Red Bull Assessment Tests

Red Bull Situational Judgement Test

1. Question 1 of 10

   You are a duty supervisor at Red Bull. Two of your team are arguing about who left an area unfinished at the end of last week. You happened to be there and know it was the first of them, who has been telling everybody it was the second. The second is upset and the pair of them are barely speaking. The area has to be covered by both of them again tonight. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Tell the second privately that you know it was not him, and leave the first to work out for himself that the story will not hold.
   2. Speak to the first today about what you saw and what he has been telling people, then bring the two of them together to settle how tonight is covered.
   3. Say nothing about what you saw, since taking sides would make the rest of the week harder and the two of them will sort it out between themselves eventually.
   4. Raise it with both of them in tonight's briefing so that everybody hears the same account and nobody is left with the wrong version of last week.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: B. Speak to the first today about what you saw and what he has been telling people, then bring the two of them together to settle how tonight is covered.

   Least effective: C. Say nothing about what you saw, since taking sides would make the rest of the week harder and the two of them will sort it out between themselves eventually.

   A: Corrects the record for one person only: the accusation is still circulating and the one person who could withdraw it has not been asked to.

   C: Withholds the fact that would end it: the only person who knows what happened stays quiet, and a colleague carries an accusation you could remove in a sentence.

   D: Settles a two-person dispute in front of an audience: the record is corrected and one of them is publicly established as having told a story about the other.

   The most effective response is to speak to the first today about what you saw and what he has been saying, then bring the two of them together to settle tonight’s cover: the person who has to withdraw the accusation is spoken to first and in private, and the shift still gets covered by two people who have to work together. It beats telling only the second, because the story keeps circulating. It beats settling it in the briefing, because that establishes one of them publicly as a liar. The least effective response is saying nothing about what you saw: the only witness stays quiet while a colleague carries an accusation that could be removed in a sentence, which is a different kind of wrong from a partial correction or from a public one. The principle: when you hold the fact that ends a dispute, use it, starting with the person who has to change what they have been saying.

2. Question 2 of 10

   You are an availability analyst at Red Bull. By four o’clock you owe the trading team a report on what will be short this weekend, and you have also promised a colleague you would rebuild her forecast template today. At two o’clock a site tells you a delivery has been turned away and two hundred cases are sitting on a vehicle with nowhere to go. Only the report has a stated deadline. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Sort the turned-away delivery first, tell the trading team the report will be twenty minutes late and why, and let your colleague know the template moves to tomorrow.
   2. Finish the report for four o'clock as promised and then deal with the vehicle, since the report is the only piece of work today that has a stated deadline attached to it.
   3. Start all three, moving between the report, the vehicle and the template so that everybody sees progress before the end of the afternoon.
   4. Hand the vehicle problem to a colleague on the supply desk without saying what has already been tried, and carry on with the report and the template.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Sort the turned-away delivery first, tell the trading team the report will be twenty minutes late and why, and let your colleague know the template moves to tomorrow.

   Least effective: D. Hand the vehicle problem to a colleague on the supply desk without saying what has already been tried, and carry on with the report and the template.

   B: Treats a stated deadline as the only claim on your time: the report is delivered on the hour and two hundred cases spend the afternoon on a vehicle that could have been redirected.

   C: Splits effort so nothing finishes: the delivery needs a decision in one go, and three part-finished jobs at five o'clock help nobody.

   D: Passes the problem on without owning it: the colleague restarts from nothing while the vehicle waits, and the person who took the call keeps the easier two jobs.

   The most effective response is to sort the turned-away delivery first and tell the trading team the report will be twenty minutes late and why: the vehicle is the only item that gets worse by the hour, twenty minutes is a cost the reader can plan around once they are told, and nothing is dropped silently. It beats finishing the four o’clock report before touching the vehicle, because a stated deadline is not the same as the most urgent thing and two hundred cases are stranded meanwhile. It beats starting all three at once, because the delivery needs one uninterrupted decision and three half-finished jobs serve nobody. The least effective response is handing the vehicle problem to the supply desk without saying what has been tried: the colleague starts from nothing, the vehicle waits longer than under any other response, and the person who owns the problem keeps the two jobs that suit them. The principle: order the work by what degrades, and where something slips, say so to the person waiting for it.

