BMW Assessment Tests

BMW Situational Judgement Test

1. Question 1 of 10

   You are a technician at a food-testing laboratory. Today you are preparing a batch of samples from a food manufacturer whose production run is on hold until your results are reported. The analysis needs a calibration you have performed only once, under supervision, since joining the instrument team two weeks ago. If the calibration is wrong the results are invalid and the manufacturer would have to courier fresh samples, extending the hold by days. A senior technician who runs this calibration every week is working at the next bench. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Work through the calibration alone with the instrument manual, taking care over each step, and run the samples once it matches what you remember from your training.
   2. Ask the senior technician to check your calibration before you run the batch, so the manufacturer's samples are analysed right first time.
   3. Email the laboratory manager that you are not yet confident with this calibration, and ask for the batch to be reassigned to a more experienced technician.
   4. Skip the unfamiliar calibration step, reasoning that the instrument was set up recently enough for the readings to be close, and report the results in the usual way.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: B. Ask the senior technician to check your calibration before you run the batch, so the manufacturer's samples are analysed right first time.

   Least effective: D. Skip the unfamiliar calibration step, reasoning that the instrument was set up recently enough for the readings to be close, and report the results in the usual way.

   A: Over-commits solo: working from the manual and one supervised attempt gambles days of the manufacturer's production hold on your memory, when the person who runs this calibration every week is at the next bench and a brief check would remove the risk.

   C: Passes responsibility to others: reassignment would get the batch done safely, but it hands away work you could complete with a brief check from the next bench, adds a manager round-trip while the client's production waits, and leaves your calibration skills where they were.

   D: Gambles recklessly with the client's batch: skipping a required calibration and reporting the results anyway stakes the validity of the analysis, and days of the manufacturer's held production, on a guess, a reckless disregard of the required method rather than a defensible way of working.

   The most effective response is to ask the senior technician to check your calibration before you run the batch: the expertise you need is at the next bench, a check takes minutes, and it protects the one thing the manufacturer’s held production depends on, valid results first time, while you keep ownership of your own batch. It beats working through the calibration alone with the manual, because that gambles days of the client’s hold on one unsupervised attempt; taking care is not the same as knowing the procedure, and the risk could be removed by simply asking. It beats emailing the laboratory manager to have the batch reassigned, because that hands away work you could complete with a brief check, adds a manager round-trip while the production hold runs on, and builds none of the competence the role needs. The least effective response is skipping the unfamiliar calibration step and reporting the results anyway: unlike attempting it alone, which at least performs the required step carefully, and unlike reassigning the batch, which puts it in experienced hands, it omits the calibration entirely and gambles the client’s held production on guesswork. The principle: when a colleague’s expertise is at hand and the cost of error is high, ask early; do not gamble alone or hand the work away.

2. Question 2 of 10

   You are a ground handling agent at an airport. Fog has delayed several flights and the desk is surrounded by passengers. You have been on your feet for six hours. A passenger who has missed a connection tells you, in front of the crowd, that you are incompetent and have ruined his trip. He is not going to make the last flight tonight. Your duty supervisor is nearby. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Acknowledge that missing the connection is a serious problem for him, tell him what tonight's and tomorrow's options actually are, and start arranging whichever he chooses.
   2. Tell him there is nothing you can do tonight and ask him to step aside so you can help the other passengers who are waiting.
   3. Tell him the delays are caused by fog rather than by anything the ground staff have done, and ask him not to speak to you like that in front of other passengers.
   4. Apologise and ask your duty supervisor to come and take over the conversation, then move on to the next passenger in the queue.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Acknowledge that missing the connection is a serious problem for him, tell him what tonight's and tomorrow's options actually are, and start arranging whichever he chooses.

   Least effective: B. Tell him there is nothing you can do tonight and ask him to step aside so you can help the other passengers who are waiting.

   B: Ignores the customer's actual need: it is not true that nothing can be done, since tomorrow's flights and overnight arrangements exist, and it dismisses a stranded passenger in order to clear him from the desk.

   C: Personalises the conflict: it is accurate and it answers his insult instead of his missed connection, in front of an audience that will take sides.

   D: Passes responsibility to others: it hands off a passenger you are able to rebook, and takes a supervisor off the floor during a major disruption when you can resolve it yourself.

