Bank of America Merrill Lynch Assessment Tests

Bank of America Situational Judgement Test

1. Question 1 of 10

   You are an audit junior. Your manager asked you on Monday to finish the revenue testing by Wednesday. On Tuesday she mentions in passing that it would be “really useful” to have a summary of the client’s new contracts. The summary would take a day. The revenue testing is half done. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Finish the revenue testing by Wednesday as agreed, and say nothing at all about the contracts summary unless and until she raises it with you again.
   2. Ask her which she wants first, saying plainly that the contracts summary would take a day and would put Wednesday's revenue testing at risk.
   3. Start the contracts summary straight away without saying anything about Wednesday, since it was the most recent thing she asked for and it is plainly what is on her mind.
   4. Work on the contracts summary in the evenings so that both the testing and the summary are delivered by Wednesday without anything having to change.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: B. Ask her which she wants first, saying plainly that the contracts summary would take a day and would put Wednesday's revenue testing at risk.

   Least effective: C. Start the contracts summary straight away without saying anything about Wednesday, since it was the most recent thing she asked for and it is plainly what is on her mind.

   A: Ignores the second request: an offhand remark from your manager is still a request, and leaving it unanswered means she does not know it is not happening.

   C: Drops a committed deadline in silence: she is expecting revenue testing on Wednesday and has no idea it has stopped, so she cannot re-plan anything.

   D: Solves a scheduling problem with your own time: it works once, and it hides from your manager that she asked for two days of work in one.

   The most effective response is to ask her which she wants first, saying plainly that the contracts summary would take a day and would put Wednesday’s revenue testing at risk: only she can rank her own two requests, and she cannot do it without the fact that one costs a day. It beats finishing the revenue testing as agreed and saying nothing about the summary unless she raises it, because a manager’s passing request still needs an answer. It beats working on the summary in the evenings so both are delivered, because absorbing it privately conceals that the ask was not possible. The least effective response is starting the contracts summary straight away without saying anything about Wednesday: the committed deadline is abandoned for the newer request and she discovers on Wednesday that the testing is where it was on Tuesday. That is a silent switch rather than a debatable ordering. The principle: when two asks collide, hand the choice back with the cost attached.

2. Question 2 of 10

   You are a branch adviser. The colleague who does the weekly cash reconciliation has left and nobody has been trained to replace her. It is due Friday. You have watched her do it a few times and there is a written procedure. Your branch manager is aware the role is vacant. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Attempt the reconciliation on Friday from the written procedure, and ask your branch manager to look over it afterwards rather than before you start on it.
   2. Tell your branch manager that the reconciliation cannot be done this week because the trained person has left, and leave it until somebody is trained.
   3. Tell your branch manager you will attempt it from the written procedure this Friday, and ask her to check it with you the first time so nothing is missed.
   4. Refer the reconciliation on to the area operations team and take it off the branch's list, without sending them the branch records they would need to do it.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Tell your branch manager you will attempt it from the written procedure this Friday, and ask her to check it with you the first time so nothing is missed.

   Least effective: D. Refer the reconciliation on to the area operations team and take it off the branch's list, without sending them the branch records they would need to do it.

   A: Puts the check after the work: a first attempt at a cash control is reviewed once it is already done rather than while it can still be steered.

   B: Treats a written procedure as no procedure: the document exists precisely so somebody else can pick it up.

   D: Passes a branch task to a team that does not do it: nobody there has the branch's records, and Friday arrives with the reconciliation no closer to being done.

   The most effective response is to tell your branch manager you will attempt it from the written procedure this Friday, and ask her to check it with you the first time: the procedure exists, you have seen it done, and asking for a check on the first attempt is what makes trying it safe. It beats attempting it from the procedure and asking her to look it over afterwards, because an unchecked first cash reconciliation is the one most likely to be wrong. It beats telling her it cannot be done this week because the trained person has left, because a written procedure is what allows the work to continue. The least effective response is referring it to the area operations team without sending them the branch records: the task goes to people who neither own it nor hold what they would need, and Friday still arrives. That is offloading it rather than attempting it unsafely or declining it. The principle: pick it up from the procedure, and ask to be checked the first time.

