Heineken Assessment Tests

Heineken Situational Judgement Test

1. Question 1 of 10

   You are a resourcing assistant at Heineken. A new starter due to join a manager’s team on the first of next month has told you he cannot start until the fifteenth. The manager has built his cover around the original date and has not been told. You update a tracker the manager can see, though he tends to look at it once a week. It is Monday. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Ring the manager today and tell him the start date has moved to the fifteenth and what that leaves uncovered, then update the tracker so that the change is on the record too.
   2. Update the tracker and send the manager a message asking him to check it when he gets a moment, so that he sees the change in the system where all the other dates live.
   3. Update the tracker with the new date and say nothing to the manager, since he checks the tracker most weeks and will see the change there soon enough.
   4. Ask the new starter whether he could manage the original date after all, and tell the manager either way before the end of the day.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Ring the manager today and tell him the start date has moved to the fifteenth and what that leaves uncovered, then update the tracker so that the change is on the record too.

   Least effective: C. Update the tracker with the new date and say nothing to the manager, since he checks the tracker most weeks and will see the change there soon enough.

   B: Sends somebody to look rather than telling them: the message competes with everything else in his inbox and the fortnight of missing cover is not mentioned in it.

   C: Withholds a change somebody is planning around: he is building cover against a date that no longer exists, and the person who knows has decided a weekly habit will do the telling.

   D: Tests a hope before passing the news on: he does hear today, and the morning he could have spent rearranging cover is gone.

   The most effective response is to ring the manager today, tell him the date has moved and what that leaves uncovered, then update the tracker and confirm in writing: he learns it from a person, he learns the part that affects him, and the record still gets made. It beats updating the tracker and asking him to look, because that leaves him to discover a fortnight of missing cover among everything else in his inbox. It beats asking the starter to reconsider before telling the manager, because the morning goes whatever the answer is. The least effective response is updating the tracker and saying nothing: he goes on building cover against a date that no longer exists, and the person who knows has decided that a weekly habit counts as telling him, which is a different kind of wrong from telling him badly or from telling him late. The principle: when a change breaks somebody’s plan, tell them directly, and let the system record it rather than deliver it.

2. Question 2 of 10

   You are an availability analyst at Heineken. A report you use every week double counts one type of transfer, which makes availability look better than it is. You have twice messaged the team who own the report and heard nothing. Colleagues in three areas use the same report to decide what to order. Your own workaround takes ten minutes a week and nobody else knows about it. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Send the fault on to the reporting team a third time and take it off your own list, since the report belongs to them and you have now told them twice.
   2. Write up your workaround and share it with the three areas, so that everybody can correct the number for themselves until the report is fixed.
   3. Tell the three areas what the fault does to the number, and take it to the reporting team's manager with the two unanswered messages, since nothing else has moved them.
   4. Keep applying your own correction and wait for the reporting team to reply, since chasing a third time and going over their heads would both be premature.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Tell the three areas what the fault does to the number, and take it to the reporting team's manager with the two unanswered messages, since nothing else has moved them.

   Least effective: A. Send the fault on to the reporting team a third time and take it off your own list, since the report belongs to them and you have now told them twice.

   A: Passes it on and stops caring: two messages have already vanished, a third changes nothing, and the three areas ordering from the report still do not know.

   B: Spreads the repair instead of the fix: every area now spends ten minutes a week on a fault that still nobody owns.

   D: Waits on a team that has ignored two messages: your own numbers are right, and three areas keep ordering from a figure that is not.

   The most effective response is to tell the three areas what the fault does to the number and take it to the reporting team’s manager with the two unanswered messages: the people making decisions stop using a wrong figure today, and the fix goes to somebody with the standing to make it happen. It beats sharing your workaround with the three areas, because that spends everybody’s time on a fault that still has no owner. It beats waiting for a reply, because two messages have already gone unanswered while the ordering carries on. The least effective response is sending it a third time and taking it off your list: nothing about a third message is different, and the areas ordering from the report are still not told, which is a different kind of wrong from spreading the workaround or from waiting. The principle: when the owner will not act, protect the people using the output and escalate with the evidence of what you already tried.