   The most effective response is to acknowledge that missing the connection is a serious problem for him, tell him what tonight’s and tomorrow’s options actually are, and start arranging whichever he chooses: he is stranded overnight, so what he needs is the real list and someone starting on it, and giving him that answers the complaint without engaging the insult. It beats telling him the delays are caused by fog and asking him not to speak to you like that, because correcting his manner, however fairly, argues with his tone in front of a crowd and leaves him no closer to a flight. It beats asking your duty supervisor to come and take over the conversation, because that confirms you could not help and removes a supervisor from the floor during a disruption. The least effective response is telling him there is nothing you can do tonight and asking him to step aside: it tells a stranded passenger something that is not true, and moves him aside to clear the desk. That is worse than correcting his manner, which at least engages, and worse than fetching the supervisor, which at least routes him to help. The principle: under personal criticism, answer the problem rather than the tone, and give the person the concrete options that still exist.

3. Question 3 of 10

   You are a keeper at an aquarium. Checking a display tank that is not on your round you notice the water level has dropped noticeably since yesterday and there is a damp patch on the floor behind it. The tank is not your responsibility and the keeper who looks after it is off today. Your curator is on site. The aquarium opens to visitors in an hour. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Leave it, since the tank is not on your round, the keeper responsible knows its normal levels better than you and evaporation can account for a lot in warm weather.
   2. Top the tank up to its normal level so the fish are not stressed, and mention the damp patch to the curator when you next see her.
   3. Note it in the tank's daily record so the keeper responsible sees it when he is back on shift tomorrow.
   4. Tell the curator now, showing her the drop in level and the damp patch, so a possible leak can be assessed before the aquarium opens.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Tell the curator now, showing her the drop in level and the damp patch, so a possible leak can be assessed before the aquarium opens.

   Least effective: A. Leave it, since the tank is not on your round, the keeper responsible knows its normal levels better than you and evaporation can account for a lot in warm weather.

   A: Fails to escalate a genuine risk: a falling level with a damp patch behind the tank is a leak until someone qualified says otherwise, and the reason for silence is that it belongs to a keeper who is not there.

   B: Treats the symptom and hides the cause: refilling the tank conceals the evidence of a leak that is still leaking, and makes the rate of loss impossible to judge.

   C: Delays the decision: the record reaches the right person on the wrong day. A tank losing water overnight may not hold until tomorrow, and visitors arrive in an hour.

   The most effective response is to tell the curator now, showing her the drop in level and the damp patch, so a possible leak can be assessed before opening: a falling tank with damp behind it suggests a leak, that risks the animals and the public floor, and she is on site and can assess it in the hour available. Showing her the evidence is what makes it actionable. It beats topping the tank up to its normal level and mentioning the damp patch later, because that removes the very evidence needed to judge whether there is a leak and how fast it is losing water. It beats noting it in the tank’s daily record for the keeper tomorrow, because that is far too slow for a tank that may not hold overnight. The least effective response is leaving it because the tank is not on your round and evaporation can account for a lot: it attributes the loss to evaporation without checking and ignores the damp patch entirely. That is worse than the other two, which act on it imperfectly but do act. The principle: when you see evidence of a developing fault, preserve it and get it in front of someone qualified before the next thing happens.

4. Question 4 of 10

   You are an assistant coach at a swimming club. Swimmers must record their qualifying times at officially timed sessions to enter a regional gala. A swimmer misses the qualifying time by half a second at the last session. Her parent asks you to write down the faster time she achieved in training last week, saying she is plainly capable of it and one entry form will not matter. The head coach is at the poolside. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Tell the parent that the time cannot be changed and that she should raise it with the head coach if she wants to challenge how qualifying works.
   2. Tell the parent you can only record officially timed results, and ask the head coach whether there is another qualifying session before the gala entry closes.
   3. Record the official time but add a note to the entry that she swam faster in training, so the organisers can take that into account when they consider the entry.
   4. Write the training time on the entry form, since the swimmer has genuinely swum it and the qualifying session was only half a second out.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: B. Tell the parent you can only record officially timed results, and ask the head coach whether there is another qualifying session before the gala entry closes.

   Least effective: D. Write the training time on the entry form, since the swimmer has genuinely swum it and the qualifying session was only half a second out.

