Abstract:
The purpose of this study is to examine the implications of Civil Service Reform on service
quality improvement and customer satisfaction in Holeta City Administration, Oromia,
Ethiopia. To achieve the research objectives, a mixed-methods approach, incorporating
both quantitative and qualitative methodologies, was employed. The results indicate that
several issues exist in service delivery practices, including inefficient time usage,
inadequate information quality for customers, and deficiencies in professionalism,
competent staffing, and equitable treatment of customers. These problems negatively
impact the effective implementation of civil service reform, leading to a decline in service
delivery quality and customer satisfaction. Despite these challenges, the study reveals that
service quality indicators—such as tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, empathy, and
assurance—significantly influence customer satisfaction in the study area, with these
factors identified as critical determinants of customer satisfaction. For example, when all
factors are held constant, customer satisfaction is predicted to have a value of -0.31.
Additionally, findings indicate that a 10% increase in tangibility, reliability,
responsiveness, empathy, and assurance would result in increases in customer satisfaction
by 70%, 16.6%, 39.5%, 41.1%, and 80%, respectively, when all other independent
variables are controlled. These findings underscore the urgent need for stakeholder
intervention to meet government objectives in the implementation of civil service reform
programs, ensuring the delivery of quality services and enhancing customer satisfaction in
the government offices within the study area. Consequently, it is essential that civil service
reform practices are adequately implemented and that reform program packages are
comprehensively applied.