3. Question 3 of 10

   You are a shift supervisor at Heineken. As the afternoon handover starts, a customer comes to the desk and says she was told this morning that somebody would ring her back about an order and nobody has. The handover takes twenty minutes and the team on the earlier shift have already left. The customer has come in specially. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Ask her to leave her number and explain that the people who took the call this morning have gone home, so somebody will look at it and get back to her tomorrow.
   2. Assume somebody on the morning shift has already dealt with it and that the message has crossed with her visit, and carry on with the handover as planned.
   3. Stop the handover, look into the order there and then, and pick the handover up afterwards with whatever time is left before the shift changes over.
   4. Take her details and the order number and tell her you will look at it as soon as the handover ends, so that she has a time rather than another promise of a call.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Take her details and the order number and tell her you will look at it as soon as the handover ends, so that she has a time rather than another promise of a call.

   Least effective: B. Assume somebody on the morning shift has already dealt with it and that the message has crossed with her visit, and carry on with the handover as planned.

   A: Repeats the promise that has already failed her once: she came in because a call-back did not happen, and she leaves holding another one.

   B: Assumes the problem away rather than checking it: the one person she has managed to reach decides, without looking, that she has probably been helped already.

   C: Spends a fixed team commitment on one case: the handover exists so the incoming shift knows what it is walking into, and it cannot simply be shortened.

   The most effective response is to take her details, tell her you will look at it the moment the handover ends, and come back to her before she leaves: she gets a person, a time and an outcome inside the hour, and the handover the incoming shift depends on still happens. It beats asking her to leave her number for tomorrow, because a call-back is exactly the promise that has already failed her. It beats stopping the handover altogether, because the whole incoming shift plans off it. The least effective response is assuming the morning shift has already dealt with it and carrying on: nobody checks anything, and the one person she has actually reached decides on no evidence that she has probably been helped, which is a different kind of wrong from making a weak promise or from over-correcting. The principle: a customer in front of you gets a commitment you can keep, and never an assumption about what somebody else has done.

4. Question 4 of 10

   You are a supply chain graduate at Heineken. A business customer’s order was due yesterday and has not arrived. The tracking shows it left and then nothing. The customer has emailed once, politely, asking where it is. Deliveries occasionally turn up a day or two late without anybody intervening. Chasing it properly means ringing the carrier and waiting on hold. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Reply to the customer that the order has left and that tracking will update when it moves, which is all the information the system currently gives you about it.
   2. Ring the carrier now and say nothing to the customer until you have an answer, since a reply with no news in it will only invite another email.
   3. Wait for the order to arrive in its own time, since deliveries often turn up a day or two late and the customer has only written once so far.
   4. Reply today to say you are chasing the carrier and when you will come back to him, ring the carrier, and update him either way so that he knows a person has it.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Reply today to say you are chasing the carrier and when you will come back to him, ring the carrier, and update him either way so that he knows a person has it.

   Least effective: C. Wait for the order to arrive in its own time, since deliveries often turn up a day or two late and the customer has only written once so far.

   A: Passes on the screen rather than the situation: he can read tracking himself, and nothing about his order has actually been chased.

   B: Leaves a waiting customer with silence: the chase is right and he does not know it is happening, so his next email arrives anyway.

   C: Waits out a customer who has asked a direct question: nothing is checked, nothing is answered, and the outcome depends entirely on the order turning up.

   The most effective response is to reply today saying you are chasing the carrier and when you will come back, ring them, and update him either way: he knows a person has his problem, the chase actually happens, and the commitment is one you control. It beats telling him tracking will update when it moves, because he can see that himself. It beats saying nothing to the customer until the carrier answers, because his second email arrives while you are on hold. The least effective response is waiting for the order to turn up in its own time: a direct question goes unanswered and nothing is checked, so a good outcome depends entirely on luck, which is a different kind of wrong from being unhelpfully literal or from being quiet while you work. The principle: a customer who has asked where something is gets an action and a time, not a probability.

