Sainsburys Assessment Tests

Sainsburys Situational Judgement Test

1. Question 1 of 10

   You are a marketing graduate at Sainsburys. A campaign page has to be live on Thursday morning. The wording still needs its compliance check, which normally comes back within a day, and you sent it over an hour ago. You also owe the insight team a summary by Thursday that only you can write. It is Wednesday afternoon and the page cannot go live without the check. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Write the insight summary this afternoon and come back to the campaign page first thing on Thursday, on the basis that the compliance check will almost certainly have arrived overnight.
   2. Publish the page on Thursday morning without waiting for the compliance check, since it normally comes back approved and the launch date has been advertised.
   3. Ask the insight team to take the summary off you this week so that you can give the whole of Thursday morning to chasing the compliance check.
   4. Chase the compliance check now with the Thursday time on it and write the summary while you wait, so that both move, and tell your manager today if nothing comes back by five.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Chase the compliance check now with the Thursday time on it and write the summary while you wait, so that both move, and tell your manager today if nothing comes back by five.

   Least effective: B. Publish the page on Thursday morning without waiting for the compliance check, since it normally comes back approved and the launch date has been advertised.

   A: Acts on an assumption about somebody else's queue: if the check has not come back by Thursday morning there is no time left to do anything about it.

   B: Breaches the one step the launch is not allowed to skip: the check exists because the wording can be wrong, and a date somebody advertised is not an approval.

   C: Sheds the wrong task: the summary is work only you can do, and the check is not made faster by having more of your time available to wait for it.

   The most effective response is to chase the compliance check now with the deadline stated, write the summary while waiting, and escalate at five if nothing has come back: both pieces of work move, and the one thing that can stop Thursday gets attention while there is still a day to solve it. It beats writing the summary and coming back to the page on Thursday, because that stakes the launch on somebody else’s queue behaving as usual. It beats asking for the summary to be taken off you, because it is work only you can do and having more free time does not make a check arrive. The least effective response is publishing on Thursday without the check: the step that exists precisely because the wording might be wrong is dropped to protect a date, which is a different kind of wrong from planning badly or from shedding a task. The principle: work the item that can stop everything first, and never buy a deadline by skipping the check that stands in front of it.

2. Question 2 of 10

   You are a service recovery assistant at Sainsburys. A customer has rung about an order that has gone wrong twice. He has already been passed between three people this morning and is audibly at the end of his patience. His case is genuinely a complaints matter rather than a service one, and complaints have a queue of about a day. You can see the whole history in front of you. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Take the details yourself, tell him what you can put right today and what has to go to complaints, and raise the case there with the history attached.
   2. Explain that complaints handle cases like his, offer either to raise it for him or to give him the reference, and let him choose which he wants.
   3. Deal with the whole thing yourself outside the complaints process, since he has been passed around enough and the outcome will be quicker that way.
   4. Transfer the customer straight to the complaints team while he is still on the line, since they own cases like his and can hear the history from him directly.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Take the details yourself, tell him what you can put right today and what has to go to complaints, and raise the case there with the history attached.

   Least effective: D. Transfer the customer straight to the complaints team while he is still on the line, since they own cases like his and can hear the history from him directly.

   B: Offers a choice where a decision was needed: after three transfers he wants somebody to take the case, not another option to weigh.

   C: Keeps a case that needs the other route: it feels kinder, and his complaint never enters the system that records and answers complaints.

   D: Hands the customer on rather than the case: he becomes the fourth transfer of the morning and repeats a history that is already written down in front of you.

   The most effective response is to take the details yourself, tell him what you can put right today and what has to go to complaints, and raise it there with the history attached: the case reaches the right route, the customer stops carrying it, and something happens today rather than tomorrow. It beats offering him the choice of raising it himself, because after three transfers he needs somebody to take it rather than another decision to make. It beats dealing with the whole thing outside the complaints process, because his complaint then never enters the system meant to answer it. The least effective response is transferring him to complaints while he is on the line: he becomes the fourth handover of the morning and retells a history that is written down in front of you, which is a different kind of wrong from making him do the chasing or from keeping the case improperly. The principle: move the case, not the customer.

