The Chinese University stakeholder satisfaction survey: Developing a customer-centered self-assessment tool for higher education quality management

INTRODUCTION: Customer-centered management theory has considerable potential for increasing the quality of higher education (HE) in China and promoting its sustainable development. METHODS: This study applied customer-centered enterprise management theory to develop an HE stakeholder satisfaction scale based on data from 1,654 students, teachers, and other staff members, including human resources personnel. RESULTS: The three-part stakeholder satisfaction survey consists of the China University Student Satisfaction Scale, the China University Teacher and Staff Satisfaction Scale, and the China University Graduate Human Resources Department Satisfaction Scale. All three subscales were valid, reliable, and can be used to foster management innovation, although they require adjustments to improve their coverage of different HE environments. DISCUSSION: Organizational self-assessment based on customer-centered corporate management theory has much to contribute to the quality and sustainability of China’s HE systems.