   A: Passes responsibility to others: the refusal is right and it leaves the swimmer's real question, whether another qualifying session exists, unasked, when the head coach is standing at the poolside.

   C: Acts on assumptions without checking: the entry rules ask for an officially timed result, and appending an unofficial one invites the organisers to weigh something the rules exclude, which is the same request in a politer form.

   D: Falsifies a competition record: an official qualifying time is a statement that a swim happened under timed conditions, and entering a training time is a false declaration that displaces another club's swimmer. That is dishonesty, not a technicality.

   The most effective response is to tell the parent you can only record officially timed results, and ask the head coach whether there is another qualifying session before entries close: only official results can go on the form, and the swimmer’s actual problem may still be solvable if another session falls in time. Refusing clearly and asking addresses both. It beats telling her the time cannot be changed and that she should raise it with the head coach herself, because that gives the same refusal and then leaves her to pursue the useful question alone, when the person who can answer it is at the poolside. It beats recording the official time with a note that she swam faster in training, because attaching that invites the organisers to consider something the rules exclude, which is the original request with a note on it. The least effective response is writing the training time on the entry form: it puts a time on an official entry that was never officially swum, which is a false declaration and takes a place from another swimmer. That is worse than the other two, which keep the entry honest. The principle: refuse to record what did not officially happen, and put the swimmer’s real problem to whoever can solve it.

5. Question 5 of 10

   You are a scheduling coordinator at a home care agency. A carer rings from a client’s house to say the eighty-year-old client seems confused, is unsteady on her feet and does not recognise her, which is not how she normally is. The carer’s visit ends in ten minutes and the next one is not until the evening. Your care manager is in the building. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Rearrange the rota to send another carer round in an hour so the client is not left alone for long, and update the care manager at the end of the day.
   2. Advise the carer to ring the client's GP surgery herself and describe the symptoms, since she is with the client and can answer any questions the surgery asks.
   3. Tell the carer to finish the visit as scheduled and note the confusion in the client's record so that the evening carer knows to keep an eye on her.
   4. Tell the carer to stay with the client, get the care manager now, and have her decide whether the client needs medical attention before the visit ends.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Tell the carer to stay with the client, get the care manager now, and have her decide whether the client needs medical attention before the visit ends.

   Least effective: C. Tell the carer to finish the visit as scheduled and note the confusion in the client's record so that the evening carer knows to keep an eye on her.

   A: Fails to escalate a genuine risk: extra cover is useful and a sudden change in an elderly client's mental state and balance is a clinical question, not a staffing one. An hour alone may be an hour too long.

   B: Passes responsibility to others: it puts a carer at the end of her visit in charge of a clinical escalation, when the care manager is in the building and is the person the agency expects to make that call.

   C: Stays silent about a known clinical risk: it leaves a confused and unsteady elderly woman alone until the evening, with the observation recorded but nobody told who could act on it. Writing it down is not reporting it.

   The most effective response is to tell the carer to stay with the client and get the care manager now to decide whether the client needs medical attention: a sudden change in an elderly client’s mental state and balance may be a medical emergency, the carer is the only person with her, and the manager is in the building and can decide within the ten minutes remaining. Keeping the carer there is what prevents the worst outcome. It beats rearranging the rota to send another carer round in an hour, because that treats a possible medical problem as a rota gap and still leaves her alone. It beats advising the carer to ring the client’s GP surgery herself, because that hands a clinical escalation to someone at the end of her shift when the person the agency employs to make that judgement is a few steps away. The least effective response is telling the carer to finish the visit as scheduled and note the confusion in the record: it leaves a confused, unsteady woman alone until the evening with the concern written down but nobody told. That is worse than the other two, which act imperfectly but keep somebody involved. The principle: when someone vulnerable may be at immediate risk, keep a person with them and get the decision to whoever is qualified to make it, now.