3. Question 3 of 10

   You are an availability analyst at Sainsburys. You and a colleague are presenting a joint piece of analysis on Thursday. You have done the numbers and he has done the site interviews. Two of your sections are unfinished and you have a separate deadline on Wednesday. He has said he is happy to present alone if that helps. Thursday’s audience will ask about the numbers. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Tell him today which two sections are unfinished, agree what you can realistically have ready by Thursday, and split the presenting so that you take the numbers.
   2. Present together as planned and finish the two sections on Wednesday night after the other deadline, since they are nearly done and nobody else needs to know they were late.
   3. Ask to move Thursday's presentation to next week, since two unfinished sections and a Wednesday deadline is not a position to present a joint piece of work from.
   4. Give the presentation to your colleague to deliver on his own, without telling him which two sections you have not finished.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Tell him today which two sections are unfinished, agree what you can realistically have ready by Thursday, and split the presenting so that you take the numbers.

   Least effective: D. Give the presentation to your colleague to deliver on his own, without telling him which two sections you have not finished.

   B: Keeps a risk to yourself: if Wednesday night goes wrong, the first anybody hears about two missing sections is in the room on Thursday.

   C: Moves the date before trying the day: two sections and a colleague who has offered help make Thursday reachable, and the audience is assembled for it.

   D: Hands over a job with a hole in it: he stands in front of an audience that will ask about numbers he did not build, unaware that two sections are missing.

   The most effective response is to tell him today which sections are unfinished, agree what is realistic by Thursday, and split the presenting so you take the numbers: he can plan around the true position, the Wednesday deadline is accounted for, and the part of the audience’s questions only you can answer is answered by you. It beats presenting as planned and finishing on Wednesday night, because a private risk becomes everybody’s problem if the night goes badly. It beats moving the presentation, because Thursday is reachable and the audience is already assembled. The least effective response is handing him the presentation without saying two sections are missing: he faces questions about numbers he did not build, not knowing what is absent, which is a different kind of wrong from carrying the risk quietly or from postponing. The principle: a colleague can only cover for you against the truth, so tell them what is actually missing.

4. Question 4 of 10

   You are a purchasing assistant at Sainsburys. A supplier has rung to query a set of volumes that a colleague of yours prepared. You can see that your colleague’s numbers are right and that the supplier has misread the layout. He is impatient, has queried her figures before, and says he would rather deal with you from now on because she takes days to reply. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Tell him her figures are often unreliable and that he should bring the numbers to you in future, so that at least the queries get answered quickly.
   2. Show him where the layout misled him, say the figures are right, and tell him you will pass on his point about reply times to her and your manager.
   3. Answer the query yourself and agree to be his contact for volumes from now on, since he is clearly not going to deal with her and somebody has to answer him.
   4. Tell him the volumes are her work and that he should take the query back to her, since it is her supplier and answering it yourself would cut across her.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: B. Show him where the layout misled him, say the figures are right, and tell him you will pass on his point about reply times to her and your manager.

   Least effective: A. Tell him her figures are often unreliable and that he should bring the numbers to you in future, so that at least the queries get answered quickly.

   A: Undermines a colleague to an outsider: her numbers were right, and a supplier is now told by her own team that her work cannot be trusted.

   C: Solves a relationship problem by rearranging it: she loses her own supplier contact without being consulted, and nobody addresses the reply times.

   D: Applies the boundary and ignores the customer: he is sent back to somebody he says takes days, holding a misreading you could have cleared up in a minute.

   The most effective response is to show him where the layout misled him, confirm the figures are right, and say you will pass his point about reply times to her and your manager: the query is answered on the spot, your colleague’s work is defended because it is correct, and the real complaint goes somewhere it can be dealt with. It beats agreeing to become his contact, because that quietly takes her supplier away without asking her. It beats sending him back to her with his misreading intact, because it costs a minute to clear up. The least effective response is telling him her figures are often unreliable: they were right, and a supplier has been told by her own team not to trust her, which is a different kind of wrong from over-accommodating him or from standing on the boundary. The principle: defend a colleague’s correct work to an outsider, and take the criticism of her that has substance to her and your manager instead.

5. Question 5 of 10

   You are a people team graduate at Sainsburys. 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.

