Capita Assessment Tests

Capita Online Situational Judgement Test

1. Question 1 of 10

   You work in a delivery-only kitchen. Checking the walk-in fridge you find the temperature gauge reading well above the safe limit and the log shows it was last checked twelve hours ago. There is a large quantity of prepared food inside. Orders start in an hour. Your head chef is on site and the food safety procedure requires temperature failures to be reported to him. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Stop the food being used, tell the head chef now that the fridge is above the safe limit and was last checked twelve hours ago, and let him decide what happens to it.
   2. Use the food for tonight's orders since it is still cold to the touch and the gauge may well be faulty, and report the fridge for repair tomorrow.
   3. Move the prepared food to another fridge so it starts cooling again, and tell the head chef once the transfer is done.
   4. Check the temperature again with a probe thermometer to confirm the gauge is accurate before raising it, so the head chef is not called over a faulty gauge.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Stop the food being used, tell the head chef now that the fridge is above the safe limit and was last checked twelve hours ago, and let him decide what happens to it.

   Least effective: B. Use the food for tonight's orders since it is still cold to the touch and the gauge may well be faulty, and report the fridge for repair tomorrow.

   B: Serves food of unknown safety: a fridge above the safe limit for an unknown period is exactly the situation the temperature control exists to catch, and judging it by touch puts customers at risk. That is a safety failure, not a judgement about waste.

   C: Acts on assumptions without checking: moving the food cools it and tells nobody how long it was warm, which is the fact that decides whether it can be used at all.

   D: Delays the decision: verifying the gauge is sensible and takes time the head chef could direct in a moment, with service starting in an hour and food that may already be unsafe.

   The most effective response is to stop the food being used and tell the head chef now that the fridge is above the safe limit and was last checked twelve hours ago: prepared food may have been warm for up to twelve hours, that decision is his under the food safety procedure, and he is on site with an hour before service. Stopping its use first is what makes the decision possible. It beats moving the prepared food to another fridge and telling him once the transfer is done, because cooling it destroys the evidence of how long it was warm, which is the fact the judgement rests on. It beats checking again with a probe thermometer before raising it, because confirming the gauge is work he can direct in seconds, and the clock is running. The least effective response is using the food for tonight’s orders because it is still cold to the touch: it serves food of unknown temperature history to customers on the basis of how it feels. That is worse than the other two, which act imperfectly but do not serve it. The principle: when a safety control has failed, stop the product and get the decision to the person the procedure names, without disturbing the evidence.

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 work in the office of a removals company. A customer’s move is booked for Friday. On Wednesday the crew supervisor tells you the larger van has broken down and only a smaller one is available, which will mean two trips and finishing about three hours later than planned. The customer has to hand her keys over at 4pm on Friday. She is contactable. Your operations manager is in today. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Say nothing and hope the crew make up the time on the day, since telling her now would worry her about something that may not turn out to be a problem at all.
   2. Email the customer to say the schedule for Friday has been revised slightly and that the crew will do everything possible to finish as early as they can.
   3. Ring the customer and promise that the move will still be finished by 4pm, then work out with the crew how the two trips can be compressed to make that happen.
   4. Ring the customer today, explain the van problem and the likely three-hour overrun against her 4pm handover, and go through the options with your operations manager's input.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Ring the customer today, explain the van problem and the likely three-hour overrun against her 4pm handover, and go through the options with your operations manager's input.

   Least effective: A. Say nothing and hope the crew make up the time on the day, since telling her now would worry her about something that may not turn out to be a problem at all.

   A: Hides the problem / silent deadline slip: she has a 4pm key handover that cannot move, and the plan is to let her discover the overrun on the day. Betting her completion on the crew catching up is concealment, not optimism.

   B: Delays the message: it reaches her in time and hides the fact that matters, a three-hour overrun against a 4pm key handover she cannot move.

   C: Over-promises: it commits to a time before anyone has established that two trips can be done in the original window, which risks breaking the same promise on the day her keys change hands.

   The most effective response is to ring the customer today, explain the van problem and the likely three-hour overrun against her 4pm handover, and go through the options with your operations manager’s input: the handover is fixed and legal, a three-hour overrun puts it in jeopardy, and on Wednesday she still has two days to arrange a later handover or extra help. Involving the operations manager means the options offered are real ones. It beats emailing that the schedule has been revised slightly and the crew will finish as early as they can, because that withholds the number she needs to plan around. It beats ringing to promise the move will still finish by 4pm, because committing to that before knowing whether two trips fit risks breaking the promise on the day it matters most. The least effective response is saying nothing and hoping the crew make up the time: it leaves her to discover a three-hour overrun on the day her keys change hands, while two days of alternatives were available. That is worse than the other two, which communicate badly but in time. The principle: when a fixed external deadline is threatened, tell the person while they can still move something.

