Dubai Economy has announced that a ‘Global Star Rating System for Services’ will be adopted across commercial establishments in the Dubai to improve services and achieve customer happiness.
The rating system will apply to approximately 38,000 establishments from sectors including restaurants and cafes (7204), speciality stores (29,815), supermarkets (706) and commercial centres (84) and businesses with five branches or more.
The objective of the star ratings system is to evaluate the competitiveness of service providers in their respective fields and enable the private sector to enhance service quality.
It was announced in the presence of Her Excellency Ohoud Bint Khalfan Al Roumi, UAE Minister of State for Happiness and Director General of the Prime Minister’s Office.
Al Roumi commented: “When His Highness launched the Global Star Rating System for Services, it was intended to motivate government entities to provide the best customer service similar to those offered in the hospitality, aviation and banking sectors, and to develop government work and service centres.
“Today we see that the private sector has adopted the system and applied it to their facilities, demonstrating that excellence is now a standard for service quality and customer experience across commercial establishments in the country. It also shows that the UAE has moved from customer satisfaction to customer happiness in the public and private sectors alike.”
The evaluation and classification are based on three axes: Self-classification based on data recorded in the commercial register in Dubai Economy (20%); Business activity, commercial commitment, sustainability, capital and value, and the customer experience (50%); (For restaurants and cafés).
The system has a set of standards covering 30 technical and service requirements relating to the efficiency and readiness of staff, prices, payment channels, facilities, design and customer relations management.
Al Roumi added: “Commercial establishments can now strive for and achieve a superior rating, which in turn will increase customer confidence and lead to productive partnerships across industry sectors, attract investment and advance competitiveness of the national economy.”
His Excellency Sami Al Qamzi, Director General of Dubai Economy added that the Global Star Rating System has established specialised standards for certain categories of businesses for the first time, including major business centres and shops that were never classified before.
He said the goal is to promote performance excellence among businesses and encourage them to provide quality services and customer happiness in line with the development achieved by the UAE.
He said: “The adoption of the Global Star Rating System for Services underlines the continued efforts of Dubai Economy towards attaining a level of excellence and leadership that will increase the emirate’s competitiveness globally. Our objective is to spread the culture of happiness and support the government in creating a model for happiness and positivity.”