Open Journal of Business and Management, 2023, 11, 570-584

https://www.scirp.org/journal/ojbm
ISSN Online: 2329-3292
ISSN Print: 2329-3284

Users’ Perception Regarding the Effect of

E-Procurement Practice on Customer
Satisfaction in Public Procurement in
Tanzania

Barnabas Maagi, Adam Mwakalobo

Department of Procurement and Supplies Management, Dodoma Campus, College of Business Education, Dodoma, Tanzania

How to cite this paper: Maagi, B., & Abstract

Mwakalobo, A. (2023). Users’ Perception
Regarding the Effect of E-Procurement E-procurement is a technological system that was introduced for the purpose
Practice on Customer Satisfaction in Public of increasing efficiency in procurement. Following emergent of this new
Procurement in Tanzania. Open Journal of technology people within the organization (users) had some expectations re-
Business and Management, 11, 570-584.
garding performance improvement in procurement as compared to the old
https://doi.org/10.4236/ojbm.2023.112030
manual procurement system. In this view, this study aimed at examining us-
Received: December 19, 2022 ers’ perception on the effect of e-procurement practice on customer satisfac-
Accepted: March 14, 2023 tion in public procurement. The study adopted explanatory sequential mixed
Published: March 17, 2023
method involving both quantitative and qualitative data that were collected in
Copyright © 2023 by author(s) and two different phases. The population of study included user staff working in
Scientific Research Publishing Inc. five selected procuring entities whereby questionnaires were used to collect
This work is licensed under the Creative quantitative data from respondents who were approached by using simple
Commons Attribution International random sampling technique. Also, interview guide was used to collect qualit-
License (CC BY 4.0).
ative data from Heads of Departments whereby the obtained data were ana-
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Open Access
lyzed by using content analysis. In order to determine user’s satisfaction on
procurement service delivery, data were analyzed in two steps: first, the mean
difference between perception and expectation of customers was computed
(P-E). The obtained value was divided by total number of items to get index
score for each service quality dimension. Then, the index score was divided
by the five service quality dimensions to get the overall index score. Second,
Binary Logistics Regression Model was applied to estimate the effect of inde-
pendent variable (Tangibility, Responsiveness, Reliability, Empathy and As-
surance) on dependent variable (customer satisfaction). The study concluded
that there is a significant relationship between use of e-procurement and in-
crease in customer satisfaction in procurement. Therefore, it is recommended
that chief executive officers in public organizations should take e-procurement
as a solution to improve service delivery to their customers.

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 B. Maagi, A. Mwakalobo

Keywords
Users’ Perception, E-Procurement, Customer Satisfaction

1. Introduction
This article is organized as follows: first it starts with an abstract that gives a
short summary of the whole study then it presents the background of the prob-
lem followed by literature review, research methodology, results, discussion of
the results and implication of the study. Finally, the article presents conclusion,
suggests areas for future research and provides various references used in the
study.

Background of the Problem

E-procurement is a system that involves automation of procurement activities so
as to enable an organization increase efficiency in the procurement process. On
user’s perspective, procurement functions involve delivery of goods and services
to staff working within the organization for the purpose of enabling them per-
form various operations that are focused to achieve organizational goal. In de-
veloping countries, public procurement contributes to twenty percent of the
GDP (World Bank, 2017). Tanzania in particular, public procurement consumes
70% of the total budget (URT, 2018). This indicates that public procurement is
an important area that needs to give significant effect on meeting customer sa-
tisfaction in the organization. It is in this context that many governments in-
cluding Tanzania have decided to adopt e-procurement technology as a lever
that can improve efficiency and thus being able to meet customer expectations.
Although several studies have examined e-procurement in relation to procure-
ment performance, in developing countries including Tanzania there is lack of
clear understanding if, for real, e-procurement contributes to customer satisfac-
tion from the user/customer perspective. This follows the report from previous
studies which indicate customer dissatisfaction in service delivery in public or-
ganizations (Kobero & Swallehe, 2022). Customer dissatisfaction has got conse-
quences such as increased complains, misunderstanding among employees, rep-
utation damage, loss of best employees, loss of revenues, defections and in-
creased stress level among employees (Malik et al., 2010). Dissatisfaction is an
unwanted feeling of an individual after evaluating a certain service offered to
him (Reeves et al., 2017). The need to pay close attention to customers is essen-
tial because when customers are being offered with high quality services at the
right time it will prevent complains and thus increasing customer satisfaction in
the organization (Chandra et al., 2018). According to Parasuraman et al. (1988),
assessment of service quality and determining customer satisfaction can be
measured by using Servqual tool which contains five dimensions namely Tangi-

