Retail Tests

Retail Situational Judgement Test

1. Question 1 of 10

   You are a duty supervisor at a retail chain. A new process was explained at this morning’s briefing, but only half the team was there because the rest were dealing with a delivery. Your manager has asked whether the briefing covered everybody, as she is reporting on it this afternoon. The remaining half can be briefed tomorrow morning before they start. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Tell her the briefing covered everybody who was available and leave it there, since the ones who missed it were working and that is hardly a failure of the briefing.
   2. Brief the other half yourself before the end of today's shift and tell her afterwards that everybody has now been covered.
   3. Tell her the briefing has been done, and mention the delivery separately later on today when there is more time to explain.
   4. Tell her half the team was briefed and why, say the rest are booked for tomorrow morning, and ask whether she needs it done before her report goes in.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Tell her half the team was briefed and why, say the rest are booked for tomorrow morning, and ask whether she needs it done before her report goes in.

   Least effective: C. Tell her the briefing has been done, and mention the delivery separately later on today when there is more time to explain.

   A: Answers with a form of words: it is technically defensible and she still reports this afternoon that the team has been briefed.

   B: Fixes the fact and delays the answer: she is reporting this afternoon and has to write it before she hears from you.

   C: States a completion that has not happened: she writes this afternoon's report on the strength of it, and the qualification arrives after the report she needed it for.

   The most effective response is to tell her half the team was briefed and why, say the rest are booked for tomorrow morning, and ask whether she needs it finished before her report: she gets the true position, the plan that fixes it, and the chance to say that this afternoon is the deadline that matters. It beats briefing the rest today and telling her afterwards, because her report goes in before she hears. It beats answering that everybody available was briefed, because that is a form of words designed to pass rather than to inform. The least effective response is telling her the briefing has been done and mentioning the delivery later: an incomplete briefing is reported as complete to somebody who is about to write it down, which is a different kind of wrong from answering slowly or from answering evasively. The principle: when somebody needs a fact for a report, give them the fact and the plan, in that order and at once.

2. Question 2 of 10

   You are a supply chain graduate at a retail chain. In yesterday’s planning call a colleague from the site team said, sharply, that your volume numbers were “made up in a spreadsheet by somebody who has never seen a delivery”. You run that call every week and he is the person who knows what the sites can actually take. Next week’s call is on Monday and the volumes have to be agreed on it. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Stop inviting him to the planning call after that exchange, and send him the agreed numbers afterwards so that he still has what he needs for the week.
   2. Raise it with his team leader before Monday, since a remark like that in front of the whole call is not something you should have to work around every week.
   3. Say nothing and carry on running the call exactly as before, on the basis that the numbers speak for themselves and the remark will be forgotten by Monday.
   4. Ask him for twenty minutes before Monday to walk through how the volumes are built and what he would change, so that Monday's numbers carry what he knows about the sites.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Ask him for twenty minutes before Monday to walk through how the volumes are built and what he would change, so that Monday's numbers carry what he knows about the sites.

   Least effective: A. Stop inviting him to the planning call after that exchange, and send him the agreed numbers afterwards so that he still has what he needs for the week.

   A: Removes a colleague from a meeting after a disagreement: the person with the best information about what sites can take is now outside the conversation that decides it.

   B: Escalates a two-person problem: the remark is dealt with by somebody else, and the working relationship the Monday call depends on gets worse rather than better.

   C: Avoids the conversation the call needs: the numbers are not the point, his confidence in them is, and nothing has changed that by Monday.

   The most effective response is to ask him for twenty minutes before Monday to walk through how the volumes are built and what he would change: the complaint contains real information about what the sites can take, the conversation is with the person who made it, and Monday’s call gets better numbers rather than a colder room. It beats raising it with his team leader, because a remark between two people becomes a matter between three and the working relationship gets worse. It beats carrying on as if nothing happened, because his lack of confidence in the numbers is the problem, not the numbers. The least effective response is dropping him from the call and sending the numbers afterwards: the person who knows most about the constraint is removed from the meeting that decides it, which is a different kind of wrong from escalating or from staying quiet. The principle: answer a challenge to your work by involving the challenger in it, never by removing them from the room.