5. Question 5 of 10

   You are a brand assistant at Heineken. In a review of a campaign you had worked on for two months, a senior colleague went through your work in front of eight people and said most of it would have to be redone. Some of what she said was fair. You are in the group that has to deliver the reworked campaign in three weeks, and the next working session is tomorrow morning. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Withdraw from the campaign group after that review and ask your manager to put you on something else, since your work on it is evidently not what they want.
   2. Go to tomorrow's session and say nothing about the review, since raising it would look like you cannot take criticism and the work is what matters now.
   3. Ask your manager to raise with her how the review was conducted, since going through somebody's work like that in front of eight people is not how feedback should be given.
   4. Go to tomorrow's session with a plan for the parts you accept and ask her to go through the parts you do not, so that the rework starts from an agreed brief.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Go to tomorrow's session with a plan for the parts you accept and ask her to go through the parts you do not, so that the rework starts from an agreed brief.

   Least effective: A. Withdraw from the campaign group after that review and ask your manager to put you on something else, since your work on it is evidently not what they want.

   A: Withdraws from a commitment after a hard hour: the group loses the person who knows the work best, three weeks before it is due, because of how the review felt.

   B: Buries the part you disagree with: the fair criticism and the unfair criticism are accepted together, and you rebuild to a brief you do not believe in.

   C: Turns the work into a complaint about conduct: it may well be justified, and three weeks before delivery it is the campaign that needs the attention.

   The most effective response is to go to tomorrow’s session with a plan for the parts you accept and ask her to go through the parts you do not: the three weeks start immediately, the criticism is separated into the half that improves the work and the half that needs testing, and the conversation happens with the person who made it. It beats saying nothing about the review, because you would rebuild against a brief you do not believe. It beats asking your manager to raise how the review was conducted, because that is a separate conversation and the campaign is due in three weeks. The least effective response is withdrawing from the group: a hard hour costs the campaign the person who knows it best, three weeks from delivery, which is a different kind of wrong from over-agreeing or from making it about conduct. The principle: take the part of hard feedback that is right, test the part that is not, and stay in the work.

6. Question 6 of 10

   You are a supply chain graduate at Heineken. An escalation about a missed delivery has taken your whole afternoon: four people want updates, the site is ringing every twenty minutes, and you have not eaten. You are due to leave at five and the delivery is now expected at six. You are the only person who has the full picture of what has happened today. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Stay until the delivery arrives at six whatever happens, since you have carried it all afternoon and handing it over now would mean explaining the whole day to somebody else.
   2. Send the four people chasing you a short update at five saying where the delivery stands and that you are back at seven tomorrow.
   3. Hand the escalation to a colleague at five with a quick verbal summary as you leave, and point him at the message trail.
   4. Write a short handover with the times, the promises and what happens at six and give it to the evening cover, so that the picture survives your leaving, then eat.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Write a short handover with the times, the promises and what happens at six and give it to the evening cover, so that the picture survives your leaving, then eat.

   Least effective: C. Hand the escalation to a colleague at five with a quick verbal summary as you leave, and point him at the message trail.

   A: Treats the handover as a cost rather than the job: an hour of explanation is exactly what the evening shift needs, and going on alone when tired is how the last hour goes wrong.

   B: Updates the audience and leaves the job: four people know where things stand, and nobody is holding the six o'clock arrival.

   C: Passes on a live problem without what it is made of: the only person who knows the day leaves at five, and the colleague meets the six o'clock delivery with a message trail.

   The most effective response is to write a short handover with the times, the promises and what happens at six, give it to the evening cover and take twenty minutes: the picture survives your leaving, the people waiting keep getting answers, and you stop working on empty. It beats staying until six regardless, because a tired person carrying it alone is how the last hour goes wrong, and the handover has to be written anyway. It beats sending the four chasers a closing update, because it tells them where things stand and leaves the six o’clock arrival to nobody. The least effective response is handing it to a colleague with a verbal summary on the way out: the whole afternoon exists only in your head and the messages, and he meets a six o’clock delivery without it, which is a different kind of wrong from overworking or from deflecting. The principle: under pressure, the way to put something down is to write down what the next person needs.