4. Question 4 of 10

   You are a patient transport driver taking an elderly patient home from hospital. On arrival she tells you she lives alone, has no food in the house and is not sure she can manage the stairs to her flat. Your job is transport only and you have three more collections booked this afternoon. Your control room is contactable by radio, and the hospital discharge team can still be reached. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Leave her at the door as the job requires, since transport is what you are booked for and the hospital will have assessed her before discharging her.
   2. Help her up the stairs and into the flat, then continue with your remaining collections since she is at least safely inside her home.
   3. Stay with her, radio control to report that she cannot manage at home, and ask them to contact the hospital discharge team before you leave.
   4. Ring her family or a neighbour if she has a number, so that someone local can check on her, then carry on with your remaining collections.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Stay with her, radio control to report that she cannot manage at home, and ask them to contact the hospital discharge team before you leave.

   Least effective: A. Leave her at the door as the job requires, since transport is what you are booked for and the hospital will have assessed her before discharging her.

   A: Fails to escalate a genuine risk: she has told you directly that she cannot manage, and the assumption that the discharge assessment covered it is the assumption her own account contradicts. Leaving is the one response that resolves nothing.

   B: Treats the symptom and leaves the risk: getting her through the door solves this afternoon and leaves an elderly woman alone with no food and stairs she is unsure of, with nobody informed.

   D: Acts on assumptions without checking: an informal arrangement with whoever answers the phone is not a discharge decision, and it leaves the hospital unaware that the discharge has not worked.

   The most effective response is to stay with her, radio control to report that she cannot manage at home, and ask them to contact the hospital discharge team before you leave: she has told you she cannot manage, the discharge appears to have missed it, and the people who can reopen that are reachable now. Staying with her while it is raised is what makes the report count. It beats helping her up the stairs and into the flat before continuing your collections, because that solves the stairs for one afternoon and leaves the food, the isolation and the unsafe discharge untouched. It beats ringing her family or a neighbour to check on her, because that is a private arrangement, not a reassessment, and the hospital never learns its discharge did not hold. The least effective response is leaving her at the door because transport is what you are booked for: it assumes the assessment must have covered it, when she has just said it did not. That is worse than the other two, which at least do something for her. The principle: when someone tells you a plan has failed, keep them safe and get the fact to the people who own the plan, before you leave.

5. Question 5 of 10

   You are an exhibitions assistant at a museum. You and a curator, Helena, disagree about the label text for a display opening in a fortnight. She wants wording you believe overstates what the evidence supports; you have raised it once and she dismissed it. She is far more senior. The head of exhibitions is available. Labels go to print in three days. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Defer to Helena's wording since she is the curator and it is her display, and note your reservation in an email so there is a record of your concern.
   2. Let the label go to print as Helena wants and say nothing further, since you have raised it once, she is far more senior and the distinction is unlikely to be noticed by visitors.
   3. Put your evidence to Helena once more in writing, and if she still disagrees ask the head of exhibitions to look at the wording before it goes to print in three days.
   4. Amend the label text to the wording you believe the evidence supports before it goes to print, since the deadline is close and the change is small.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Put your evidence to Helena once more in writing, and if she still disagrees ask the head of exhibitions to look at the wording before it goes to print in three days.

   Least effective: B. Let the label go to print as Helena wants and say nothing further, since you have raised it once, she is far more senior and the distinction is unlikely to be noticed by visitors.

   A: Prioritises the record over the outcome: an email protects you while the museum publishes a claim you believe the evidence does not support, which is a question about the display rather than about who was right.

   B: Fails to escalate a genuine concern: it lets the museum publish a claim you believe overstates the evidence, and the reasons given are seniority and the hope that nobody will notice. Choosing silence about accuracy is a different order of wrong from raising it clumsily.

   D: Substitutes own judgement for the stakeholder's: it rewrites a curator's label without resolving the disagreement, so the museum publishes text its curator has not agreed.