3. Question 3 of 10

   You are a stock control assistant at a retail chain. A recount you asked for turned up a mistake in your own figures, and the colleague who did it said, in front of two others, that he had wasted an afternoon on your arithmetic. It stung and he was largely right. The next count is due on Thursday and it needs two people, one of whom is normally him. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Ask your supervisor to put somebody else on Thursday's count, since working alongside him this week would be uncomfortable for both of you after what was said.
   2. Refuse to work with him on Thursday's count after the way he spoke to you, and say you would rather do it on your own or not at all.
   3. Acknowledge to him that the figures were wrong and say what you have changed, and do Thursday's count with him as planned since the count needs two people.
   4. Say nothing about it, do Thursday's count as planned, and let the remark fade rather than reopening something that was fair comment anyway.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Acknowledge to him that the figures were wrong and say what you have changed, and do Thursday's count with him as planned since the count needs two people.

   Least effective: B. Refuse to work with him on Thursday's count after the way he spoke to you, and say you would rather do it on your own or not at all.

   A: Redesigns the rota around one awkward afternoon: the count is harder to staff, and the two of you have to work together again the week after in any case.

   B: Withdraws from a job that needs two people after a disagreement: Thursday's count is put at risk to answer a remark made about an afternoon.

   D: Lets an unrepaired working relationship stand: the count happens and he has no reason to think the mistake will not simply repeat.

   The most effective response is to acknowledge that the figures were wrong, say what you have changed, and do Thursday’s count with him: the criticism was largely fair, saying so is what restores the working relationship, and the count that needs two people gets them. It beats asking for somebody else on Thursday, because the rota is rearranged around one bad afternoon and you will work together next week anyway. It beats letting the remark fade, because he has no reason to expect anything different next time. The least effective response is refusing to work with him on Thursday: a count that needs two people is put at risk to answer a remark, which is a different kind of wrong from avoiding him or from staying silent. The principle: when the criticism is fair, own it and stay in the work with the person who made it.

4. Question 4 of 10

   You are a commercial finance assistant at a retail chain. Two colleagues you work with, one in trading and one in supply, have fallen out over a promotion whose cost came in well above plan. Each has told you separately that the other changed a number without saying so. Both have asked you what the other said. The figure has to be explained in Monday’s review, and you are the person who holds both versions of the file. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Ask each of them separately to walk you through their version of the change, then decide yourself which account the file supports and take that to Monday's review.
   2. Write up what the file shows and send it straight to the reviewer before Monday, leaving the two of them to sort out between themselves how the change happened and who made it.
   3. Tell each of them what the other has been saying about the change, so that both know where they stand before the review on Monday.
   4. Put both versions of the file in front of the two of them together and say what changed and when, so that they agree between them what Monday's review is told about the cost.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Put both versions of the file in front of the two of them together and say what changed and when, so that they agree between them what Monday's review is told about the cost.

   Least effective: C. Tell each of them what the other has been saying about the change, so that both know where they stand before the review on Monday.

   A: Substitutes your own judgement for theirs: you arbitrate between two colleagues in private, and whichever way it lands, the loser hears the verdict at the review.

   B: Avoids the difficult conversation: the number is explained and the working relationship the next promotion depends on is left exactly as it is.

   C: Personalises the disagreement: it turns a question about a figure into a question about two people's accounts of each other, and does it in the way least likely to survive either of them repeating it.

   The most effective response is to put both versions of the file in front of the two of them together and ask them to agree what the review is told: the disagreement is about what the file shows, the file is in front of everybody, and the people who have to work together next month settle it themselves. It beats writing it up and sending it to the reviewer, because Monday is covered and nothing between the two colleagues is. It beats hearing each version separately and deciding which the file supports, because a private arbitration by the most junior person present leaves one of them told they were wrong by you. The least effective response is telling each of them what the other has been saying: the argument stops being about the promotion cost and becomes about what each said behind the other’s back, which is a different kind of wrong from ducking the conversation or over-reaching in it. The principle: put the evidence in front of both parties at once, and let the disagreement be about the thing rather than about each other.