7. Question 7 of 10

   You are a stock control assistant at Heineken. The same line has run out three Fridays in a row because the level at which it reorders is set too low. You can see what it ought to be, and you have the access to change it. The setting belongs to the planning team, who review these monthly and whose next review is in three weeks. Friday is in two days. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Raise a manual order this week to cover Friday, and wait for the planning team's monthly review to deal with the setting itself in three weeks' time.
   2. Put the three Fridays into the planning team's monthly review paper, so that the setting is considered properly alongside everything else they are looking at.
   3. Send the planning team the three Fridays and the level you think it should be today, ask them to change it before Friday, and raise a manual order as cover meanwhile.
   4. Change the reorder level yourself to the number you can see it should be, since you have the access and the line has now run out three weeks running.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Send the planning team the three Fridays and the level you think it should be today, ask them to change it before Friday, and raise a manual order as cover meanwhile.

   Least effective: D. Change the reorder level yourself to the number you can see it should be, since you have the access and the line has now run out three weeks running.

   A: Treats the symptom and leaves the cause: this Friday is covered and two more will run out before anybody looks at the number behind it.

   B: Files an urgent item at the routine speed: the paper is read in three weeks and the line runs out twice more in the meantime.

   D: Breaches another team's control of their own settings: the number may well be right, and it is changed underneath the people who are accountable for it.

   The most effective response is to send the planning team the three Fridays and your proposed level, ask for the change before Friday, and raise a manual order as cover: the immediate gap is covered, the cause goes to the people who own it with the evidence attached, and the timescale asked for matches the problem rather than the calendar. It beats raising a manual order and waiting for the monthly review, because two more Fridays fail first. It beats writing it into the review paper, because that treats a repeating failure at the speed of a routine agenda. The least effective response is changing the reorder level yourself: the number may be exactly right and it is altered underneath the team accountable for it, which is a different kind of wrong from being too slow or from filing it in the wrong place. The principle: bring the evidence and the urgency to whoever owns the setting, rather than exercising an access you happen to hold.

8. Question 8 of 10

   You are a stock control assistant at Heineken. A weekly count shows three hundred units fewer than the system expects on one line. The trading team needs a figure this afternoon to decide what to order for next week, and they have asked you whether the count can be relied on. Investigating the gap properly means pulling the movement history, which takes about two hours. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Give the trading team the counted figure with the gap stated alongside it, say the cause is not yet known, and start on the movement history straight away.
   2. Assure the trading team that the counted figure is sound and the gap is a scanning error, and look at the movement history later in the week if anybody comes back to you.
   3. Hold the figure back until the movement history is finished, and tell the trading team they will have something reliable by the end of the day.
   4. Give the trading team the figure the system holds rather than the counted one, since the system is what their ordering tool reads from in any case.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Give the trading team the counted figure with the gap stated alongside it, say the cause is not yet known, and start on the movement history straight away.

   Least effective: B. Assure the trading team that the counted figure is sound and the gap is a scanning error, and look at the movement history later in the week if anybody comes back to you.

   B: Gives an assurance you have not earned: nothing yet distinguishes a scanning error from three hundred missing units, and next week's order is placed on a cause that was invented to close the question.

   C: Delays the decision: the order has to be placed this afternoon, so a reliable number tomorrow is worth less to them than an honest one now.

   D: Substitutes the convenient source for the checked one: the count is the only evidence anybody has looked at, and it is the number being set aside.

   The most effective response is to give the trading team the counted figure with the gap stated alongside it and start on the movement history at once: they get a number in time to order, they know exactly how much weight it carries, and the work that settles the cause begins immediately. It beats holding the figure until the history is finished, because the decision is this afternoon and an honest number now beats a certain one tomorrow. It beats handing over the system figure instead, because the count is the only thing anybody has actually observed. The least effective response is assuring them the count is sound and the gap is a scanning error: no work has been done that could support either claim, and stating a cause you have not established is a different kind of wrong from being slow or from choosing the wrong source. The principle: report what you know and what you do not, rather than supplying the certainty the person asking would prefer.

