Measurement of logistics service quality in freight forwarding companies. A case study of the Serbian market

• Date: 14 November 2016
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJLM-04-2014-0063
• Pages: 770-794
• Published date: 14 November 2016
• Author: Milorad Kilibarda,Svetlana Nikolicic,Milan Andrejic
• Subject Matter: Management science & operations,Logistics

Measurement of logistics

service quality in freight

forwarding companies

A case study of the Serbian market

Milorad Kilibarda

Faculty of Transport and Traffic Engineering,

University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia

Svetlana Nikolicic

Department of Traffic and Transportation,

University of Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia, and

Milan Andrejic

Faculty of Transport and Traffic Engineering,

University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia

Abstract

Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to determine how customers from different market segments

assess the quality of freight forwarding services, depending on the structure of services, as well as the

mutual relation between the freight forwarder and the customers.

Design/methodology/approach –The research is based on the SERVQUAL model and surveys.

The methodology for measuring the quality of logistics services in freight forwarding companies is

developed. On the basis of the proposed methodology, the empirical research was conducted.

The study includes 120 logistics professionals dealing with import and export trade flows who thereby

use the services of freight companies. The verification of the SERVQUAL instrument, results and

hypotheses are conducted using the factor analysis and ANOVA.

Findings –The results show that logistics service quality (LSQ) of freight forwarding companies in

Serbia is not at a satisfactory level. Different market segments evaluate the level of quality of service in

a different way. Also, customer exceptions and the level of quality depend on the structure of services,

as well as the mutual relation between the freight forwarder and the customers.

Research limitations/implications –Empirical research and the results are limited to the Serbian

market, and only one measurement tool.

Practical implications –The procedure and results of the research have practical applications and

set the basis for the improvement of forwarding and logistics services.

Originality/value –This is one of the first papers dealing with the LSQ of freight forwarding

companies in Serbia. Generally, the developed approach can be successfully applied on other markets,

which adds value to this paper. New research hypotheses are developed and tested. In that manner,

this paper makes contribution in measuring and improving the LSQ.

Keywords SERVQUAL model, Quality, Confirmatory factor analysis, Freight forwarding,

Logistic services, Serbian market

Paper type Research paper

1. Introduction

During the last two decades, significant changes in the logistics and freight forwarding

services at the Serbian market have taken place. New market trends, privatization,

economic transition, inclusion inthe open and global markets have significantly changed

the businessoperations of freight forwardingcompanies. Earlier, freightforwarders were

The International Journal of

Logistics Management

Vol. 27 No. 3, 2016

pp. 770-794

©Emerald Group Publishing Limited

0957-4093

DOI 10.1108/IJLM-04-2014-0063

Received 11 April 2014

Revised 26 December 2014

Accepted 11 September 2015

The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:

www.emeraldinsight.com/0957-4093.htm

770

IJLM

27,3

mainly oriented toward customs procedures, preparationof documents and mediation in

transport, whiletoday they strive to offer and provide a wide rangeof freight forwarding

services. They are primarily oriented to the organization and realization of the import/

export trade flows. Traditional freight forwarding companies grow into logistic

providers, which operate in very strict market conditions, constantly striving to make

their work competitive and profitable (Murphy and Daley, 2001; Shang and Lu, 2012).

However, the stated aspirations can be realized only if the companies offer and

provide the service quality that will thoroughly meet the demands and expectations of

the clients. The price of the services is no longer a sufficient instrument for gaining new

clients, and especially not a guarantee for keeping the existent clients. The service

quality and logistic excellence were long ago recognized in the world as the key

components of market operations, revenue generation and profitability (Lun, 2008;

Lambert and Lewis, 1983; Lammik et al., 1996). The quality of the logistic service has a

very strong market influence, while a significant number of studies and papers suggest

a strong link between improving the quality of the logistic services and increasing the

overall customer satisfaction ( Juga et al., 2010; Saura et al., 2008).

Freight forwarding companies are in a constant dilemma regarding the service

quality which the client requests and expects, i.e. to what extent the offered and

provided services meet the client’s expectations. In order to successfully answer the

posed questions, the service quality has to be constantly measured, monitore d and

improved (Liang et al., 2004, 2006; Lin and Liang, 2011; Ding and Tsai, 2012). On the

Serbian market, however, there has been no significant measuring of or research into

the logistic and freight forwarding services quality. Freight forwarding and logistics

companies are unsure as to what service quality the clients expect or how they perceive

and assess the quality of the services rendered. Without this knowledge, however, it is

not possible to improve the quality, since, in order to improve something, it is necessary

to measure it first. These facts have prompted and motivated the authors of this paper

to conduct a concrete research and to present their results.

The basic goal of this paper is to develop a new approach for measuring the quality of

logistics services of freight forwarding companies. The aim is to measure the quality of

logistics services of freight forwarding companies on the Serbian market. The objective is

to become aware, in the best possible manner, of the client’s expectations on the total

Serbian market and per separate market segments, as well as to determine to what extent

the freight forwarding companies meet these expectations, i.e. assess the quality of the

services rendered. The authors have strived, by means of the obtained results, to create

a basis for suggesting the measures and solutions tied in with the introduction and

the improvement of the service quality of logistics and freight forwarding c ompanies. The

service quality analysis was performed by means of the SERVQUAL model, one of the

best-known instruments for measuring the service quality (Parasuraman et al., 1988, 1991).

The paper is organized in the following manner. Literature review is provided in the

next section. The problem of research and the formulated basic hypotheses are

presented in the third section. The fourth section encompasses the research

methodology, surveys and analyses of the obtained results. The fifth section refers to

the discussion related to the boundaries and future research directions. The paper is

closed by concluding remarks.

2. Literature review

In the past, a significant research effort has been devoted to the topic of measuring the

quality of the logistics services. It could be said that the researches referred to the

771

Measurement

of LSQ