5. Question 5 of 10

   You are an insight assistant at a retail chain. You are finishing a pack of customer survey results for a decision meeting on Thursday. One question in the survey went out to a much smaller group than the rest, so its result rests on about a fifth of the usual number of replies. The result is the most striking number in the pack, and nobody reading it would know how few replies sit behind it. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Leave the striking result out of the pack altogether, since a number resting on a fifth of the usual replies is not solid enough to put in front of a decision meeting.
   2. Include the result in the pack as it stands, without flagging that the sample behind it was a fifth of the size of the others.
   3. Include the result with the number of replies shown next to it and a line saying what that means for how much weight it should carry.
   4. Include the result as it stands and mention the small sample verbally if the question comes up while you are presenting the pack on Thursday.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Include the result with the number of replies shown next to it and a line saying what that means for how much weight it should carry.

   Least effective: B. Include the result in the pack as it stands, without flagging that the sample behind it was a fifth of the size of the others.

   A: Removes evidence rather than qualifying it: the meeting loses a real signal because it could not be given a sentence of context.

   B: Withholds the fact that decides how much weight the number carries: the most striking figure in the pack is the one nobody is told to treat carefully.

   D: Leaves a caveat to chance: the pack outlives the meeting and is read by people who were never in the room to hear the qualification.

   The most effective response is to include the result with the number of replies shown next to it and a line on what that means for its weight: the meeting gets the signal and the size of it, which is what lets people decide how far to lean on it. It beats leaving the result out, because a real finding is discarded when a sentence would have made it usable. It beats mentioning the small sample only if somebody asks, because the pack is read later by people who were never in the room. The least effective response is including the striking result without flagging the size of the sample behind it: the most eye-catching number in the pack is presented as though it were as solid as the rest, and the one person who knows otherwise says nothing, which is a different kind of wrong from being over-cautious or from relying on the meeting to ask. The principle: publish the caveat next to the number, in the document, where everybody who reads one reads the other.

6. Question 6 of 10

   You are a customer care assistant at a retail chain. A customer says she rang three weeks ago and was told her order would be replaced free of charge. You can see the call on her record and a short note that matches what she describes. Replacing it free now would cost more than your team usually allows, and the colleague who took that call has since left. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Tell her you can see the call and the note and apologise that nothing followed, and put the case to your team leader today since honouring it is above your own limit.
   2. Tell her you have no record of the earlier call and offer the standard remedy instead, since the colleague who took it has left and cannot be asked what was said.
   3. Tell her the note exists but that a free replacement is above what the team allows, and offer the standard remedy as the most you are able to do today.
   4. Tell her you will look into what was said on the call and come back to her next week, since the colleague concerned has left and the note is brief.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Tell her you can see the call and the note and apologise that nothing followed, and put the case to your team leader today since honouring it is above your own limit.

   Least effective: B. Tell her you have no record of the earlier call and offer the standard remedy instead, since the colleague who took it has left and cannot be asked what was said.

   B: Denies something you can see in front of you: the note is on her record, and she is told it does not exist by the one person looking at it.

   C: Treats your own limit as the end of the matter: the promise was made by the business, and nobody with the authority to honour it has been asked.

   D: Delays behind an inquiry that cannot happen: the colleague has gone, the note is all there will ever be, and she waits another week for the same facts.

   The most effective response is to tell her you can see the call and the note, apologise that nothing followed, and put the case to your team leader today: the evidence is acknowledged, the decision goes to somebody who can honour a promise the business made, and it happens now rather than next week. It beats saying the note exists but the cost is above your limit, because that treats your own authority as the last word. It beats promising to look into the call next week, because there is nothing more to find. The least effective response is telling her there is no record of the earlier call: the note is on her record and she is told it does not exist by the person reading it, which is a different kind of wrong from under-reaching or from stalling. The principle: never deny what your own screen shows, and take a promise you cannot honour to somebody who can.