6. Question 6 of 10

   You are a production coordinator at an events company. It is 2pm on the day of a conference. Three things need you: the client’s keynote speaker has arrived and cannot find the green room, the audio-visual crew report a microphone fault in the main hall where the keynote begins at 3pm, and your manager wants tomorrow’s crew rota confirmed by 4pm. You have one runner available to help. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Deal with the speaker and the rota yourself and leave the microphone to the audio-visual crew, since they are the specialists and it is their equipment to fix.
   2. Take the speaker to the green room yourself since the client will judge the company on how she is looked after, then deal with the microphone and the rota afterwards.
   3. Send the runner to collect the speaker, go to the main hall yourself to get the microphone fault resolved before 3pm, and confirm the rota after the keynote starts.
   4. Confirm the rota first since your manager has set a 4pm deadline, then help with the microphone and ask the runner to find the speaker.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Send the runner to collect the speaker, go to the main hall yourself to get the microphone fault resolved before 3pm, and confirm the rota after the keynote starts.

   Least effective: A. Deal with the speaker and the rota yourself and leave the microphone to the audio-visual crew, since they are the specialists and it is their equipment to fix.

   A: Fails to escalate a genuine risk: the crew have reported the fault rather than fixed it, which is the signal that they need a decision or a replacement. Treating a reported problem as somebody else's job means the keynote starts without a working microphone.

   B: Substitutes own judgement for the stakeholder's: escorting a guest is the one task on the list that anyone can do, and doing it personally spends the coordinator on the job the runner exists for while a keynote microphone stays broken.

   D: Delays the decision: the rota has two hours and no audience, while the microphone has one hour and a keynote behind it. Doing the administrative task first spends the only hour that matters.

   The most effective response is to send the runner to collect the speaker, go to the main hall yourself to get the microphone fault resolved before 3pm, and confirm the rota after the keynote starts: the microphone is the only item with a hard deadline and a public failure attached, the speaker needs collecting rather than coordinating, and the rota has until 4pm. That puts each person on the job matching what they can do. It beats taking the speaker to the green room yourself, because escorting a guest is exactly what the runner is there for, and doing it personally leaves the microphone unattended. It beats confirming the rota first to meet your manager’s 4pm deadline, because the rota has two hours and no audience while the keynote has one. The least effective response is leaving the microphone to the audio-visual crew as the specialists: they have reported a fault rather than resolved it, so a decision or a replacement is needed, and treating it as theirs alone risks a keynote starting without sound in front of the client. That is worse than the other two, which misallocate the time but keep the fault in view. The principle: delegate what anyone can do, take personally the thing with the closing window and the visible consequence.

7. Question 7 of 10

   You are a service desk analyst at an IT support provider. A system outage has left the queue at four times its usual length and you have worked through your break. Your team leader now tells you that a call you handled yesterday has been complained about, and asks you to write it up by the end of the day. You believe you handled the call correctly. Three hours of your shift remain and the queue is still growing. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Write the complaint response first while the call is fresh in your mind, so it is done properly, and return to the queue once your team leader has what she asked for.
   2. Work the queue for the rest of your shift and write the complaint response at home this evening, so that neither the customers waiting nor your team leader's deadline is let down.
   3. Get on with both as best you can without raising it, since the outage is everyone's problem today and saying you cannot manage would not look good while the whole team is under pressure.
   4. Tell your team leader the queue has quadrupled, ask whether the write-up can wait until tomorrow or be covered by someone else, and keep working the queue while she decides.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Tell your team leader the queue has quadrupled, ask whether the write-up can wait until tomorrow or be covered by someone else, and keep working the queue while she decides.

   Least effective: C. Get on with both as best you can without raising it, since the outage is everyone's problem today and saying you cannot manage would not look good while the whole team is under pressure.

   A: Substitutes own judgement for the stakeholder's: it assumes the write-up must come first because she asked for it today, when she does not know the queue has quadrupled. The assumption is never tested with the one person who could rebalance it.

   B: Hides the strain until failure: it meets both demands by absorbing the overload privately, so your team leader never learns the shift was undeliverable and plans the next one the same way.

   C: Avoids the difficult conversation: it stays silent about a workload that cannot be delivered, for fear of how it looks. Your team leader is the only person who can rebalance it, and she is the one person not told.