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B. Maagi, A. Mwakalobo

bility, Responsiveness, Reliability, Assurance and Empathy. In addition, Kundi

et al. (2014) concluded that there is a noteworthy relationship between these ser-
vice quality dimensions and customer satisfaction because customers consider
them as necessary for their development. This means that in service delivery,
customers expect high quality services at the right time with a high degree of
care and fairness in solving their requirements or problems. According to Twum
and Peprah (2020), customer satisfaction can be 100% regarded by dimensions
of service quality ie Tangibility, Responsiveness, Reliability, Assurance and Em-
pathy and that, customer needs and problems must be attended with a close at-
tention and assistance. E-procurement is a tool that transforms the traditional
non-value adding activities into more value-adding activities thus giving percep-
tion of improved service delivery from the internal user staff and the public at
large. This indicates that the continuing use of e-procurement provides oppor-
tunities for improved business processes by linking the parties in the network
hence ensuring efficient and responsive service delivery to customers. This is al-
so supported by Nawi et al. (2016) who argue that the use of e-procurement can
enable an organization become more efficient and effective in service delivery to
customers.
Despites of much benefits of e-procurement in service delivery as reported by
scholars from different countries, In Tanzania there is lack of clear understand-
ing on the effect of e-procurement in service delivery particularly on part of user
staff as beneficiaries of goods and services procured in the organization. This
creates a question that remain unanswered in the world of literature, therefore,
this study is an attempt to get an answer on this aspect by examining user’ per-
ception on the effect of e-procurement on customer satisfaction in public pro-
curement in Tanzania.

2. Literature Review
2.1. Value Creation under E-Procurement
The use of e-procurement can improve efficiency and effectiveness in the pro-
curement process in a number of ways such as improved control of vendor rela-
tionships, increased accuracy, better negotiations with suppliers, reduced trans-
action cost and increased speed in service delivery (Rozario et al., 2022). The use
of e-procurement enables supplier networking whereby different suppliers are
integrated together worldwide which makes it easy to identify potential suppliers
in the market. Such networking increases visibility in supply chain thus elimi-
nating possibilities of biasness and corruption in the procurement process (TI,
2015). The value created by e-procurement has been reported by several scholars
including Suleiman (2015) who argue that e-procurement improves efficiency in
terms of reducing paper works, reducing administrative cost, reducing maverick
buying and reducing procurement cycle time. According to Costa et al. (2013),
E-procurement improves service quality by shortening the whole purchasing

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 B. Maagi, A. Mwakalobo

process through eliminating authorization stages, reduction in administrative

costs and ensuring a better collaborative mechanism between buyer and supply
chain partners. Lemo (2012) states that by using e-procurement an organization
can minimize forgeries and theft when making payments through use of digital
cards that recognize only the holder of a secret password to perform the online
transaction. Therefore, the use of e-procurement can bring more efficiency in
terms of convenience, simplification, timeliness and security than using the tra-
ditional procurement system.

2.2. Disconfirmation Theory

This theory postulates that customer satisfaction is measured by comparing be-
tween expectations and perceptions of the people in relation to services offered
to them. Expectations are predictions of the customer on a certain activity that is
going to occur which is performed by someone who provide services to custom-
ers while perception is the judgement of the customer with regard to the service
quality offered to him. In other words, perception is reflection of feelings from
the customer which signals how the product or service has fulfilled the desire of
the customer. When the value of perception exceeds the value of expectation it
signals that the customer is satisfied with service quality but if the value of per-
ception is less than the value of expectation it signals poor service quality which
leads to customer dissatisfaction (Kobero & Swallehe, 2022).