   The most effective response is to put your evidence to Helena once more in writing, and if she still disagrees ask the head of exhibitions to look at the wording before it goes to print: whether the text is supported by the evidence is a question with an answer, she owns the display so she gets the argument in full first, and the head of exhibitions can settle it inside the three days. Putting it in writing makes the evidence reviewable. It beats amending the label text yourself before it goes to print, because that publishes wording she has not agreed and replaces one unresolved judgement with another. It beats deferring to her and noting your reservation in an email, because a record protects you and lets the overstatement be printed anyway. The least effective response is letting the label go to print and saying nothing further: it allows the museum to publish a claim you believe the evidence does not support, because she is senior and visitors probably will not notice. That is worse than the other two, which are flawed but aimed at the accuracy of the label. The principle: make the evidential case to the person who owns the work, then escalate before the point of no return.

6. Question 6 of 10

   You are a shop floor assistant in a supermarket. You have finished facing up your aisle. Your colleague Dev is alone on the fresh produce aisle with three cages of stock to put out before the evening rush in an hour, and is clearly not going to finish. He has not asked for help. Your section manager is on a break for another twenty minutes. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Ask Dev whether he would like a hand, and find something else to do if he says he is fine, since he may have a system for working through the cages.
   2. Go over to produce, tell Dev your aisle is done and you will take one of the cages, and work alongside him until the stock is out.
   3. Wait for the section manager to come back from her break in twenty minutes and suggest that someone is moved onto produce to help Dev clear the cages.
   4. Find another job in your own section, since produce is Dev's aisle tonight and stepping in without being asked might look as though you are checking up on him.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: B. Go over to produce, tell Dev your aisle is done and you will take one of the cages, and work alongside him until the stock is out.

   Least effective: D. Find another job in your own section, since produce is Dev's aisle tonight and stepping in without being asked might look as though you are checking up on him.

   A: Substitutes own judgement for the stakeholder's: a colleague halfway through three cages with an hour to go will usually say he is managing, so the question is polite and predictably leaves him alone with them.

   C: Delays the decision: it spends a third of the remaining hour waiting to ask someone else to do what you could start now, and the cages are no smaller when she returns.

   D: Invents a reason not to help: it invents a reason not to help while three cages of fresh produce miss the evening rush. Manufacturing a concern about appearances to justify standing by is the failure here.

   The most effective response is to go over to produce, tell Dev your aisle is done and you will take one of the cages, and work alongside him: your aisle is finished, he has an hour and more stock than he can move, and the fastest fix is a second pair of hands. Saying your aisle is done removes any need for him to admit he is behind. It beats asking whether he would like a hand and finding something else if he says he is fine, because putting that question to a colleague mid-task invites the polite refusal, and the cages remain. It beats waiting for the section manager to come back from her break, because that spends a third of the available time arranging what you could simply do. The least effective response is finding another job in your own section: it leaves a colleague to miss the evening rush while you look for other work, and the justification is a worry about how helping might look. That is worse than offering, which at least asks, and worse than waiting for the manager, which at least seeks help. The principle: when your own work is done and a colleague plainly cannot finish, start helping rather than asking or waiting.

7. Question 7 of 10

   You work in credit control at a builders’ merchant. A long-standing customer is two months overdue and his account should be put on stop, which would block a delivery he needs tomorrow. He rings you personally, explains his cash flow problem, and asks you to delay the stop by a week as a favour, mentioning that he has always paid eventually. Your credit manager is in the office. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Apply the stop as the process requires and tell him the decision is automatic once an account reaches two months, so there is nothing you can do about it.
   2. Apply the stop, but tell him informally which day the account is reviewed so that he can time a part payment to get the delivery released.
   3. Hold off applying the stop for a week as he asks, since he has always paid eventually and applying it now would cost him a delivery he needs tomorrow.
   4. Tell him you cannot delay the stop yourself, take the details of his cash flow position, and put the request to your credit manager today so she can decide before tomorrow's delivery.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Tell him you cannot delay the stop yourself, take the details of his cash flow position, and put the request to your credit manager today so she can decide before tomorrow's delivery.

   Least effective: C. Hold off applying the stop for a week as he asks, since he has always paid eventually and applying it now would cost him a delivery he needs tomorrow.

   A: Passes responsibility to others: it hides behind the process to avoid a difficult conversation, when a genuine request from a long- standing customer is exactly the kind that the credit manager exists to consider.

   B: Coaches the customer around the control: it applies the rule and then coaches the customer on how to work around it, which achieves the same favour as delaying the stop while leaving no record that anyone decided anything.