   The most effective response is to tell your team leader the queue has quadrupled and ask whether the write-up can wait until tomorrow or be covered by someone else, while you keep working the queue: she set that deadline without knowing the queue had quadrupled, so the fact she is missing is the one worth giving her, and she is the only person who can rebalance the two. Continuing to work while she decides means nothing stalls. It beats writing the complaint response first while the call is fresh, because that treats the order of the two tasks as already settled when the person who set it does not have the information, and the queue pays for the assumption. It beats working the queue and writing the response at home this evening, because taking the work home makes the shift look deliverable when it was not, so the same pressure is scheduled again next time. The least effective response is getting on with both as best you can without raising it: it is the only response that neither raises the conflict nor resolves it, and the reason given is how it might look rather than anything about the work. That leaves both jobs half done and your team leader unaware. The principle: when the workload you have been given cannot be delivered, give the person who set it the fact they are missing, and keep working while they decide.

8. Question 8 of 10

   You work on the counter of a garden machinery repair shop. A customer brings in a lawnmower that you repaired six weeks ago, with the same fault. The repair carried a three-month guarantee. The mechanic who did the work says the customer has probably been cutting wet grass, which is not covered. The customer says he has not. Your workshop manager is in this afternoon. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Book the mower in under the guarantee for the workshop manager to inspect this afternoon, and tell the customer you will call once she has seen what caused the fault.
   2. Tell him the mechanic is confident the fault comes from cutting wet grass, so it falls outside the guarantee, and that he will need to pay for any further work.
   3. Book the mower in for a chargeable repair and explain that the original work is only guaranteed against a recurrence that is not caused by how the machine has been used.
   4. Repair the mower free of charge without inspection, since the same fault within the guarantee period is the shop's responsibility and arguing about causes will only lose a regular customer.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Book the mower in under the guarantee for the workshop manager to inspect this afternoon, and tell the customer you will call once she has seen what caused the fault.

   Least effective: B. Tell him the mechanic is confident the fault comes from cutting wet grass, so it falls outside the guarantee, and that he will need to pay for any further work.

   B: Ignores the customer's actual need: it refuses a guarantee claim on an untested assumption about how he has used the machine, effectively telling a customer he is not being truthful without anyone looking at the mower.

   C: Charges the customer on an untested theory: it decides against him on the mechanic's assumption before anyone has looked inside the machine, and charges him for a fault that recurred within the guarantee.

   D: Breaches confidentiality or process: it waives a charge before anyone has established whether the fault is covered, which is the workshop manager's decision and removes the inspection that would settle it.

   The most effective response is to book the mower in under the guarantee for the workshop manager to inspect this afternoon, and tell the customer you will call once she has seen what caused the fault: the same fault has recurred inside the guarantee, whether it is covered depends on what is actually wrong, and she can look today. Booking it in and committing to call back keeps the customer whole while the facts are established. It beats booking it as a chargeable repair and explaining the guarantee does not cover misuse, because that charges him before anyone has opened the machine, on the strength of a theory. It beats repairing it free of charge without inspection, because waiving the charge removes the very check that decides whether it is a guarantee job and takes the manager’s decision for her. The least effective response is telling him the mechanic is confident the fault comes from cutting wet grass and he must pay: it refuses a live guarantee claim on an untested assumption and implies he is not telling the truth. That is worse than the chargeable booking, which at least books a repair, and worse than the free repair, which at least fixes the mower. The principle: when the customer’s entitlement turns on a fact, establish the fact before deciding, and keep them informed while you do.

9. Question 9 of 10

   You are a fundraising assistant at a charity. You and your colleague Callum jointly prepare the monthly donor report. For three months he has sent you his figures late on the afternoon they are due, leaving you to reconcile them in a rush, and last month an error reached the trustees. Today he has done it again. He is friendly and busy, and has never been told this causes a problem. The next report is due in four weeks. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Reconcile the figures again without saying anything, and build in extra checking time next month so that a late hand-off cannot produce another error in the trustee report.
   2. Copy your line manager into your reply to Callum today, noting that the figures have arrived late for the fourth month running and that this caused last month's error in the trustee report.
   3. Reply to Callum today setting out that you will not be able to include his figures in future if they arrive after midday on the due date, so that the deadline is unambiguous from now on.
   4. Reconcile today's figures, then speak to Callum this week, explain what the late hand-off costs at your end, and agree a date each month by which his figures will reach you.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Reconcile today's figures, then speak to Callum this week, explain what the late hand-off costs at your end, and agree a date each month by which his figures will reach you.

   Least effective: A. Reconcile the figures again without saying anything, and build in extra checking time next month so that a late hand-off cannot produce another error in the trustee report.