2.3. Impact of E-Procurement on Customer Satisfaction

Customer relationship under e-procurement involves any means of communi-
cating with customers by instilling more quality services to meet customers’
needs and expectations. Under e-procurement, this is achieved by promoting
healthy lines of communication that eliminates waste in time and cost through
getting the customers’ requirements in time and sending quick feedback on
customers’ orders in an economical manner (Quesada et al., 2010). That is,
e-procurement enables better contact between procurement personnel and user
staff through use of computers thus creating high service quality that meets ex-
pectations of internal users within the organization (Kaula, 2018). In this case,
service quality improvement in procurement is a prerequisite if an organization
wants to achieve customer satisfaction. Service quality has been identified as one
of the key driving forces for organizational survival and sustainability. Service
quality is an assessment done on a particular activity so as to determine perfor-
mance as well as determining perception of customers in relation to the activity
performed (Kobero & Swallehe, 2022). Service quality is assessed base on five
service quality dimensions which include tangibility, reliability, responsiveness,
empathy and assurance. Tangibility involves physical appearance and capability
of staff in performing their duties diligently and perfectly when serving custom-
ers. It also involves the use of facilities and equipment such as computers that in
one way or another makes customers be impressed and create trust on services

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B. Maagi, A. Mwakalobo

offered to them (Alajhar et al., 2022).

With regard to reliability, this is whereby an organization provides service de-
livery to customers perfectly and accurately thus making customers create trust
and continual to demand repeated services from the organization. On part of
responsiveness, this is the ability of the organization to act promptly on custom-
er needs by ensuring that any request or complain is dealt and feedback given to
the customer at the right time. Fast speed in handling customer request and
complains improves service delivery and thus leading into customer satisfaction.
Empathy is the situation whereby an organization exercises high degree of car-
ing, listening, acting ethically and paying attention to customers. When custom-
ers realize that they are cared and treated ethically even customer complain will
be minimized in the organization. Assurance is the situation whereby customers
are inspired with services offered thus making them create trust and confidence
in using services offered in a sustainable way (Dominici & Guzzo, 2010). In or-
der to determine customer satisfaction in service delivery, assessment between
expectation and perception of the customer must be compared. In other words,
when it happens that perception of the customer is higher than expectation it
will signal a better service quality to the customer (Alajhar et al., 2022). In pro-
curement perspective, studies have addressed the effect of e-procurement on
customer satisfaction in a number of ways. For example, Kiragu (2012), reported
that the use of e-procurement enables an organization to manage whole life cost
of materials hence making an organization achieve value for money in the
procurement process. An organization can create value to the customers by
providing reliable services and demonstrating high level of responsiveness that
guarantee timely services to customers. Service quality and customer satisfac-
tion are two philosophies that are important in dealing with customers. When
an organization provides high quality services to customer this will help to re-
tained them and thus making the organization stay in a better position of
achieving competitive advantage. Service delivery in procurement should ensure
that customer needs are met in time and in a precise manner as this will make
customers create trust with the service provider and thus increase their satisfac-
tion (Kobero & Swallehe, 2022). Following views from scholars on relationships
between e-procurement and customer satisfaction, the following research hypo-
theses were formulated:
(Ha1): Tangibles under e-procurement have significant effect on customer sa-
tisfaction in public procurement
(Ha2): Responsive services under e-procurement have significant effect on cus-
tomer satisfaction in public procurement.
(Ha3): Reliable services under e-procurement have significant effect on cus-
tomer satisfaction in public procurement.
(Ha4): Empathetic services under e-procurement have significant effect on cus-
tomer satisfaction in public procurement.
(Ha5): Assured services under e-procurement have significant effect on cus-

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 B. Maagi, A. Mwakalobo

tomer satisfaction in public procurement.

2.4. Research Gap

The available literature on e-procurement shows that many studies address is-
sues of public electronic usage in a general perspective (Masumo-Gwebente &
Phiri, 2022). Although some studies went further to study use of e-procurement
in relation to performance improvement, most of them do not give a detailed
analytical approach of assessing e-procurement by using service quality dimen-
sions (Tangibility, Responsiveness, Reliability, Empathy and Assurance) as im-
portant variables of determining customer satisfaction. Such lack of information
from the literature makes difficult to get clear understanding on the beneficial
effect of e-procurement in service delivery particularly on part of user staff as
beneficiaries of goods and services procured in the organization. Therefore, this
study is an attempt to provide an empirical information regarding effect of
e-procurement on customer satisfaction by using the adopted service quality
dimensions.

