service quality
(Fisk, Grove & John 2004:153).

Perceived service quality

The term perceived service quality has been frequently used by practitioners and academicians in
the past few decades, whereas there has not been any generally accepted definition yet. The
consensus about perceived service quality is that it is a consumer‟s evaluative judgment or
impression regarding a service provider‟s overall performance or excellence (Parasuraman et al.,

6
1985, 1988; Cronin & Taylor, 1992; Boulding et al., 1993). The theoretical conceptualization of
perceived service quality indicates that it is a multidimensional, higher‐ order construct and can‟t
be measured in a single dimension (e.g., Brady & Cronin, 2001; Parasuraman et al., 1988).

Assurance

Assurance is defined as “the employees‟ knowledge and courtesy and the service provider‟s
ability to inspire trust and confidence” (Zeithamletal.,2006, p.119). According to Andaleeb and
Conway (2006), assurance may not be so important relative to other industries where the risk is
higher and the outcome of using the service is uncertain.

Empathy

Empathy is defined as the “caring, individualized attention the firm provides its customer
(Zeithaml et al., 2006, p. 120). The customer is treated as if he is unique and special.

Reliability

Reliability is defined as “the ability to perform the promised service dependably and accurately”
or “delivering on its promises” (Zeithaml et al., 2006, p. 117). This dimension is critical as all
customers want to deal with firms that keep their promises and this is generally implicitly
communicated to the firm‟s customers.

Responsiveness

Responsiveness “is the willingness to help customers and provide prompt service” (Zeithaml et
al., 2006, p. 117). This dimension is concerned with dealing with the customer‟s requests,
questions and complaints promptly and attentively.

Tangibles

This dimension is defined as the physical appearance of facilities, equipment, staff, and written
materials. It translates to the restaurant‟ interiors, the appearance and condition of the cutlery,
table ware, and uniform of the staff, the appearance and design of the menu, restaurant signage
and advertisements (Zeithamaletal.,2006). Tangibles are used by firms to convey image and
signal quality (Zeithaml et al., 2006).

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2 4.6. Network quality
The ability of service provider to have wider network coverage, excellent voice quality and no
(minimum) call drops. (Rakshit Negi, 2009; Yonggui Wand and Hing- PoLo, 2002)

2.4.7. Convenience
The availability of offices near to customer, toll-free numbers, websites, easy to get cards and so
on (Fujun Lai and Joe Hutchinson, 2007 and Rakshit Negi, 2009)

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 CHAPTER THREE

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

3.1 Description of study area

The study will be conduct in Wolaita Sodo University in case of service delivery in Wolaita Sodo
university students clinic is located in the Southern part of Ethiopia 328 kilometer far from Addis Ababa
Between 90 27' and 90 49' North latitude and between 410 38' and 420 19' South longitude. Wolaita Sodo
university area is characterized by relatively high temperature throughout the year with minor seasonal
variations. The mean annual temperature is about 24.8oC and the average maximum temperature is
31.4oC, whereas the average minimum temperature is 18.2oC. May to September is the hottest months
while the relatively coldest months run from November to February. Maximum temperature occurs in
June and minimum in December.

3.2 Study Design

The research method employed in this study will be mainly descriptive research design to
employ quantifiable schemes to obtain more assurance than area son able guess would do (Jick,
1979: 138-139). To test hypothesis and investigate research objective and research question both
descriptive and inferential statistic will be utilized in this study through the use of such statistical
tools. Descriptive statistics and correlation to assess the factors that affect student‟s perceptions
on service quality of mobile service and to collect the relevant data

3.3 Research Method

The instrument will be uses questionnaire to collect data from respondent i.e. both open ended
questions and close ended questions.

3.4 Population
The target population of this study is both graduate and undergraduate students of Wolaita Sodo
University college of business and economics. The reasons why students are selected for this
study are: First, they come from different social group, income level and have good
educational background. Second, students are among the most active mobile users.

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3.5 Sampling Size and Techniques
The researcher will be uses random sampling method to select respondents. The size of the study
will be 165

Source of formula Cochrane W.G (1997) New York n=

Z2(p*q)/e2

n= sample size

Z=Confidence Level=95%=2.57 P=probability of success 0.5 q=probability of failure 0.5

e= error term (%) 10%= 0.1

n= (2.57)2(0.5*0.5)/ (0.1)2 n=6.6049*0.25/0.01

n=165

3.6 Data Collection Method

The primary data for this study will be collects through questionnaire. A self-structured
questionnaire would be developed based on service quality dimensions adapted from
Parasuraman et al. (1985, 1988) to collect data from consumers whereas secondary data collects
during library research of books, journals, research articles and websites.

3.7 Data Analysis and Interpretation

Data in this study will be analyzes through both descriptive and inferential statistics. Descriptive
statistics is to interpret data in general and for testing hypothesis is and investigating research
objectives and research questions inferential method will be uses statistical package for social
science (SPSS) version 17.0.

Descriptive statistics has been used to interpreted Demographic variables of the respondents and
to find the mean sores of service quality dimensions whereas inferential statistics was used for
hypothesis testing such as correlation, regression and variance analysis.

3.8 Ethical consideration

First the researcher is get permission from the body to gather data. The researcher informs the participants
the confidentiality and secret and their information and guidance are be provide for participants at right

10
time and place. To make familiarization about the purpose of study necessary data are collected from the
respective respondents and kept confidentially.

