The Development of a Partnership Satisfaction Survey Using User-Centered Design and System Usability Scale

Abstract

Strategic partnerships between universities and external stakeholders such as industries, government agencies, and academic institutions are essential for enhancing research innovation, graduate employability, and institutional competitiveness. However, the effectiveness of these collaborations is often hindered by the absence of systematic tools for evaluating partner satisfaction. This study aims to develop a web-based partner satisfaction management system using the User-Centered Design (UCD) approach to ensure alignment with user needs and to evaluate its usability using the System Usability Scale (SUS). The UCD methodology was applied through iterative stages involving need identification, context analysis, user requirement specification, prototype development, and usability evaluation. The SUS instrument was employed to quantitatively assess usability, including learnability, efficiency, and user satisfaction. The results indicate that the system achieved an average SUS score of 95.32, categorized as excellent usability, demonstrating that the platform is highly intuitive, efficient, and supportive of stakeholder engagement. Expert feedback confirmed the system’s effectiveness in facilitating satisfaction monitoring, enabling institutions to make data-driven decisions for continuous improvement in collaboration strategies. These findings highlight the significance of UCD in developing user-centric systems within higher education management and confirm the feasibility of web-based solutions for partnership optimization. Moreover, this research supports SDGs 17 (Partnerships for the Goals) by promoting effective institutional collaboration through digital innovation, contributing to sustainable educational and societal advancement.