3. Question 3 of 10

   You are a customer experience graduate at Red Bull. A customer you helped last week has been sent a fifty pound voucher as an apology, and has written back to say she does not want it and would rather it went to nobody. The voucher is active and cancelling it means a form and a wait. Nobody else knows it exists. Your team has a small budget that these come from. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Cancel the voucher through the form so the fifty pounds goes back to the team budget, and note on the case what the customer asked for.
   2. Leave the voucher active and unused, since the customer has said she does not want it and it will simply expire without anybody having to fill in a form about it.
   3. Keep the voucher for yourself, since it has already been issued, the customer does not want it, and cancelling it takes longer than the fifty pounds is worth to anybody.
   4. Offer the voucher to the colleague who handled the case before you, as she did most of the work on it and the customer has no use for it.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Cancel the voucher through the form so the fifty pounds goes back to the team budget, and note on the case what the customer asked for.

   Least effective: C. Keep the voucher for yourself, since it has already been issued, the customer does not want it, and cancelling it takes longer than the fifty pounds is worth to anybody.

   B: Leaves money committed to nothing: the budget carries a fifty pound hole for the life of the voucher because a form was not worth the trouble.

   C: Takes a benefit the role forbids: the money belongs to the team budget whatever the customer decided, and the fact that nobody would notice is what makes it a decision rather than an oversight.

   D: Passes on a benefit that was never anybody's to give: it feels generous, and it disposes of company money on the strength of who deserves it.

   The most effective response is to cancel the voucher through the form so the money returns to the team budget, and note what the customer asked for: the customer’s wish is honoured, the budget is whole, and the case shows what happened. It beats leaving it active to expire, because the budget carries the commitment for months for want of a form. It beats offering it to the colleague who did the work, because that hands out company money on the basis of merit. The least effective response is keeping the voucher yourself: it is the team’s money, the customer’s refusal did not make it yours, and the fact that nobody would ever know is the part that makes it a choice rather than a slip, which is a different kind of wrong from being lazy or from being loosely generous. The principle: money that was never yours does not become yours because nobody is watching and the paperwork is tedious.

4. Question 4 of 10

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

5. Question 5 of 10

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

6. Question 6 of 10

   You are a supplier quality assistant at Red Bull. A site has told you in passing that two pallets from a supplier arrived with the wrong labels last week and they simply relabelled them. Wrong labels are supposed to be reported so the supplier can find the cause. The site did not say whether they had reported it, and the supplier’s next delivery is on Thursday. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Assume the site has already reported it, since they found the problem themselves and would hardly have relabelled two pallets and then left the supplier in the dark.
   2. Check today whether a report was raised, raise one yourself if not, and tell the supplier before Thursday's delivery so that the cause can be looked at.
   3. Raise a report yourself straight away without checking, since a duplicate report costs nothing and the supplier needs to know before Thursday in any case.
   4. Mention it to your manager and leave her to decide whether it needs a report, since it was second hand and the site has not asked you to do anything.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: B. Check today whether a report was raised, raise one yourself if not, and tell the supplier before Thursday's delivery so that the cause can be looked at.

   Least effective: A. Assume the site has already reported it, since they found the problem themselves and would hardly have relabelled two pallets and then left the supplier in the dark.

   A: Assumes a report exists rather than looking: it takes one message to check, and Thursday's delivery arrives with the cause unexamined because nobody did.

   C: Acts without the one check that shapes the action: a duplicate splits the supplier's investigation across two reports and neither has the full picture.

   D: Passes a simple check upwards: she has to ask the site the same question you could have asked this morning, and Thursday is closer.

   The most effective response is to check today whether a report was raised, raise one yourself if not, and tell the supplier before Thursday: it costs a message, it produces exactly one report, and the supplier gets the chance to find the cause before the next delivery. It beats raising a report without checking, because two reports split the investigation. It beats handing it to your manager, because she has to make the same one minute enquiry. The least effective response is assuming the site has reported it: nobody looks, Thursday arrives with the cause unexamined, and the assumption is made by the one person who heard about it, which is a different kind of wrong from acting too quickly or from escalating something small. The principle: when a report may or may not exist, the cheap thing to do is find out.

