(January 4th, 2012) - Local enterprises are satisfied with the services provided by Malta Enterprise and Malta Industrial Parks which they deem as generally good and satisfactory, a customer satisfaction survey carried out by MISCO on behalf of the Corporation has revealed.
The research, which was conducted in the last quarter of 2011 among a sample of around 300 companies, was aimed at gauging not only the satisfaction with the services provided by both Malta Enterprise and Malta Industrial Parks but also the level of awareness about such services as well as gather suggestions for improvements.
According to the survey, clients who used the services provided by Malta Enterprise or MIP in the preceding twelve months were satisfied with the assistance they were given, with micro and small
businesses highlighting their overall satisfaction with the service, whilst the large businesses giving a particular mention to the helpful staff they encountered at ME.
Malta Enterprise received higher mean scores on a number of presented attributes when compared to MIP. In particular, Malta Enterprise scored highly in matters such as the security and confidentiality in handling information, the professionalism, competence, trustworthiness and courteousness of their staff, as well as the up-to-date information and communication provided.
While MIP likewise received a positive response on such attributes, it garnered lower scores on its responsiveness, with the prevailing reason given being that of delays experienced, though clients nonetheless expressed an overall satisfaction with the services provided.
Asked which part of the service they perceived as needing any improvement, respondents identified the occasional complexity and bureaucracy of the services – factors which are envisaged to be better addressed through the imminent launch of Business First, which amongst others shall seek to simplify the interaction between the Corporation and its clients.
The Malta Enterprise services which enjoyed greater awareness among the survey’s respondents were schemes and incentives such as the MicroInvest and Investment Aid tax credits, the ERDFfunded
schemes for the industry and the Business Advisory Services. Such response comes as no surprise, given that more than two thousand companies benefited from around €90 million in the past years from these schemes alone.
With regards to MIP, respondents were mostly familiar with its responsibilities for the allocation of industrial space and the upkeep of the industrial estates.
Respondents were more familiar with the location of Malta Enterprise’s head offices in San Gwann than with MIP’s - which were located further up the road - albeit the two organisations have since then relocated to the former Institute of Health Care within St Luke’s in Pietà.
Queried about the delivery of information, the respondents indicated a clear preference for the promotion of ME and MIP services by means of company visits, closely followed by communication in the media.
Additionally, a little over half of the interviewed companies attended information meetings organised by Malta Enterprise, with the vast majority of those who had attended such meetings commenting positively about them and indicating they found them very useful.
When asked to point out the means of communication they used in order to get in touch with ME and MIP, telephone and email were the most common preferences closely followed by personal visits, though this distinction was more evident for MIP.
Around two thirds of ME service users had accessed the Corporation’s official website, with around 85 per cent noting they found the information they were looking for. Nonetheless, the Malta Enterprise website will be revamped in the coming weeks to offer a much improved service to its clients through a fresher and more user-friendly interface.
In the latter stages of the survey, all respondents were asked to provide any comments or suggestions on how Malta Enterprise and MIP could improve the services offered, with the main suggestion being the provision of more information on services, meetings and opportunities available, followed by the creation of more personal relationships and follow-ups on meetings.
The respondents, who were interviewed via telephone, operate in a wide range of sectors – including amongst others manufacturing, retail, food and beverage, ICT, tourism, business and financial services.
Furthermore, the companies varied in size to have a better reflection of the composition of the local economy, with only around 3 per cent of respondents being large companies while the rest being micro, small and medium enterprises.
Malta Enterprise and MIP remain committed to providing the best possible service to their clients and will be addressing the issues highlighted by the survey. Similar surveys will be carried out periodically to gauge the progress being made and to gather other suggestions that may arise.