Facilities management service and customer satisfaction in shopping mall sector

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to identify and analyze crucial facilities management (FM) service dimensions that affect customer satisfaction with regards to the shopping mall sector, and provide useful implications for FM companies. Design/methodology/approach - The study is based on a five- year longitudinal customer satisfaction survey conducted in five selected shopping malls in Hong Kong. The authors first use stepwise multiple regression method to estimate the relationship between overall customer satisfaction level and nine specific dimensions of FM service for each year, and then compare regression results of five years to identify crucial dimensions. Findings - The research reveals that: management and maintenance of communal facilities is the most crucial dimension with regard to the overall customer satisfaction; the condition of a washroom is another important dimension for customer satisfaction; communication efficiency and efficacious promotion events are also important for maintaining customer satisfaction. Originality/value - This paper presents a longitudinal quantitative survey regarding shopping mall FM service satisfaction and identifies several critical dimensions affecting customer satisfaction, which deliver useful information for FM managers who intend to fulfil customer expectations.