Supply Chain Management and Customer Satisfaction in Small to Medium Enterprises

Abstract

Abstract To circumvent the possibility of business failure, small to medium enterprises in emerging economies face mounting pressure to increase the satisfaction of their customers. The adoption of supply chain management practices is critical to the provision of quality products and services as well as the satisfaction of customers by small to medium enterprises. This paper investigated the relationship between customer satisfaction, supply chain management practices and three input factors; namely, product quality, flexibility and product variety in small to medium enterprises. The study adopted a quantitative approach in which a four section questionnaire was distributed to 131 managers in small to medium enterprises based in Gauteng Province, South Africa. Hypotheses were tested using regression analysis. The results of the study revealed that product quality and flexibility predicted supply chain management practices. Supply chain management practices were also statistically significant, and mediated the relationship between customer satisfaction and product quality and flexibility. Based on these results, conclusions were drawn and appropriate recommendations were made.