   C: Breaches confidentiality or process: the credit limit is the merchant's control on its own exposure, and quietly suspending it as a personal favour is a decision taken outside the process by someone without the authority to take it.

   The most effective response is to tell him you cannot delay the stop yourself, take the details of his cash flow position, and put the request to your credit manager today: you have no authority to suspend a credit stop, the request is a reasonable one for a long-standing customer, and she is in the office with a day in hand to decide. Taking the facts to her keeps the decision with the person who owns the exposure. It beats telling him the decision is automatic and there is nothing you can do, because that is untrue: something can be done, it is simply not yours to do, and the process has a person in it. It beats telling him informally which day the account is reviewed so he can time a part payment, because that achieves the favour without a record that any decision was taken. The least effective response is holding off applying the stop for a week as he asks: it suspends a control on the merchant’s own credit exposure as a personal favour, with no authority and no record. That is worse than the flat refusal, which is unhelpful but correct, and worse than the informal tip, which at least applies the stop. The principle: when a request is reasonable but outside your authority, take it to the person whose authority it is, in time for them to use it.

8. Question 8 of 10

   You are a trainee at an accountancy practice, working with a colleague on a client’s year-end file due to the manager on Friday. You have finished your sections. Your colleague, who joined a month ago, has fallen behind on hers and tells you privately that she does not understand the fixed-asset schedule and has been guessing. It is Wednesday afternoon. Your manager is available and approachable. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Take her fixed-asset sections and complete them yourself alongside your own work, so the file is right and she is not exposed as struggling in her first month.
   2. Sit with her now, work through the fixed-asset schedule together so she can do it herself, and agree that she tells the manager today if it still will not be ready for Friday.
   3. Tell her she needs to speak to the manager today, since guessing at a fixed-asset schedule on a client file is not something you can help her with, and get on with your own review work.
   4. Say nothing and let the file go to the manager on Friday as it stands, since the sections are hers and it is the manager's job to review the work and pick up any errors.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: B. Sit with her now, work through the fixed-asset schedule together so she can do it herself, and agree that she tells the manager today if it still will not be ready for Friday.

   Least effective: D. Say nothing and let the file go to the manager on Friday as it stands, since the sections are hers and it is the manager's job to review the work and pick up any errors.

   A: Prioritises harmony over honesty: it saves her embarrassment this week and leaves her unable to do the schedule next time, while the manager still believes she can.

   C: Passes responsibility to others: the advice is right and delivered as a handoff. A month into the job, being told to go and confess alone is the likeliest way to ensure she does not.

   D: Fails to escalate a genuine risk: you know a client file contains guessed figures and let it reach the manager as finished work. Relying on review to catch what you already know is wrong is silence, not delegation.

   The most effective response is to sit with her now and work through the fixed-asset schedule together, agreeing that she tells the manager today if it still will not be ready: there are two days left, the gap is a teachable one, and doing it together fixes both the file and the reason it went wrong, with a clear trigger if time runs out. It beats taking her fixed-asset sections and completing them yourself, because that gets Friday’s file right and leaves her exactly as unable to do a fixed-asset schedule as she was on Monday. It beats telling her she needs to speak to the manager today and getting on with your own review, because a month-old trainee told to go and explain herself alone will very often not do it, so the advice is correct and the outcome is unchanged. The least effective response is letting the file go to the manager on Friday as it stands: it is the only response that knowingly lets guessed figures reach a manager as completed client work, and it justifies that by calling it someone else’s job to catch. That is worse than doing her sections, which produces a correct file, and worse than sending her to the manager, which at least points her at help. The principle: help a colleague become able to do the work, and agree who tells the manager if it still will not be ready.

9. Question 9 of 10

   You are an assistant quantity surveyor. You and a colleague, Farid, prepare monthly valuations for the same contractor. He values variations optimistically and you value them conservatively, and the contractor has noticed and now times submissions to reach him rather than you. Your senior surveyor is available. The next valuation is in ten days. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Raise it with Farid now, agree how variations should be valued, and take the agreed basis to the senior surveyor to confirm before the next valuation.
   2. Match Farid's approach on your next valuation so the contractor sees a consistent position and cannot play one of you against the other.
   3. Tell the contractor that submissions must come through the agreed route rather than being directed to whichever surveyor is more generous.
   4. Carry on valuing as you think correct and let Farid do the same, since your approach is the defensible one and the contractor's behaviour is his own problem.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Raise it with Farid now, agree how variations should be valued, and take the agreed basis to the senior surveyor to confirm before the next valuation.