3. Research Methodology
This study has employed explanatory sequential mixed method which is an ideal
method for ensuring validity and reliability in research studies (Creswell, 2014).
In the first phase, quantitative data were collected by using structured question-
naires and then analyzed to give interpretation on effect of e-procurement on
customer satisfaction. In the second phase after two weeks’ period the researcher
went again in the field to collect qualitative data from key informants by using
interview method so as to seek supportive information on some important issues
that emanated in the quantitative data. The questionnaires were scaled to 5-point
Likert scale (1 strongly disagree; 5 strongly agree) and contained 19 items relat-
ing to five service quality dimensions. The dimensions included tangibility, res-
ponsiveness, reliability, empathy and assurance as independent variables that
were regressed on customer satisfaction (dependent variable) that contained Yes
and No responses. From the population, a sample size of 350 respondents were
calculated through using Yamane (1967) formula, these respondents were se-
lected randomly from five selected public entities that were registered as highest
users of e-procurement in Tanzania (URT, 2019). A total of 350 questionnaires
were distributed to respondents but due to unavoidable circumstances 290 ques-
tionnaires were properly filled and returned making a response rate of 82.86%
which is academically acceptable as adopted by other scholars including (Nkan-
du & Phiri, 2022). Quantitative data were analyzed by using binary regression
model to test and identify if there is significant effect on customer satisfaction
under e-procurement. After processing the quantitative data then qualitative da-
ta were also collected from key informants involving the Head of Departments
from each selected entity so as to get supportive information and clarifications
on some issues of quantitative data. The Heads of Departments were considered

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B. Maagi, A. Mwakalobo

appropriate for involvement in the interview because as senior officers they are
more informed on issues of customer satisfaction under e-procurement. The
contact of key informants from each entity were obtained from Human Re-
source officers and appointments for the day of interview was sought one week
earlier through telephone communication after confirming their availability and
appropriate time for the interview. In determining customer satisfaction, data
were analyzed in two steps: in the first step, the researcher computed the mean
score for expectation (E) as well as the mean score for perception (P) for each
service quality dimension then their difference was established (P-E). Then, the
sum of (P-E) was divided by total number of items which led to getting the index
score for each service quality dimension. Then, the total of all service quality
dimensions’ index score were divided by the five service quality dimensions to
get the overall index score. Finally, Binary Logistic Regression Model (BLRM)
was used to estimate the effect of independent variables (service quality dimen-
sions) on customers’ satisfaction (dependent variable). On part of the qualitative
data, data were analyzed by using content analysis technique which requires data
to remain in their natural setting. In this case, data were assigned to their related
themes and categories and then categories were subdivided into key concepts
that were coded to aid in computation of data. In addition, Statistical Package
for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 23 was used as a tool to aid in computation of
data. At the end, both quantitative and qualitative results were interpreted to give a
clear understanding on users’ perception regarding the effect of e-procurement
practice on customer satisfaction. The BLRM was represented as follows:
yi = β0 + β1 x1 + β2 x2 + β3 x3 +  + εi

yi = Customer Satisfaction (dependent variable),

β0 = Constant,
β1 , β2 , β3 , β4 , β5 = Regression coefficients,
x1 = Tangibility, x2 = Reliability, x3 = Responsiveness, x4 = Empathy,
x5 = Assurance,
εi = Estimated error.

4. Results
4.1. Reliability Test
For the purpose of ensuring reliability of data, it was considered necessary to test
internal consistency of data and determine whether the data gives true and mea-
ningful contribution in the world of literature. Therefore, the study tested relia-
bility by using Cronbach’s alpha technique which measures how well a set of
items measures a single, one-dimensional latent aspect of individuals. According
to Lawson (2014), the alpha values above 0.7 is acceptable to reflect internal con-
sistency of data. The results in Table 1 shows that Cronbach’s alpha values for
the items used in this study ranged from 0.752 to 0.965 thus indicating that the
data used in this study are valid and reliable.

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 B. Maagi, A. Mwakalobo

Table 1. Cronbach’s alpha values per dimension.

Perception Expectation
SQ Dimensions Number of Items
Cronbach’s Alpha Cronbach Alpha

Tangibles 4 0.716 0.759

Reliabilities 4 0.914 0.862
Responsiveness 4 0.941 0.830
Empathy 3 0.965 0.877
Assurance 4 0.943 0.865

Source: Field Data, 2019.