3. Question 3 of 10

   You are a reconciliations clerk. You have been covering two roles for six weeks. Tonight’s break report needs a count of unresolved items and you have lost track of four of them. A careful recount would take ninety minutes you do not have. The report goes to the operations committee. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Report the number you can stand behind, state that four items are uncounted and why, and say plainly that six weeks of double-running is the cause.
   2. Enter a count that you estimate from last week's figure, since it will be close enough and the committee only looks at the direction of travel anyway.
   3. Stay late and do the ninety-minute recount, and say nothing about how long the double-running has gone on.
   4. Submit the report without the count at all, and add it once the recount has been done properly later in the week.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Report the number you can stand behind, state that four items are uncounted and why, and say plainly that six weeks of double-running is the cause.

   Least effective: B. Enter a count that you estimate from last week's figure, since it will be close enough and the committee only looks at the direction of travel anyway.

   B: Records an estimate as a count: the committee reads a measured figure, and the one thing that would tell them the reporting has become unreliable is the thing removed.

   C: Absorbs it again: the number is right this week and the sixth week of covering two roles remains invisible to everybody who could end it.

   D: Removes the number without the reason: the committee sees a gap and has no idea that a six-week resourcing problem sits behind it.

   The most effective response is to report the number you can stand behind, state that four items are uncounted and why, and say plainly that six weeks of double-running is the cause: the committee gets a figure it can trust, an honest statement of what is missing, and the only route to the problem being fixed. It beats submitting the report without the count and adding it later in the week, because a gap with no explanation tells them nothing. It beats staying late for the ninety-minute recount and saying nothing about the double-running, because a seventh week of that being invisible is how this happens again. The least effective response is entering a count estimated from last week’s figure: an estimate is presented as a count, so the report looks exactly as reliable as it did before it stopped being reliable. That is falsifying the measure rather than reporting it incompletely or absorbing the strain. The principle: report what you can stand behind, name what you cannot, and name the cause.

4. Question 4 of 10

   You are an accounts assistant. Your manager asks for the month’s travel spend for a call in ten minutes. You can see £41,000 posted, and you know two large invoices have not been entered yet which will add somewhere between £6,000 and £9,000. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Tell her the month's travel spend is about £50,000, without setting out what is posted and what is still an estimate of the invoices to come.
   2. Tell her you cannot give a reliable figure until the two outstanding invoices have been entered, and offer to send the number through once the posting has all been completed later in the week.
   3. Tell her that £41,000 is posted so far and that two further invoices worth roughly £6,000 to £9,000 are still to come, so the month as a whole will land somewhere near £50,000.
   4. Present the month's travel spend as settled at £41,000, since that is what the system shows right now and the two outstanding invoices can be picked up in next month's figures instead.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Tell her that £41,000 is posted so far and that two further invoices worth roughly £6,000 to £9,000 are still to come, so the month as a whole will land somewhere near £50,000.

   Least effective: D. Present the month's travel spend as settled at £41,000, since that is what the system shows right now and the two outstanding invoices can be picked up in next month's figures instead.

   A: Presents an estimate as a figure: the number is close, and she cannot tell which part of it is measured and which part is not.

   B: Withholds a usable answer: she has a call in ten minutes and a range would serve her perfectly well.

   D: States a partial figure as the answer: she quotes £41,000 on the call, and the number she has given will move by up to £9,000 once the invoices land.

   The most effective response is to tell her that £41,000 is posted so far and two further invoices worth roughly £6,000 to £9,000 are still to come, so the month lands near £50,000: it gives her something to say on the call, separates what is posted from what is estimated, and lands on a usable total. It beats saying you cannot give a reliable figure until the outstanding invoices are entered, because a range in ten minutes is far better than a precise number next week. It beats telling her the spend is about £50,000 without setting out what is posted and what is estimated, because she cannot defend that without knowing which part is a guess. The least effective response is presenting the month as settled at £41,000: a figure that will move by up to £9,000 is handed over as the month’s spend, and she repeats it. That is asserting something as settled when it is not. The principle: give the range and say which part is measured.