6. Question 6 of 10

   You are a marketing graduate at Sainsburys. An agency has mentioned, in passing on a call, that they are short of people and may struggle to deliver next month’s campaign on time. They have not said it formally and asked you not to worry about it yet. Your manager is planning the next quarter this week on the basis that the campaign lands on time. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Ask the agency to confirm the position in writing, and wait for their answer before saying anything to your manager, so that what you pass on is solid.
   2. Say nothing to your manager for now, since the agency has not made it formal, asked you not to worry, and may well solve it before it becomes a problem.
   3. Tell your manager today what the agency said and how firm it was, and ask the agency for a clear position this week, since the quarter is being committed now.
   4. Raise it with the agency's account director to get it resolved before anybody here has to plan around it, since the fix is on their side of the relationship.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Tell your manager today what the agency said and how firm it was, and ask the agency for a clear position this week, since the quarter is being committed now.

   Least effective: B. Say nothing to your manager for now, since the agency has not made it formal, asked you not to worry, and may well solve it before it becomes a problem.

   A: Waits for certainty while the plan is being written: the quarter is being decided this week, and a warning that arrives afterwards is worth much less.

   B: Withholds a risk from the person planning around it: the quarter is built this week on an assumption the one person who heard otherwise has decided to keep.

   D: Escalates outside before informing inside: your own manager is still planning blind, and the agency contact who spoke openly learns that candour reaches his director.

   The most effective response is to tell your manager today what was said and how firm it was, and ask the agency for a clear position by the end of the week: the person building the quarter gets the risk while it can still shape the plan, and it is passed on with its actual weight rather than dressed up. It beats waiting for written confirmation, because the plan is written this week. It beats going to the agency’s account director, because your own manager is still planning blind and the contact learns that talking to you is expensive. The least effective response is saying nothing to your manager because the agency has not made it formal: the quarter is built on an assumption the only person who heard otherwise decided to keep, which is a different kind of wrong from waiting for certainty or from escalating outside. The principle: pass on a risk with its uncertainty attached rather than waiting for it to become a fact.

7. Question 7 of 10

   You are a stock control assistant at Sainsburys. A pallet of goods has arrived without its quality release, which has to be on the system before anything can be booked in. The supplier says the paperwork will follow tomorrow. The site needs the goods this afternoon, and your system access lets you book stock in without the release attached. Your supervisor is on a call for the next hour. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Book the pallet in without the release, since the paperwork is coming tomorrow and the site needs the goods this afternoon rather than in the morning.
   2. Turn the pallet away and tell the supplier to bring it back when the release is in the system, since the rule is clear and the vehicle is still on site.
   3. Hold the pallet where it is and ask the supplier to send the release now by email, so that your supervisor can weigh the site's deadline the moment her call ends.
   4. Leave the pallet in the receiving area unbooked and pick it up tomorrow when the paperwork arrives, without telling the site that their goods are on hold.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Hold the pallet where it is and ask the supplier to send the release now by email, so that your supervisor can weigh the site's deadline the moment her call ends.

   Least effective: A. Book the pallet in without the release, since the paperwork is coming tomorrow and the site needs the goods this afternoon rather than in the morning.

   A: Breaches a stated control: the release exists so that nothing reaches the site unchecked, and the access that makes it easy to skip is not a reason to skip it.

   B: Applies the rule without solving the problem: the goods leave the area, the site still needs them this afternoon, and nobody has tried the hour that was actually available.

   D: Hides a delay somebody is planning against: the site expects the goods this afternoon and finds out they are not coming only when they do not arrive.

   The most effective response is to hold the pallet, ask the supplier to send the release now, and put the site’s deadline to your supervisor as soon as her call ends: it keeps the control intact, it uses the hour rather than spending it, and the person who can authorise an exception hears about it while there is still time to make one. It beats turning the pallet away, because the vehicle leaving makes the afternoon impossible and nobody has yet asked the supplier for the one document that would fix it. It beats leaving the pallet unbooked and saying nothing until tomorrow, because the site is planning around goods that are not coming. The least effective response is booking the pallet in without the release: the check that stops unverified goods reaching a site is stepped around because your access happens to allow it, which is a different kind of wrong from being rigid or being quiet. The principle: a control you personally can bypass is still a control, and the way round it is an exception somebody authorises, not one you take.