4.2. Inferential Statistics Results

4.2.1. Overall Service Quality Index
This part compares results on average mean scores, mean differences and overall
index on each of the service quality dimensions as indicated in the (Table 2).
The results indicate that all service quality dimensions and the overall index
have positive scores (MD = 0.38) implying that customers’ perceptions on ser-
vice quality are higher than what it was expected. The overall positive score sug-
gests that customers among the public entities are satisfied with service delivery
offered under e-procurement.

4.2.2. Results on Binary Logistics Regression Model

1) Testing for BLRM assumptions
Before analyzing the data, assumptions of Binary Logistics Regression Model
was checked by considering outliers, multi co-linearity and goodness of-fit test.
2) Testing of Outliers
With regard to outliers, this was tested by using normalized residuals which
were performed in the SPSS. Anderson (1982) recommends that data which are
free from outliers are those with normalized residual values between −3 and 3.
In this study, all normalized residuals were less than −3 and 3 hence indicating
fitness of the data in the model.
3) Test of Multi Co-linearity
Multi co-linearity was measured by using standard error (SE). The results in
Table 3 indicate that standard error was less than 2.0 which means that there
was no multi co-linearity in the data.
4) Goodness of-fit Test
Furthermore, data were measured to test the goodness-of-fit by using Hosmer
and Lemeshow test. The results in Table 3 show that p-value is 0.698 (not sig-
nificant), which suggests a good fit of the data into the model. Pallant (2011), states
that a significant value less than 0.05 indicates poor fit of the data in the model.
Table 3 presents results of the binary logistics regression analysis whereby it
shows that the overall model fit was statistically significant (p < 0.05) which
suggests that the model was able to predict that e-procurement cause significant

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B. Maagi, A. Mwakalobo

Table 2. Overall index.

Dimension Mean of Expectation Mean of Perception Mean Difference

Empathy 0.07 0.74 0.66
Responsiveness 0.54 0.96 0.42
Reliability 0.43 0.79 0.36
Tangibility 0.41 0.62 0.21
Assurance 0.57 0.80 0.23
Overall mean 0.40 0.78 0.38

Source: Field Data, 2019.

Table 3. Binary logistic regression results.

Variables B S.E. Wald Sig. EXP (B)

Reliability 0.900 0.275 10.694 0.001 2.407*
Responsiveness 0.323 0.316 1.048 0.003 1.382*
Tangibility 0.095 0.283 0.113 0.737 1.099
Empathy 0.558 0.205 7.433 0.006 0.573*
Assurance 0.190 0.295 0.417 0.047 1.210*
Constant −2.649 0.464 32.571 0.000 0.071
Hosmer & Lemeshow Test P = 0.698
Chi-square 5.544 0.000
Cox & Snell R Square 0.069
Nagelkerke R Square 0.171
−2 Log likelihood 129.886

*Significant at 5% level. Source: Field Data, 2019.

improvement on customer satisfaction. Furthermore, the Negelkerke R square

was 0.171 meaning that independent variable explained 17.1% of variance in
customer satisfaction. The value of the Negelkerke R square provides a level of
variation in the dependent variable explained in the model. The results on five
service quality dimensions indicate that the element of tangibility has a beta
coefficient of 0.095, odd ratio of 1.099 and a p-value of 0.737 which shows insig-
nificant relationships. With regard to reliability, the beta coefficient is positive
(0.9) and p-value = 0.001 (p < 0.05), suggesting that a unit increase in reliability
will cause 900% increase in customers’ satisfaction. This also has been shown by
the odd ratio of 2.407 implying that the likelihood of reliability to change the
customer satisfaction is 2.4 times. On responsiveness the beta coefficient is
0.323, p-value is 0.003 and odd ratio is 1.382. Since the coefficient value of res-
ponsiveness is positive it indicates that any unit increase in responsiveness will
result into an increase of 32.3% in customer satisfaction. Also by giving odd ratio
of 1.382 it means that the likelihood of responsiveness to change customer satis-

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 B. Maagi, A. Mwakalobo

faction is 1.382 times. On the part of empathy, the results show that the beta
coefficient is positive (0.558); p-value is 0.006 and odd ratio is 0.573 meaning
that any unit increase in empathy will result into 55.8% increase in customer sa-
tisfaction and the likelihood of empathy to meet customer satisfaction is 0.573
times. With regard to assurance, the results show that the beta coefficient is pos-
itive (0.19), p-value is 0.047 meaning that any unit increase in assurance will re-
sult into an increase in customer satisfaction by 19%. This has also been shown
by the odd ratio of 1.21 meaning that the likelihood of assurance to change cus-
tomer satisfaction is 1.2 times.