7. Question 7 of 10

   You are a purchasing assistant at Red Bull. A business customer needs a special order and has asked when it will reach him. The supplier who makes it has quoted seven to ten working days but will not commit to a date until the order is placed. The customer is arranging his own work around the answer and has asked you for a straight one. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Guarantee the customer that the order will be with him a week on Friday, which gives him the single date he has asked you for.
   2. Tell the customer you cannot give a date until the supplier commits, and suggest he plans on the longer end of the range to be safe in the meantime.
   3. Place the order today and tell the customer you will send the date through as soon as it is confirmed, without saying anything now about the range you have been quoted.
   4. Tell him the quoted range, place the order today, and commit to sending him the supplier's confirmed date the moment it comes through.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Tell him the quoted range, place the order today, and commit to sending him the supplier's confirmed date the moment it comes through.

   Least effective: A. Guarantee the customer that the order will be with him a week on Friday, which gives him the single date he has asked you for.

   A: Gives a guarantee nobody has made: the supplier has explicitly refused to commit, and the customer builds his own arrangements on a date that came from you rather than from them.

   B: Passes the uncertainty on undigested: it is honest, and he is left to plan around ten days when a firmer answer is available for the asking.

   C: Withholds the range while the order is placed: he can do nothing with silence, and the seven to ten days would at least let him start planning.

   The most effective response is to tell him the quoted range, place the order today and commit to sending the confirmed date as soon as it arrives: he gets the true picture and something he can plan around, the order starts moving, and the promise you make is one you can keep. It beats telling him to assume the longer end, because the order has not been placed and a firmer answer is close. It beats placing the order silently, because the range itself is useful to him now. The least effective response is guaranteeing a week on Friday: the supplier has refused to commit, so the customer arranges his own work around a date invented at this end, which is a different kind of wrong from being unhelpfully cautious or from being quiet. The principle: give a customer the range and a commitment about when they will know, never a certainty you have been refused.

8. Question 8 of 10

   You are a brand assistant at Red Bull. An agency has emailed asking whether they should keep the two versions of a design or drop one before a review on Thursday. The decision is your manager’s, and he is at a site all day but reachable by message. The agency is holding time tomorrow to make the changes and needs an answer today. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Reply to the agency that you will get an answer today and message your manager with the question and why it is urgent, so that the decision stays his and the date holds.
   2. Tell the agency to keep both versions for Thursday, since that is what your manager usually prefers and it leaves the decision open for the review itself.
   3. Send the agency's question straight on to your manager with nothing added, and tell the agency that he will pick it up from there.
   4. Wait until your manager is back from the site this evening and ring him about it then, since a decision like this one deserves a proper conversation rather than a message read between meetings.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Reply to the agency that you will get an answer today and message your manager with the question and why it is urgent, so that the decision stays his and the date holds.

   Least effective: C. Send the agency's question straight on to your manager with nothing added, and tell the agency that he will pick it up from there.

   B: Answers on somebody else's behalf from a guess: the agency spends tomorrow on two versions because of what a manager usually thinks rather than what he thinks now.

   C: Passes a message on without doing anything with it: he gets a question with no context on a day at a site, the agency has heard nothing, and nobody is holding the deadline.

   D: Delays the decision for the sake of a better conversation: the agency needs the answer today and hears nothing at all until tomorrow.

   The most effective response is to reply that you will get an answer today, message your manager with the question and why it is urgent, and come back to the agency when he answers: the agency knows somebody has it, the decision stays with the person who owns it, and the deadline is held by you rather than by chance. It beats telling the agency to keep both versions, because that answers for your manager on the basis of what he usually likes. It beats waiting to ring him this evening, because the agency needs today and gets silence. The least effective response is forwarding the question with nothing added: he receives a bare question between site visits, the agency has heard nothing, and nobody has responsibility for the deadline, which is a different kind of wrong from guessing his answer or from waiting for a better moment. The principle: when you are the channel, carry the context and the deadline as well as the question.