8. Question 8 of 10

   You are a shift supervisor at Sainsburys. Two of your team have fallen out over a rota change that moved one of them off Fridays. Each has told you the change was the other’s doing. In fact it was made by the scheduling team for reasons neither knows. Both are refusing to swap cover for each other, which is making the week harder for everybody. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Get the two of them together, explain that the change came from scheduling and why, and ask them to agree how cover works between them for the rest of the month.
   2. Tell each of them separately that the other had nothing to do with it, since a conversation between the three of you would be more heat than it is worth.
   3. Rearrange the cover yourself so that the two of them do not have to rely on each other, which takes the immediate pressure off the rest of the week.
   4. Promise both of them that the rota change will be reversed next month, which stops the argument and gets everybody covering for each other again.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Get the two of them together, explain that the change came from scheduling and why, and ask them to agree how cover works between them for the rest of the month.

   Least effective: D. Promise both of them that the rota change will be reversed next month, which stops the argument and gets everybody covering for each other again.

   B: Corrects the facts and leaves the relationship: both know they were wrong about the cause, and neither has said anything to the other.

   C: Designs around the fallout: the week runs, and two people who work the same shifts are formally kept apart by their supervisor.

   D: Buys peace with something nobody has agreed: the change belongs to scheduling, and next month both of them learn that your word was worth nothing.

   The most effective response is to get the two of them together, explain that the change came from scheduling and why, and ask them to agree how cover works for the rest of the month: the false belief that started it is removed in front of both, and the thing that actually has to work again, which is the cover between them, is what they are asked to settle. It beats telling them separately, because neither has to say anything to the other and the working relationship stays broken. It beats rearranging the cover around them, because their supervisor has formally kept them apart. The least effective response is promising the change will be reversed next month: it is not yours to reverse, and when it is not, both of them learn what your word is worth, which is a different kind of wrong from correcting them privately or from working around them. The principle: end a dispute with the truth in front of both parties, never with a promise you cannot keep.

9. Question 9 of 10

   You are a stock control assistant at Sainsburys. 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.

10. Question 10 of 10

    You are a service recovery assistant at Sainsburys. Last week a colleague took a case of yours to the team leader because you had missed a reply date, rather than mentioning it to you first. You were annoyed: you would have fixed it in an hour. The two of you cover each other’s queues at lunchtime, and today is your turn to cover hers. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

    1. Cover her queue as normal and let it go, since raising it now would make the rest of the week awkward and the missed date was real enough in any case.
    2. Cover her queue as normal and mention to the team leader that you would rather hear about your own missed dates before she does.
    3. Cover her queue as normal, and ask her at lunchtime why she went to the team leader first and what the two of you should do next time.
    4. Stop covering her queue at lunchtime after that, and let her arrange cover with the team leader she went to, since that is evidently how she prefers to work.
    Show the answer

    Most effective: C. Cover her queue as normal, and ask her at lunchtime why she went to the team leader first and what the two of you should do next time.

    Least effective: D. Stop covering her queue at lunchtime after that, and let her arrange cover with the team leader she went to, since that is evidently how she prefers to work.

    A: Prioritises harmony over honesty: the cover continues and so does an arrangement where a problem with your work goes to your team leader first.

    B: Answers a colleague through a manager: the same route that annoyed you is used to complain about it, and the person concerned is not part of the conversation.

    D: Withdraws a working arrangement in retaliation: her customers wait at lunchtime because of something that happened between the two of you last week.

    The most effective response is to cover her queue as normal and ask her at lunchtime why she went to the team leader first and what the two of you should do next time: the cover is unaffected, the question is put to the person who can answer it, and the two of you leave with an agreement rather than a grievance. It beats letting it go, because the same thing happens next time and the resentment stays. It beats raising it with the team leader, because that answers a colleague by going round her, which is the thing you objected to. The least effective response is stopping the lunchtime cover because she evidently prefers to work through the team leader: customers wait because of a disagreement they have no part in, and withdrawing an arrangement to make a point is a different kind of wrong from staying silent or from complaining upwards. The principle: settle a working arrangement with the person you have it with, and keep the people it serves out of the argument.