5. Question 5 of 10

   You are a branch adviser. You realise you gave a customer the wrong overdraft rate last week: you said 19% and it is 24%. He has since applied for it. The paperwork he signed shows the correct rate and he may never notice the difference. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Let your own mistake stand now that the paperwork is signed, since nobody has queried the rate and raising it would only unsettle a customer who is perfectly happy.
   2. Telephone him today, tell him you quoted the wrong rate, confirm what the real one is, and check that he still wants to go ahead on that basis.
   3. Post him a copy of the rate card with the correct figure highlighted on it, so he can see the right rate without having an awkward conversation about the mistake.
   4. Tell your manager what happened and ask her to decide whether the customer needs to be contacted about the difference in the rate.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: B. Telephone him today, tell him you quoted the wrong rate, confirm what the real one is, and check that he still wants to go ahead on that basis.

   Least effective: A. Let your own mistake stand now that the paperwork is signed, since nobody has queried the rate and raising it would only unsettle a customer who is perfectly happy.

   A: Hides your own error behind his signature: he agreed to something on a figure you gave him, and the only person who knows the two do not match has decided he does not need to.

   C: Corrects without owning: a highlighted rate card does not tell him he was given a wrong figure or invite him to change his mind.

   D: Escalates a decision you can make: telephoning a customer to correct your own quote is within your gift, and it delays a call he should get today.

   The most effective response is to telephone him today, tell him you quoted the wrong rate, confirm the real one, and check that he still wants to go ahead: he made a decision on a number you gave him, the gap is five points, and only a direct call lets him reconsider. It beats posting him a rate card with the correct figure highlighted, because that does not tell him he was misinformed. It beats telling your manager and asking her to decide whether he needs contacting, because correcting your own quote does not need authorising. The least effective response is letting the mistake stand now that the paperwork is signed: he keeps a product he agreed to on a wrong figure, and the paperwork is used as the reason he need not be told. That is concealment rather than an incomplete or slow correction. The principle: he decided on your number, so he is owed the correction directly.

6. Question 6 of 10

   You are a management accounts assistant. A pack you and a colleague produced together went out yesterday with a £6,000 error in a table you built. Your colleague spotted it this morning and says she will “just fix it in next month’s version” so neither of you has to raise it. Both your names are on the pack. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Agree to keep it between the two of you and let it be corrected quietly in next month's version, since nobody has queried the figure and the amount is not large.
   2. Send the correction yourself without discussing it with her first, so that it goes out today whatever she thinks about it.
   3. Raise it with your manager and ask them to decide whether a correction should go out, rather than settling it between the two of you.
   4. Tell her you would rather flag it now, and send a short correction today to everybody who received the pack, making clear which figure has changed.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Tell her you would rather flag it now, and send a short correction today to everybody who received the pack, making clear which figure has changed.

   Least effective: A. Agree to keep it between the two of you and let it be corrected quietly in next month's version, since nobody has queried the figure and the amount is not large.

   A: Agrees to hide an error you made: the recipients keep a wrong figure for a month, and two people have now decided together that they will not be told.

   B: Acts around a colleague whose name is on it: she is entitled to know before a correction with her name attached goes out.

   C: Escalates a decision you can make: a £6,000 correction on your own table is within your gift, and involving a manager first makes it a bigger event than it is.

   The most effective response is to tell her you would rather flag it now, and send a short correction today to everybody who received the pack: the error is yours, the fix is a short note, and telling her first respects that her name is on it too. It beats sending the correction yourself without discussing it with her, because a correction carrying her name should not surprise her. It beats asking your manager to decide whether a correction should go out, because your own table error does not need authorisation to be honest about. The least effective response is agreeing to keep it between you and correct it quietly next month: two people agree the recipients will not be told, and a simple mistake becomes a month of a wrong figure somebody chose not to correct. That is concealment rather than a clumsy route to the same correction. The principle: correct it now, and tell the person whose name is on it first.