9. Question 9 of 10

   You are a purchasing assistant at Heineken. A customer has written in about a product that arrived damaged, and the complaint has been routed to you because the fault looks like a packaging problem at the supplier. The customer has now written twice and has had no reply to either message. You can arrange a replacement yourself, and the supplier meeting where packaging faults are raised is on Thursday. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Send the complaint on to the supplier and reply to the customer to say that the people who packed the product will be dealing with it from here.
   2. Reply to the customer to apologise for the delay and explain that packaging faults are reviewed with the supplier on Thursday, so a decision will follow after that meeting.
   3. Arrange the replacement today and tell the customer when it will arrive, and take the packaging fault to Thursday's supplier meeting so that the cause is looked at as well.
   4. Ask the customer to return the damaged item first so the fault can be confirmed, and explain that a replacement can be arranged once it has been received and checked.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Arrange the replacement today and tell the customer when it will arrive, and take the packaging fault to Thursday's supplier meeting so that the cause is looked at as well.

   Least effective: A. Send the complaint on to the supplier and reply to the customer to say that the people who packed the product will be dealing with it from here.

   A: Passes the problem on without owning it: the customer has now written three times to reach somebody who will act, and the one person who could arrange a replacement today has sent them somewhere else.

   B: Ignores the customer's actual need: the reply is honest and prompt, but the customer wants a working product rather than a place in an internal review.

   D: Substitutes process for the customer's outcome: the photographs already show the damage, and a return trip adds a week for evidence nobody actually needs.

   The most effective response is to arrange the replacement today, tell the customer what you have done and when it will arrive, and take the packaging fault to Thursday’s meeting: it settles the customer’s problem inside your own authority and still gets the underlying fault in front of the supplier. It beats replying that packaging faults are reviewed on Thursday, because a customer who has written twice needs a working product rather than a note about an internal timetable. It beats asking for the damaged item back before anything is arranged, because the photographs already show the fault and the return adds a week for evidence that changes nothing. The least effective response is sending the complaint on to the supplier and telling the customer they will hear from the people who packed it: the customer is handed to a third party who has no relationship with them, having already written twice, and the replacement you could have arranged today does not happen. The principle: own the customer’s outcome yourself, and raise the cause separately with whoever created it.

10. Question 10 of 10

    You are an insight assistant at Heineken. You hold a list of two thousand customers who gave their details to take part in research, and were told the details would be used for research only. A colleague in marketing has asked for the list to send a message about a new range, which he says is nearly the same thing and would perform far better than a cold list. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

    1. Send him the list on the understanding that he sends one message only, since a single message to people who have already engaged is a small step from what they agreed to.
    2. Say no, explain what those customers were told when they gave their details, and offer to ask the next research group whether they are happy to hear about new ranges.
    3. Tell him it is not something you can do and leave it there, since the answer is no and going into the reasons will only invite an argument about how big a difference it makes.
    4. Send the list over, given these customers have shown they are interested in the range and would probably want to hear about a new one.
    Show the answer

    Most effective: B. Say no, explain what those customers were told when they gave their details, and offer to ask the next research group whether they are happy to hear about new ranges.

    Least effective: D. Send the list over, given these customers have shown they are interested in the range and would probably want to hear about a new one.

    A: Attaches a condition to something that should not happen at all: the promise made to two thousand people is not repaired by limiting how often it is broken.

    C: Refuses without the reason or the alternative: he will ask somebody else who holds a similar list, and nothing has been built for next time.

    D: Breaches the basis on which people handed over their details: two thousand of them were told research only, and that is decided against them by somebody they never spoke to.

    The most effective response is to say no, explain what those customers were told, and offer to ask the next research group whether they want to hear about new ranges: the promise holds, the colleague understands why rather than being blocked, and a legitimate route exists for next time. It beats sending the list with a one-message condition, because a promise is not repaired by limiting how often it is broken. It beats refusing with no reason, because he simply asks somebody else. The least effective response is sending the list over because those customers have shown they are interested: two thousand people were told their details were for research, and that is decided against them by people they never spoke to, which is a different kind of wrong from half-refusing or from refusing unhelpfully. The principle: what people were told when they gave you their details is a promise, and no expected performance uplift outranks it.