Good service?
| by Victoria Ashton 02 Mar 2004 Diploma in Financial Management Relevant to All papers |
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To measure customer satisfaction, ACCA has recently undertaken a global research programme. Last year, we canvassed over 135,000 students and members, and an impressive 36,000 responded. As part of this programme, we asked students to complete a student satisfaction survey. The key aim of the survey was to provide insight into what value and benefits you obtain from ACCA. We also wanted to find out what you think of ACCA’s qualifications and brand, its reputation as a professional body.
Student response
More than 74,000 students were contacted by e-mail. 20,000 responded to the
survey – giving a global response rate of nearly 30%. This compares well
to the typical online survey response rate of 5 to 10%.
The survey was designed to give students an opportunity to let ACCA know what they think about the qualifications and services offered to them, and also to provide some feedback on proposed future developments. In addition, the survey findings assisted in identifying any areas in which students think ACCA performs particularly well or those areas that leave room for improvement. Nearly 1,000 students contributed additional comments about ACCA and its services. The key themes emerging from these comments included provision of tuition, assistance with finding work experience and practical training, and recognition of ACCA and its qualifications.
Positive feedback
The survey responses were extremely positive. The findings show that students
value being a part of ACCA and the services and products available to them.
About 94% of respondents feel they get high value from being an ACCA student.
Students were also asked whether ACCA meets their expectations. Again the survey
produced excellent feedback, with over 90% of students responding positively.
Innovative and modern
Students were asked to give their opinions on ACCA as a professional body, including
brand image, reputation, and service levels. Overall, responses indicate that
perceptions of ACCA are highly positive, with about 90% of respondents agreeing
that ACCA performs well. Over 95% agree that ACCA is a respected accountancy
body locally and is a modern, dynamic organisation.
The same number agree that ACCA is innovative in developing new services and products. The findings also show that over 95% of students agree that ACCA is a leading spokesbody on industry issues. There was a positive response as to whether ACCA offers a flexible approach to studying, with over 94% of students agreeing that it does. When considering fees, the survey findings indicate that over 70% of students agree that these are reasonable.
The results of the survey show that students are satisfied with ACCA’s qualifications. ACCA is perceived by students to be recognised as offering a challenging, broad range of qualifications which develop skills that are attractive to employers.
Chart 1: ACCA Qualifications
Chart 2: ACCA as a professional body
Access and approachability
Over 85% of students were happy that ACCA is easy to deal with and approachable.
And further improvements in this area have already been made with the introduction
of ACCA Connect, our dedicated global customer service centre. We plan to undertake
further research later this year to measure the impact that ACCA Connect and
other service improvements will have on students’ level of satisfaction.
Future developments
With further surveys scheduled, we will continue to ask your opinion on how
we are performing. If you have any comments that you would like to make in the
meantime, please e-mail students@accaglobal.com.