7. Question 7 of 10

   You are a management accounts assistant. Your brother runs a small contracting firm. Your department is about to invite quotes for work he does, and you know roughly what the budget is. He has asked you, casually, what he should pitch. Nobody at work knows you are related. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Tell your brother you cannot discuss it and say nothing at work about the relationship, since he now has no advantage and there is nothing left to declare.
   2. Declare the relationship to your manager but ask to stay involved in the quotes, since you know the work best and can be trusted to be objective about it.
   3. Tell your manager today that your brother's firm may well bid for the work and that the two of you are related, and take yourself out of anything to do with the quotes.
   4. Give your brother the budget figure in exchange for a favour he owes you, and say nothing at work about the fact that the two of you are related.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Tell your manager today that your brother's firm may well bid for the work and that the two of you are related, and take yourself out of anything to do with the quotes.

   Least effective: D. Give your brother the budget figure in exchange for a favour he owes you, and say nothing at work about the fact that the two of you are related.

   A: Refuses the leak and hides the conflict: if he bids and wins, the undeclared relationship is what will be asked about.

   B: Declares and then asks to keep the conflict: the point of the declaration is that somebody else decides, and you have pre-empted the decision.

   D: Trades confidential information for a personal favour: the budget is the firm's, the benefit is yours, and the relationship that makes it possible has been kept off the record.

   The most effective response is to tell your manager today that your brother’s firm may well bid and that the two of you are related, and take yourself out of anything to do with the quotes: it puts the relationship on the record before any bid exists, and stepping back is the only thing that makes the process defensible afterwards. It beats telling your brother you cannot discuss it and saying nothing at work, because declining to leak does not cure an undeclared conflict. It beats declaring the relationship but asking to stay involved in the quotes, because staying involved is the very thing a declaration exists to let somebody else refuse. The least effective response is giving him the budget figure in exchange for a favour he owes you: confidential information is traded for a personal benefit while the relationship behind it is concealed. That is self-dealing rather than an incomplete disclosure. The principle: declare the relationship early, and step out of the decision.

8. Question 8 of 10

   You are a research assistant. A chart you produced last month has a scale error that makes a decline look like growth. It was used in a pitch to a client three weeks ago, which the firm won. Nobody has questioned it. The same chart is in the pack for a second client next week. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Raise it directly with the colleague who presented the pitch, and leave it to him to decide whether your manager needs to be told about the chart.
   2. Correct the chart quietly in next week's pack, without telling anybody that the version used in the pitch three weeks ago showed a decline as though it were growth.
   3. Correct next week's pack and mention the earlier pitch to your manager at your next scheduled catch-up in a fortnight's time.
   4. Tell your manager today about the error, both where it has already been used and where it is about to be used again, and correct next week's pack now.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Tell your manager today about the error, both where it has already been used and where it is about to be used again, and correct next week's pack now.

   Least effective: B. Correct the chart quietly in next week's pack, without telling anybody that the version used in the pitch three weeks ago showed a decline as though it were growth.

   A: Gives the decision to the person with most reason to bury it: he presented the wrong chart to a client he won.

   B: Withholds where the error has already been: a client made a decision on a chart that pointed the wrong way, and the only person who knows has fixed the future and left the past.

   C: Delays the half that matters most: the client who has already acted is the exposure, and a fortnight is a long time on that.

   The most effective response is to tell your manager today about the error, both where it has already been used and where it is about to be used again, and correct next week’s pack now: both exposures go to her together, and the fixable one is fixed the same day. It beats correcting next week’s pack and mentioning the earlier pitch at your catch-up in a fortnight, because that delay on a client who has already acted is the real risk. It beats raising it with the colleague who presented the pitch and leaving him to decide whether your manager hears, because the presenter is the last person who should make that call. The least effective response is correcting the chart quietly in next week’s pack and telling nobody about the pitch: the future is repaired and a client who decided on a reversed chart is left where they are, with only one person knowing. That is silence about the part that matters rather than slowness or misrouting. The principle: fix forwards and disclose backwards, on the same day.

