TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT AS CORRELATE OF CUSTOMERS SATISFACTION: EVIDENCE FROM CADBURY NIGERIA PLC

The study the total quality management and customer satisfaction in Cadbury Nigeria Plc. Specifically, the study sought to determine the relationship between total quality management and customer satisfaction, customer patronage and customer retention in in Cadbury Nigeria Plc. This study adopted the descriptive survey research design. The study covers the 1,000 staff in Cadbury Nigeria Plc. These include the following department within the organization; production department, purchasing department, finance department, marketing department and research and development department. A sample size of 202 staff in Cadbury Nigeria Plc representing about 10% of the target population was drawn while the stratified sampling technique was used as the sampling technique. Data were sourced from primary and secondary sources. The instrument used for the study was a questionnaire developed by the researcher. The instrument was subjected to a test–retest reliability test. The researcher personally administered the questionnaire to workers in their company. Data collected were analysed with frequency count and percentages (%) while the hypotheses were tested with the Pearson Product Moment Correlation (PPMC) technique.The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (IBM SPSS®) was used to test the hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. Result showed that there is a significant relationship between total quality management and customer satisfaction, customer satisfaction and customer retention in Cadbury Nigeria Plc. Furthermore, changes in total quality management can be attributed to satisfaction, patronage and retention in Cadbury Nig Plc. It is therefore recommended that the Cadbury Nigeria Plc management should be enlightened on the importance of total quality management practices on Customers’ Satisfaction to enhance the level of top management commitment for greater institutional performance.