9. Question 9 of 10

   You are a shift supervisor at Red Bull. A delivery the team has been waiting for since eight o’clock has not arrived, and the transport desk cannot say when it will. Six people are standing available and their shift ends at two. The team leader is asking you for a time, and the work that depends on the delivery has to be finished today or it moves to the weekend. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Tell the team exactly what transport has said and that you do not have a time yet, since guessing helps nobody, and come back to them by eleven with a time or another plan.
   2. Say nothing to the team until transport gives you a time, so that you are not passing on information that might turn out to be wrong an hour later.
   3. Put the team on other work for the morning and mention the delivery only if somebody asks about it, since there is nothing anybody standing here can do about a vehicle that has not arrived.
   4. Tell the team leader the delivery is on its way and will be with them before the shift ends, which is what a team standing about needs to hear this morning.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Tell the team exactly what transport has said and that you do not have a time yet, since guessing helps nobody, and come back to them by eleven with a time or another plan.

   Least effective: D. Tell the team leader the delivery is on its way and will be with them before the shift ends, which is what a team standing about needs to hear this morning.

   B: Treats uncertainty as a reason for silence: six people spend the morning planning around a delivery nobody can promise, and the person who knows that is the one saying nothing.

   C: Manages the shift without informing it: the morning is used sensibly and the team leader still cannot plan the afternoon or the weekend around what you know.

   D: Gives an assurance nothing supports: transport has no time to give, so the comfort lasts until two o'clock and then the weekend plan is made on a promise that was never true.

   The most effective response is to tell the team exactly what transport has said, that there is no time yet, and that you will come back by eleven: it gives six people the real picture, it puts a decision point in the morning rather than at two o’clock, and it commits you to the follow-up rather than to a fact you do not have. It beats saying nothing until transport gives a time, because the morning is spent planning around something nobody can promise. It beats moving the team to other work and mentioning it only if asked, because the team leader is deciding about the afternoon and the weekend without what you know. The least effective response is telling the team leader the delivery is on its way and will arrive before the shift ends: no such assurance exists, and inventing one is a different kind of wrong from withholding or from managing quietly, because the plans made on it are wrong until two o’clock. The principle: when you do not know, say what you do know and when you will know more.

10. Question 10 of 10

    You are a people team graduate at Red Bull. You and two colleagues share the induction packs for new starters, and this month’s twelve are due on Friday. One colleague is off sick until next week and the other is already working late on a separate deadline. You have four of the twelve done. A colleague from another team has offered to help if somebody tells her what is needed. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

    1. Pass the eight remaining packs to the colleague from the other team without showing her what a pack needs, and finish your own four.
    2. Work through as many of the eight as you can yourself and tell the team on Friday how many were finished, since everybody else is already stretched this week.
    3. Ask your team leader to move Friday's deadline, since two of the three people who normally do this work are unavailable and the date was set before anybody knew that.
    4. Take the colleague up on her offer, show her two packs and split the eight with her, and tell your team leader what you have arranged and where the risk is.
    Show the answer

    Most effective: D. Take the colleague up on her offer, show her two packs and split the eight with her, and tell your team leader what you have arranged and where the risk is.

    Least effective: A. Pass the eight remaining packs to the colleague from the other team without showing her what a pack needs, and finish your own four.

    A: Hands the work on rather than sharing it: she has offered help, not ownership, and the person who knows what the packs need is the one stepping back from them.

    B: Absorbs a shortfall silently: Friday arrives with an unknown number of packs missing and nobody has had the chance to do anything about it.

    C: Asks for the deadline to move before trying the help on offer: the starters arrive whether the packs are ready or not, and an offer of help sits unused.

    The most effective response is to take up the offer, show her two packs and split the remaining eight, and tell your team leader what you have arranged: the help becomes useful because somebody spends twenty minutes making it useful, the work stays shared, and the person who owns the deadline knows what is happening. It beats working through as many as you can and reporting on Friday, because nobody can act on a shortfall they hear about at the deadline. It beats asking for the deadline to move, because the starters arrive regardless and an offer of help has not been tried. The least effective response is passing the eight remaining packs to the colleague from the other team: she offered help rather than ownership, and the person who knows what a pack needs steps away from twelve of them, which is a different kind of wrong from carrying it alone or from asking for more time. The principle: an offer of help is taken up by working alongside somebody, not by handing them the job.