9. Question 9 of 10

   You are a compliance analyst. A monitoring sample you signed off last week was drawn from the wrong month. The report went to your manager on Friday and nobody has queried it. Redrawing the sample takes an afternoon, and the quarterly summary that uses it is not written until next month. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Redraw the sample now and send your manager the corrected report with no covering note, so the right version simply replaces the wrong one.
   2. Redraw the sample quietly this week and hope it will not be noticed that the report your manager already has was built on the wrong month.
   3. Tell your manager today that the sample was drawn from the wrong month, say it will take an afternoon to redo, and ask whether to start now or after the current work.
   4. Wait until the quarterly summary is written next month and correct the sample then, since that is the first point at which the figures are actually used.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Tell your manager today that the sample was drawn from the wrong month, say it will take an afternoon to redo, and ask whether to start now or after the current work.

   Least effective: B. Redraw the sample quietly this week and hope it will not be noticed that the report your manager already has was built on the wrong month.

   A: Corrects without explaining: a second report with different numbers and no note leaves your manager unsure which is current or why.

   B: Covers your own error: the report in your manager's hands is wrong today, and the person who could correct anything built on it is deliberately left out.

   D: Delays the decision: a wrong report sits with your manager for a month and may be quoted somewhere before anybody looks at it again.

   The most effective response is to tell your manager today that the sample was drawn from the wrong month, say it will take an afternoon to redo, and ask whether to start now or after the current work: he holds a report built on the wrong month, an afternoon fixes it, and the timing is a question about his priorities rather than yours. It beats redrawing the sample and sending the corrected report with no covering note, because a silently replaced report leaves the reader guessing. It beats correcting it when the quarterly summary is written next month, because a month is long enough for the wrong figures to be used. The least effective response is redrawing it quietly this week and hoping nobody notices: the error is put right where nobody can see it while the person holding the wrong report stays unaware. That is concealment rather than a poorly explained correction. The principle: a quiet fix is not a correction if the person relying on the old version never hears about it.

10. Question 10 of 10

    You are a payments assistant. A customer telephones because a £600 payment she sent yesterday has not arrived. You can see it was returned by the receiving bank and is back in her account, which she has not noticed. She has already been transferred twice this morning. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

    1. Tell her the payment was returned and is back in her account, check the details with her, and offer to send it again now with the correction.
    2. Take her details and promise to look into why the payment was returned, then call her back this afternoon once you have found out what went wrong with the original instruction.
    3. Transfer her over to the payments investigation team, since returned payments are their area and they will be able to see more of the detail behind the return than you can from where you are sitting.
    4. Tell her the payment was returned and suggest she checks the account details with the person she was paying before trying to send it again herself later on today.
    Show the answer

    Most effective: A. Tell her the payment was returned and is back in her account, check the details with her, and offer to send it again now with the correction.

    Least effective: C. Transfer her over to the payments investigation team, since returned payments are their area and they will be able to see more of the detail behind the return than you can from where you are sitting.

    B: Investigates what is already known: the return is on the screen, so an afternoon callback delays a payment that could go today.

    C: Makes it a third transfer: she has already been passed twice, the answer is on the screen in front of you, and she is handed to a queue instead of being told her money is safe.

    D: Gives her the answer and then the work: she is on the telephone now, and re-sending it together is quicker than a second attempt on her own.

    The most effective response is to tell her the payment was returned and is back in her account, check the details with her, and offer to send it again now: she does not know her money is back, the cause is visible, and re-sending it on the call is the whole resolution. It beats telling her it was returned and suggesting she checks the details with the payee before trying again herself, because doing it together now is faster than sending her away to try again. It beats promising to look into why it was returned and calling back this afternoon, because there is nothing left to investigate. The least effective response is transferring her to the payments investigation team: a customer transferred twice already is transferred a third time, away from the person who can actually see the answer. That is passing her on rather than helping her slowly. The principle: when the answer is on your screen, the call ends with you.