5. Discussion of the Results

5.1. Satisfaction on Tangibility
With regard to tangibility, the results in Table 3 indicates that the element has a
beta coefficient value of 0.095, and odd ratio of 1.099 meaning that the element
has an influential positive effect on improving customer satisfaction in the pro-
curement process.
In a similar view, key informant AD stated that;
“Infrastructures such as computers, internet, electricity, skilled staff in IT mo-
tivates people in their area of work and thus get satisfied”
Implementation of e-procurement needs some basic resources such as hard-
ware and software computer facilities, skilled human resources, adequate finan-
cial resources, office rooms, reliable internet and stable power supply. Therefore,
procuring entities should provide adequate resources in terms of computers, in-
ternet facilities, software and skilled staff because such resources enable efficient
and effective performance of procurement activities hence meeting customer sa-
tisfaction. The results from this study concur with the study of Huang et al.
(2022) who reported that the more government support in terms of investment
in resources, the higher the efficiency in performing activities under electronic
and communication technology.

5.2. Satisfaction on Reliability

The results on reliability in Table 3 indicate that there is a significant relation-
ship between reliability of e-procurement services and customer satisfaction.
Following these results, an alternative hypothesis was accepted with a view that
reliable services under e-procurement have significant effect on customer satis-
faction in public procurement. In support of the results, key informant TR from
one of the public entity added that;
“The use of e-procurement has enhanced fast and reliable communication
between user staff and procurement department”
This shows that by using e-procurement, speed in service delivery is fast and
more reliable thus meeting expectations of the customers as compared to the old
manual practices. That is, under e-procurement, there is reliable follow-up me-

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B. Maagi, A. Mwakalobo

chanism of orders from suppliers; tender advertisement is done timely; fast

speed in preparing bidding documents; procurements are approved in time and
there is reliable communication system. Also, goods and services are procured
from reliable suppliers due to use of e-catalogues which enable buyers to solicit
potential bidders across the world through online. Also, under e-procurement
system there is reliable security system of stocks, reliable system of awarding
tenders to bidders, reliable accurate information in the procurement process and
reliable mechanism of preparing annual procurement plans. This indicates that
the use of e-procurement system has made service delivery in public procure-
ment to become more reliable than the traditional system thus increasing trust
on part of customers. In a similar view, Kobero and Swallehe (2022) stated that
when customers receive the best services they will be satisfied with the service
provider. In order to maintain the organization’s positive image, it is important
to know the type of services needed and most valued by customers in the organ-
ization.

5.3. Satisfaction on Responsiveness

The results in Table 3 indicate that responsiveness under e-procurement has
significant relationship with customer satisfaction in public procurement. Simi-
larly, key informant AY who is Head of Department from one of the entity sup-
ported that;
“E-procurement has enabled quick feedbacks to customers regarding progress
of their orders”
In a similar view, key informant DB from another entity added that;
“Under e-procurement, customer complaints are communicated timely and
feedback sent promptly to the one complaining”
Following the results, an alternative hypothesis was accepted in the sense that
responsive services under e-procurement have significant effect on service im-
provement and thus meeting customer satisfaction. Normally, in public pro-
curement context, users/customers are interested in getting their requirements
of goods and services at the right time so as to proceed with their operations as
scheduled, Under e-procurement, services can be delivered faster than the ma-
nual practices; that is, e-procurement ensures quick processing of customer re-
quests; quick giving of feedbacks to customers; quick handling of customer com-
plaints; quick issuing of goods to customers; quick clearance of audit queries,
quick communication with customers and other stakeholders (Zamil & Sham-
mot, 2011). Therefore, by delivering procurement services under e-procurement,
users get their requirements promptly hence making them satisfied with the ser-
vice delivery.

