Fuzzy numbers and topsis for analyzing service quality in the mice industry

Abstract

This article presents a fuzzy logic approach in order to solve a multidimensional problem that evaluates the service quality of conferences held at the Technical University of Loja (UTPL) in 2013. In this way, an overall service satisfaction index for each conference is calculated allowing for a final classification of the selected conferences. The theory of fuzzy sets is used by applying triangular fuzzy numbers (TFN) as a method to overcome some language problems (i.e., the ambiguity of the concepts that are associated with subjective judgments when measuring the service quality with linguistic terms). Based on the concept of the degree of optimality, via the TOPSIS method, an overall performance service satisfaction index for each conference is developed. A set of 32 different dimensions have been used to assess the degree of satisfaction experienced by the conference attendees, and the final classification shows that the performance of the conferences is not homogeneous as some of them perform better than others. This may be due to different factors, such as the central resources that the university provides for each conference, the quality of the articles included in the conference, the key conference speakers, the different market segments that attended the conference, and other external factors. Studies on service quality in the MICE sector are still scarce in the literature as the majority of the literature on service quality in tourism generally refers to hotels. As a result, our study aims to fill this gap. Our results allow the organizers and the central authorities of the university to identify the different dimensions needing improvement, which allows for a redirection and provision of general guidelines on how to effectively respond to the comments, suggestions, and complaints from delegates. Furthermore, the study examines not only the functional quality attributes in the university, but also the quality attributes of the destination, such as the image of the city, transport connections to the airport, hotels, restaurants, and the climate. Therefore, the city planners and administrators can also use the results to market Loja as an attractive destination in Ecuador for the MICE industry.