7. Question 7 of 10

   You are a supplier quality assistant at a retail chain. Documents from a supplier have to be checked against a list of six points before they go to the approver. Three sets have come in at once, the approver leaves at four, and it is half past two. The same supplier’s last three sets were all correct. Checking one set properly takes about forty minutes. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Check one set properly and hold the other two until tomorrow, without telling the approver that two of the three sets he is expecting will not be coming today.
   2. Check all three quickly against the two points that usually cause problems, and send them through to the approver before four with the other four points left unchecked.
   3. Send all three sets through to the approver without running the checks at all, and rely on this supplier's record over the last three sets.
   4. Check the first set now and tell the approver at three that only one will reach him today, so that he can decide whether the other two wait or go to another checker.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Check the first set now and tell the approver at three that only one will reach him today, so that he can decide whether the other two wait or go to another checker.

   Least effective: C. Send all three sets through to the approver without running the checks at all, and rely on this supplier's record over the last three sets.

   A: Hides a slip from the person planning around it: the choice is defensible and the approver arranges his afternoon around three sets that were never going to arrive.

   B: Invents a shorter standard under time pressure: the six points are the check, and a version of it improvised at half past two is not one anybody has agreed.

   C: Breaches the check the approver is relying on: he signs on the understanding that six points have been verified, and a good record last time is not verification this time.

   The most effective response is to check the first set now, tell the approver at three that only one will reach him today, and ask how he wants the other two handled: the check keeps its meaning, the person whose afternoon depends on it knows in time to change it, and a second checker is a possibility somebody may still be able to arrange. It beats checking one and holding the others silently, because the approver plans around three. It beats checking all three against the two points that usually fail, because a standard invented under pressure is not the standard he thinks he is getting. The least effective response is sending all three sets through without running the checks: he signs believing six points were verified, and a clean record last time is not a check this time, which is a different kind of wrong from going quiet or from cutting the check short. The principle: when there is not enough time, change what you promise, never what the check means.

8. Question 8 of 10

   You are a people team graduate at a retail chain. You and two colleagues run a shared inbox. One of them answered a query yesterday in a way you think was wrong and rather blunt, and the person who asked has replied saying she found it unhelpful. The three of you share a group chat. The colleague is out this morning and the query is still open. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Answer the query again yourself properly and say nothing to him about it, since the person who asked needs a decent answer more than he needs a conversation.
   2. Answer the query properly today, then speak to him when he is back about what she said and how the three of you want questions like it answered.
   3. Put the reply and her response in the group chat and criticise the way he handled it, with the other two of you copied in.
   4. Forward the exchange to your manager and ask her to speak to him, since the tone of it is really a management matter rather than something for a peer to raise.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: B. Answer the query properly today, then speak to him when he is back about what she said and how the three of you want questions like it answered.

   Least effective: C. Put the reply and her response in the group chat and criticise the way he handled it, with the other two of you copied in.

   A: Repairs the case and leaves the cause: he answers the next one the same way, having never been told that this one landed badly.

   C: Personalises a work question in front of the team: he is absent, the exchange is exhibited to a colleague who was not involved, and he reads it when he gets back.

   D: Escalates before speaking to him: the first he hears about a blunt reply is from his manager, over something a colleague could have raised directly.

   The most effective response is to answer the query properly today and speak to him when he is back about what she said and how the three of you want such questions handled: the person waiting gets an answer, the feedback goes to him rather than around him, and the outcome is an agreement about the inbox. It beats answering it yourself and saying nothing, because the next query gets the same reply. It beats forwarding it to your manager, because a peer could raise this in a minute. The least effective response is putting the exchange in the group chat with a criticism attached: it is exhibited to a third colleague while he is out and he reads it on his return, which is a different kind of wrong from quietly repairing it or from escalating it. The principle: take an issue with a colleague’s work to the colleague, and keep the audience out of it.