5.4. Satisfaction on Empathy

On part of empathy, the results indicate that there is a significant relationship
between empathy and customer satisfaction when using e-procurement. The re-

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 B. Maagi, A. Mwakalobo

sults agree with the opinion from key informant PJ who argued that;
“The use of e-procurement has prevented unethical practices such as corrup-
tion and biasness in the public procurement process”
Following the results, an alternative hypothesis was accepted with a view that
empathetic services under e-procurement have significant effect on increasing
customer’s satisfaction. This means that the use of e-procurement in public
procurement improves issues of customer care; prevents corruption; prevents
frauds and ensures transparency. In other words, by using e-procurement, un-
ethical practices in public procurement such as taking bribes from suppliers, bi-
asness, conflict of interest, favoritism, etc are prevented. Under the traditional
system, such challenges were common because the system allowed face to face
physical interaction between buyer and seller whereby some unfaithful staff used
such opportunity to engage in corruption (TI, 2015). E-procurement enhances
better visibility in the procurement process by connecting many participants
that can communicate and perform transactions by using established tender’s
portals/forums such as e-informing, e-tendering, e-catalogues etc. Therefore,
e-procurement as a technology is an important resource that should be used by
procuring entities to improve service delivery in terms of preventing unethical
practices that have confronted public image and thus making customers get dis-
satisfaction.

5.5. Satisfaction on Assurance

Lastly, the results on assurance in Table 3 indicate that there is a significant re-
lationship between assured services and customer satisfaction. Following the re-
sults, an alternative hypothesis was accepted in the sense that assured services
under e-procurement has significant effect on customer satisfaction in public
procurement which implies that the use of e-procurement has significant con-
tribution in ensuring good services to customers. In other words, it indicates
that customers are more assured on getting better services in the public pro-
curement process under e-procurement. The results from this study are in har-
mony with the study of Vaart and Donk (2010) who assert that e-procurement
has a relevant role in the collaboration between procurement department and
the customers due to an integrated system that assures customers to be given
feedback. In a similar view, Croom and Johnston (2013) report that, an automa-
tion of procurement processes is one of the vital factors for increasing process
efficiency and thus ensuring customers on getting better services. In addition,
the results are in harmony with the study of Jaas (2022) on e-marketing who ar-
gued that since e-marketing strategies combine planning and the use of commu-
nication technology, this complementary relationship can help organizations
monitor potential problems and threats, while providing them with opportuni-
ties to achieve excellence and gain a strategic position in the market. Therefore,
based on the obtained results from this study, it is concluded that the use of
e-procurement has an effect on improving customer satisfaction in the pro-

DOI: 10.4236/ojbm.2023.112030 581 Open Journal of Business and Management

B. Maagi, A. Mwakalobo

curement process. E-procurement as a technology is an important resource that

should be used by procuring entities to improve service delivery in terms of res-
ponding to customer needs in time, providing accurate and reliable information
to customers, preventing unethical practices and minimizing procurement costs
which in its totality, improves service delivery to customers thus making achieve-
ment of customer satisfaction in the organization.

6. Implication of the Study

The results from this study indicate that there is significant relationship between
using e-procurement and customer satisfaction. In other words, e-procurement
has an important role in improving service delivery to customers. With this un-
derstanding, chief executive officers managing public organizations should de-
velop relevant policies, procedures and deploy more resources for effective use
of e-procurement as a strategy to improve service delivery as well as to increase
customer satisfaction.

7. Conclusion
The study assessed users’ perception on the effect of e-procurement on customer
satisfaction and concluded that there is significant relationship between using
e-procurement and increasing customer satisfaction in the procurement process.
This is due to the fact that four service quality elements out of five have shown
significant relationship on meeting customer satisfaction under e-procurement.
Among these four significant elements, empathy was the leading element in
meeting customer satisfaction as compared to other elements. In general, the
study concludes that the use of e-procurement has significant contribution in
improving service delivery in public procurement and thus facilitating achieve-
ment of customer satisfaction in the organization.

Future Research
Since this study was limited to user staff working within the procuring entity
(internal people), this study suggests further studies be conducted involving out-
side customers (beneficiaries) who receive various services from the procuring
entity such as patients in health sector and students in education sector.

Conflicts of Interest
The authors declare no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this pa-
per.

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