   A: Avoids the difficult conversation: absorbing it silently for a fourth month guarantees a fifth, hides from Callum that his habit has consequences, and leaves the trustees relying on you never having a bad day. Silence is the failure here, not the extra checking.

   B: Escalates prematurely: Callum has never been told there is a problem, so the first he hears of it is in front of his manager. That makes an ally into a defendant over something a direct conversation has not yet been given the chance to fix.

   C: Personalises the conflict: it opens with a sanction rather than a conversation, and a donor report missing his figures punishes the trustees for a problem between the two of you.

   The most effective response is to reconcile today’s figures, then speak to Callum this week and agree a date each month by which his figures will reach you: this month’s report still has to be right, and the recurring cause needs raising with the person who can fix it, directly and once the immediate work is done. Agreeing a date turns a grievance into a working arrangement. It beats copying your line manager into the reply today, because Callum has never been told there is a problem, and involving his manager first turns a fixable habit into a formal complaint. It beats replying that you will exclude his figures in future if they arrive late, because leading with that threat makes the trustees pay for a disagreement between two colleagues. The least effective response is reconciling again in silence and building in extra checking time: it is the only response where Callum never learns anything is wrong, so the pattern is guaranteed to continue, and the trustees’ report stays safe only for as long as your extra checking holds. That is worse than the other two, which are clumsy about how they raise it but do raise it. The principle: fix today’s report, then have the conversation with the person whose behaviour causes it, before involving anyone else.

10. Question 10 of 10

    You are an office administrator at a commercial printing company. While filing paperwork you notice that the shared template the sales team uses for customer quotes still contains last year’s paper prices, which rose noticeably in January. Nobody has been asked to look at the template, and two salespeople are preparing quotes with it this week. The current prices are held in the purchasing system, which you can access. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

    1. Update the template now with the January price rises you remember, marking the new figures as provisional to be checked later, so the salespeople are at least closer to the current rates.
    2. Mention to this month's new starter that the template could do with tidying up when they get a chance, without explaining that the prices are wrong, and return to your filing.
    3. Email the sales manager to explain the template still shows last year's prices and that quotes are being prepared this week, leaving the correction with them as owner of the quoting process.
    4. Check the current prices in the purchasing system, update the template to match, and tell the two salespeople and the sales manager what you found and changed.
    Show the answer

    Most effective: D. Check the current prices in the purchasing system, update the template to match, and tell the two salespeople and the sales manager what you found and changed.

    Least effective: B. Mention to this month's new starter that the template could do with tidying up when they get a chance, without explaining that the prices are wrong, and return to your filing.

    A: Acts on assumptions without checking: even flagged as provisional, remembered figures are still guesses in a live quoting template, and the purchasing system could give you the accurate prices in roughly the time the guesswork takes.

    B: Dumps the problem on the least able person: a vague request to tidy up the template, with no mention that its prices are wrong or that live quotes depend on it, buries the risk you spotted with the one person who cannot recognise it. That is abandonment, not a handover.

    C: Passes responsibility to others: the sales manager does own the quoting process, but leaving the whole correction in their inbox lets this week's quotes go out on old prices, when you could fix the figures accurately now and simply tell them.

    The most effective response is to check the current prices in the purchasing system, update the template to match, and tell the salespeople and their manager what you found: you spotted the problem, the accurate figures are within your reach, and quoting is live this week, so fixing it and informing the owners removes the risk. It beats updating the template from the prices you remember and marking them provisional, because the purchasing system could supply the real figures just as quickly, and the salespeople would otherwise be quoting from flagged guesses. It beats emailing the sales manager and leaving the correction with them, because that gives the owner the full picture but leaves the fix waiting in an inbox while this week’s quotes are prepared, when you could complete it accurately straight away. The least effective response is asking the new starter to tidy the template up sometime: unlike using remembered figures, which at least moves them closer to reality and flags the doubt, and unlike emailing the manager, which tells the responsible person exactly what is wrong, it hands a vague job to the one person who cannot know the prices are wrong, so the risk you spotted disappears with nobody equipped to act on it. The principle: when you spot an unowned problem you can fix, verify the facts, fix it, and tell the people it affects. Never bury it with someone who cannot recognise it.