4. TIME SCHEDULE AND BUDGET PLAN

4.1 Time Schedule

No Activity December January

1 Topic Selection
2 Preparation of proposal 
3 Collection of useful material 
4 Data Collection
5 Data Analysis and writing of 
paper
6 Submission of proposal 
7 Presentation of final Research 

4.2. Budget Breakdown

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 Item Quantity Per unit (Birr) Total Cost (Birr)

Equipment and Paper 1 650.00 650.00

stationery Pens 3 20.00 60.00
Pencil 2 10.00 20.00
Binder 2 30.00 60.00
Total Cost - - 790.00
Personal cost Transportation - - 600.00
Internet - - 300.00
Typist 1 300.00 350.00
Total cost - - 1,250.00
Overall total cost - - 2,040.00

REFERENCE
ArasliH, KatirciogluST, Mehtap- SmadiS (2005). A comparison of service quality in the banking
industry. Inter. J. Bank Market., 23(7): 508 - 526.

Buttle F (1996). SERVQUAL. review, critique, research agenda. Europ. J. Market. 30(1): 8 - 32.

Carman,J.(1990).Consumer Perceptions of service quality: An assessment of the SERVQUAL

dimensions. Journal of Retailing, 66(1), 33-55.

Dukta,S., &Frankel,L.(1993).Measurementerrorsinorganizationalsurveys.TheAmerican
Behavioral Scientist, 36, 472-81.

Edvarsson,B.,Thomasson, B,and Qvretveit,J, 1994),Quality of service: making it really work,

McGraw Hill, England.

Fisk, R.P., Grove, S.J. & John, J. 2008. Interactive services marketing (3rd ed.). New York:
Houghton Mifflin Company.

12
George, R. 2004. Marketing South African tourism (2nd ed.). Cape Town:
Oxford.HeskettJL(2002). BeyondCustomerLoyalty.MeasuringServiceQuality,12(6):355-
357.

Johns, N. (1992). Quality Management in the Hospital Industry: Part 1. Definition and
Specification. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, l.4(3), 14-
20.

Krejcie & Morgan in their 1970 article “Determining sample size for Research Activities”
(Educational and psychological Measurement, # 30, Pp. 607-610).

Lovelock, C.H.2001.Servicesmarketing: People, technology, strategy (4thed.). Upper Saddle

River: Prentice Hall.

Newman K (2001). Interrogating SERVQUAL: a critical assessment service quality

measurement in a high street retail bank, Inter. J. Bank Market., 19(3): 126–139.

Oliver, Richard L (1997), Satisfaction: A Behavioral Perspective on The Consumer. New York:
McGraw-Hill.

Parasuraman, A, Valarie, A, Zeithaml, A, Leonard, L. &Beryl. (1985). A conceptual model of

service quality and its implications for future research. Journal of Marketing,49,41- 50.

Stafford, M.R., Stafford, T.F., & Wells, B.P. (1998). Determinants of service quality and
satisfaction in the auto casualty claims process. Journal of Services Marketing, 12(6),
426-40.

Tyran, C.K., & Ross, S.C. (2006). Service quality expectations and perceptions: use of the
SERVQUAL instrument for requirements analysis. Issues in Information Systems, 7(1),
357-62.

Williams, C. & Buswell, J. 2003. Service quality in leisure and tourism. Oxon: CABI Publishing.

Yonggui, W. and H. Polo. (2002). Service quality, customer satisfaction and behavioral
intentions, Evidence from China‟s telecommunication industry. Info 4, 6 2002, pp50- 60,

Zeithaml,V.A. &Bitner, M.J.1996. Services marketing. New York: McGraw- Hill.

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 APPENDICES
Questionnaire: Assessment of Students’ Perception Towards the Mobile
Service Quality of Ethio Telecom
Instructions:

Please answer the following questions based on your personal experience with Ethio Telecom’s
mobile services. Your responses will be kept confidential and will only be used for research
purposes.

Section A: Demographic Information

1. Age:

o Under 18

o 18-22

o 23-27

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 o 28 and above

2. Gender:

o Male

o Female

o Other

3. Year of Study:

o 1st Year

o 2nd Year

o 3rd Year

o 4th Year

4. Faculty/College:

o Business and Economics

o Other (Please specify): _______________

Section B: Service Quality Dimensions

Please rate the following statements based on your experience with Ethio Telecom's mobile
services using the scale below:

1 = Strongly Disagree
2 = Disagree
3 = Neutral
4 = Agree
5 = Strongly Agree

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1. Reliability

 The mobile service of Ethio Telecom is consistently available when I need it.

o 1[]2[]3[]4[]5
 I am satisfied with the quality of the mobile network coverage in my area.

o 1[]2[]3[]4[]5
 Ethio Telecom provides reliable mobile internet services.

o 1[]2[]3[]4[]5

2. Responsiveness

 Customer service at Ethio Telecom is prompt in addressing my issues.

o 1[]2[]3[]4[]5
 When I have a problem with my mobile service, I can quickly reach an Ethio Telecom
representative.

o 1[]2[]3[]4[]5
 The staff of Ethio Telecom is willing to help me when I have a problem with my mobile
service.

o 1[]2[]3[]4[]5

Section C: Overall Perception of Mobile Service Quality

6. How satisfied are you with the overall mobile service quality provided by Ethio
Telecom?

o Very Dissatisfied

o Dissatisfied

o Neutral

o Satisfied

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 o Very Satisfied

7. Would you recommend Ethio Telecom to others based on your experience with their
mobile services?

o Yes

o No

o Maybe

8. What improvements would you suggest for Ethio Telecom's mobile service?
(Open-ended response)

9. Do you think the mobile services provided by Ethio Telecom meet the specific needs
of university students?

o Yes

o No

o Partially

10. In your opinion, how does Ethio Telecom compare with other mobile service
providers in Ethiopia in terms of service quality?

o Much Better

o Better

o About the Same

o Worse

o Much Worse

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Section D: Additional Comments

11. Please share any additional comments or suggestions regarding Ethio Telecom’s
mobile services.
(Open-ended response)

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