9. Question 9 of 10

   You are a marketing graduate at a retail chain. A launch pack cannot go out until the legal team’s sign-off is recorded in the tracker. The lawyer who reviewed it told you verbally on Friday that she was happy with it, but she is away this week and has not sent the written confirmation. The pack has to go to the printers this afternoon, and your manager is chasing you for the tracker to be updated. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Record the sign-off as received in the tracker so the pack can go this afternoon, and chase the written confirmation from her when she is back next week.
   2. Hold the pack until she is back next week and can send the confirmation herself, and tell the printers that this afternoon's slot will not be used after all.
   3. Ask your manager to make the call on whether her verbal agreement is enough, and update the tracker to whatever he decides this afternoon.
   4. Tell your manager the written sign-off has not arrived, ask the legal team whether a colleague can confirm it today, and leave the tracker as it is until one of them does.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Tell your manager the written sign-off has not arrived, ask the legal team whether a colleague can confirm it today, and leave the tracker as it is until one of them does.

   Least effective: A. Record the sign-off as received in the tracker so the pack can go this afternoon, and chase the written confirmation from her when she is back next week.

   A: Enters something in a record that has not happened: the tracker is the only evidence anybody downstream has, and it is being made to say the opposite of the truth.

   B: Treats the deadline as the only thing that can move: a week is lost without anybody asking whether another lawyer could confirm what she said on Friday.

   C: Passes a recording decision upwards to have it made quickly: he can decide about the pack, and the tracker still has to say what actually happened.

   The most effective response is to tell your manager the written sign-off has not arrived, ask the legal team whether a colleague can confirm it today, and leave the tracker until one of them does: the deadline is attacked in the only way that keeps the record honest, and everybody making decisions this afternoon knows exactly where things stand. It beats holding the pack until next week, because nobody has asked whether another lawyer can confirm what was said on Friday. It beats asking your manager to rule on whether a verbal agreement is enough, because the tracker still has to record what happened rather than what was decided about it. The least effective response is recording the sign-off as received: the tracker is the only evidence anybody downstream has, and making it say something that has not happened is a different kind of wrong from losing a week or from escalating a decision. The principle: a record says what happened, and a deadline is a reason to find another route, never to write one in.

10. Question 10 of 10

    You are a supply chain graduate at a retail chain. On yesterday’s daily call a senior colleague cut you off twice and said the numbers you present are a waste of everybody’s time. Two other people on the call have since messaged you to say it was unfair. The call happens every morning, and your numbers are the only place the sites’ shortfalls are reported. Today’s call is in an hour. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

    1. Go to today's call and present as usual, then ask him afterwards what he needs from the numbers, since the complaint may contain something worth having.
    2. Stop attending the daily call after the way you were spoken to, and send the shortfalls round by email instead so that the information is still available.
    3. Reply to the two colleagues who messaged you, agree that it was unfair, and see whether they will say something on today's call if it happens again.
    4. Cut the numbers back to the two lines he has never objected to, so that today's call is short and there is nothing left for him to complain about.
    Show the answer

    Most effective: A. Go to today's call and present as usual, then ask him afterwards what he needs from the numbers, since the complaint may contain something worth having.

    Least effective: B. Stop attending the daily call after the way you were spoken to, and send the shortfalls round by email instead so that the information is still available.

    B: Withdraws from a meeting after a disagreement: the sites' shortfalls lose the one place they are discussed, and an email nobody opens is the substitute.

    C: Builds a quiet coalition: sympathy is collected, the person concerned is not spoken to, and the call becomes a place where sides are taken.

    D: Removes the content to remove the friction: the shortfalls that go unreported are the ones that cost the sites next week.

    The most effective response is to present as usual and ask him afterwards what he needs from the numbers and what he would cut: the sites keep the only report of their shortfalls, the criticism is treated as possibly containing something useful, and it is discussed with the person who made it. It beats agreeing privately with the two sympathetic colleagues, because that turns a morning call into a matter of sides. It beats cutting the numbers back to what he tolerates, because the lines that disappear are the ones the sites need. The least effective response is leaving the call and sending an email instead: the only forum where shortfalls get discussed loses them, which is a different kind of wrong from seeking allies or from watering the content down. The principle: when your work is attacked in a meeting, keep doing the work and take the criticism to its author.