   Least effective: D. Carry on valuing as you think correct and let Farid do the same, since your approach is the defensible one and the contractor's behaviour is his own problem.

   B: Prioritises harmony over honesty: it produces consistency by adopting a valuation basis you believe is wrong, which is a worse answer for the client than the inconsistency it cures.

   C: Personalises the conflict: it tackles the contractor for exploiting a gap the two of you created, and does nothing about the underlying inconsistency that made the gap worth exploiting.

   D: Avoids the difficult conversation: it knowingly leaves two different valuation bases in place on one contract, which is what allows the contractor to choose his surveyor. Being right on your own valuations does not make the contract position sound.

   The most effective response is to raise it with Farid now, agree how variations should be valued, and take the agreed basis to the senior surveyor to confirm: the contractor is exploiting a real inconsistency between two surveyors on the same contract, that is a professional question with a right answer, and the senior surveyor can settle it before the next valuation in ten days. Agreeing with Farid first keeps it collegiate. It beats matching his approach on your next valuation so the contractor sees consistency, because achieving that by adopting a basis you think is wrong protects the appearance and damages the valuation. It beats telling the contractor that submissions must come through the agreed route, because that addresses the symptom while leaving the two different bases that created it. The least effective response is carrying on as you think correct and letting Farid do the same: it accepts that one contract will carry two valuation bases indefinitely, which is precisely what lets the contractor choose whom to submit to. That is worse than the other two, which pick an imperfect fix but do act. The principle: settle the professional inconsistency between yourselves, have it confirmed by whoever owns the standard, and the behaviour it invited stops on its own.

10. Question 10 of 10

    You work in a council customer services team. You and your colleague Nadia job-share the housing repairs inbox. She believes tenants should be told realistic timescales even when they are long; you have been giving the target timescales the service publishes. A tenant has complained that he was told two different things by the two of you. Your team leader has asked you both to sort it out. Forty repair emails are waiting. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

    1. Agree to use Nadia's realistic timescales from now on, since the complaint came from a tenant being given the published target and then finding it was not met.
    2. Ask your team leader to rule on which timescales should be quoted, and hold the forty repair emails until she has decided so that no more tenants get conflicting answers.
    3. Carry on quoting the published targets, since they are the service's official position, and let Nadia answer her share however she prefers until somebody tells one of you otherwise.
    4. Sit down with Nadia today, agree a single form of words that gives the published target and what is realistic, use it on the forty waiting emails, and take it to your team leader to confirm.
    Show the answer

    Most effective: D. Sit down with Nadia today, agree a single form of words that gives the published target and what is realistic, use it on the forty waiting emails, and take it to your team leader to confirm.

    Least effective: C. Carry on quoting the published targets, since they are the service's official position, and let Nadia answer her share however she prefers until somebody tells one of you otherwise.

    A: Prioritises harmony over honesty: it settles the disagreement by conceding rather than resolving it, and commits the team to quoting timescales that differ from the ones the service publishes.

    B: Delays the decision: it seeks the right ruling at the cost of forty tenants waiting longer for any answer at all, when a shared form of words could go out today and be confirmed afterwards.

    C: Avoids the difficult conversation: it accepts that tenants will keep getting two different answers from the same inbox, which is the exact complaint, and waits for someone else to fix it. Choosing to continue a known defect is worse than choosing the wrong fix.

    The most effective response is to sit down with Nadia today, agree a single form of words giving both the published target and what is realistic, use it on the forty waiting emails, and take it to your team leader to confirm: there are two problems, forty tenants waiting and a genuine disagreement about what to tell them, and a shared form of words solves both at once. Giving the target and the realistic expectation together is not a compromise between the two positions, it is the answer a tenant actually needs. It beats agreeing to use her realistic timescales from now on, because conceding to one view commits the team to quoting something other than the published target without anyone senior agreeing. It beats asking your team leader to rule and holding the emails until she has decided, because that makes tenants pay for an internal disagreement. The least effective response is carrying on quoting the published targets and letting Nadia answer her share however she prefers: it knowingly continues the practice that generated the complaint, with tenants still receiving two different answers from one inbox, and waits to be told to stop. That is worse than the other two, which pick a direction. The principle: agree a shared answer with your colleague, use it now, and have it confirmed afterwards rather than pausing the work.