AUDIT SERVICES QUALITY AND CUSTOMER LOYALTY: THE CASE OF LISTED COMPANIES’ GOVERNANCE

Abstract

The study aims to explore the impact of service quality on customer loyalty, with customer trust and satisfaction serving as intermediary variables performed by independent auditing firms in Vietnam by structural equation modeling (SEM) (Kumar & Kumar, 2017; Nguyen & Hung, 2019; Mahato & Goet, 2020; Peštović et al., 2021). Data was collected via structured questionnaires with the board of directors and the administrative council/board of members of 731 companies listed on the Vietnam Stock Exchange in three months from March to May 2024. The research indicates that assurance, empathy, and reliability are key drivers of customer loyalty in auditing services. These factors not only directly influence loyalty but also indirectly contribute to it by enhancing customer trust and satisfaction, which in turn further strengthen loyalty. Assurance, responsiveness, and tangibility have a positive impact on customer trust, while assurance, empathy, and tangibility affect customer satisfaction and have a positive impact on customer loyalty. This study offers valuable recommendations for policymakers, future researchers, and business managers on strengthening the link between auditing service quality and customer loyalty in audit firms.