Target Assessment Tests

Target Situational Judgement Test

1. Question 1 of 10

   You are a procurement graduate at Target. A supplier you deal with weekly, whose contract comes up for renewal in about six months, has offered you two tickets to a match this Saturday. He says he cannot use them, that they would otherwise go to waste, and that it is nothing to do with the renewal. You would have to declare anything you accepted. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Accept the gift of the two tickets, since the renewal is six months away, the tickets would otherwise be wasted, and refusing would be awkward with somebody you deal with every week.
   2. Accept the tickets and declare them straight away, since declaring is exactly the mechanism that exists for offers like this and nothing is then hidden.
   3. Decline, explain that you cannot take anything from a supplier whose renewal you handle, and mention the offer to your manager so that it is on the record.
   4. Decline for now and suggest he offers them again once the renewal has been decided, since the difficulty is entirely about the timing rather than about the tickets.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Decline, explain that you cannot take anything from a supplier whose renewal you handle, and mention the offer to your manager so that it is on the record.

   Least effective: A. Accept the gift of the two tickets, since the renewal is six months away, the tickets would otherwise be wasted, and refusing would be awkward with somebody you deal with every week.

   A: Takes a personal benefit from a supplier whose contract you handle: the renewal is in the diary, and every conversation between now and then is affected whatever either of you intends.

   B: Treats a declaration as permission: the register records what happened, and it does not make it appropriate for you to hold them.

   D: Postpones the benefit rather than refusing it: a gift promised for after the decision is still attached to the decision.

   The most effective response is to decline, explain that you cannot take anything from a supplier whose renewal you handle, and tell your manager the offer was made: it keeps the renewal clean, it is straightforward with somebody you deal with weekly, and it puts the approach where the process can see it. It beats accepting and declaring, because a declaration records a thing rather than making it appropriate. It beats deferring the tickets until after the renewal, because a benefit promised for afterwards is still attached to the decision. The least effective response is accepting the gift of the two tickets: a supplier whose contract you handle has given you something personal, which colours every conversation until the renewal, and that is a different kind of wrong from over-relying on the register or from postponing. The principle: when you hold a decision about somebody, their generosity is not a separate matter.

2. Question 2 of 10

   You are a service recovery assistant at Target. A case you were handling has sat for a fortnight because you never actioned a note a colleague sent you. The customer has now written again. Your colleague sent the note by message and would have no reason to check what happened to it. Cases open longer than ten days are listed for your team leader each week. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Put the case right today at speed and mention the fortnight to your team leader only if it comes up on this week's list of cases open longer than ten days.
   2. Apologise to the customer, sort the case out today, and tell the colleague who sent the note what happened so that she knows it was not ignored deliberately.
   3. Keep it to yourself and reopen the matter as a fresh case, so the fortnight does not show up anywhere and the customer is dealt with from today.
   4. Tell your team leader today that you missed the note and say what you are doing for the customer, so that she can look at how notes like it get picked up.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Tell your team leader today that you missed the note and say what you are doing for the customer, so that she can look at how notes like it get picked up.

   Least effective: C. Keep it to yourself and reopen the matter as a fresh case, so the fortnight does not show up anywhere and the customer is dealt with from today.

   A: Leaves the disclosure to a report: the customer is served, and whether your manager hears about it is decided by a list rather than by you.

   B: Tells the person least able to act: the colleague is reassured, the customer is served, and the manager who could stop it happening again hears nothing.

   C: Conceals your own error by starting the clock again: the customer's two lost weeks disappear from the record, and the list your team leader reads is made to show something that did not happen.

   The most effective response is to tell your team leader today that you missed the note, say what you are doing for the customer, and ask her to look at how such notes get picked up: the customer is dealt with, the person who can change the process knows, and the account of it comes from you rather than from a report. It beats leaving it to the ten-day list, because that lets a report decide whether your manager is told. It beats telling only the colleague who sent it, because she cannot change anything. The least effective response is reopening it as a fresh case so the fortnight disappears: the record is made to show a delay that never happened, and hiding your own error is a different kind of wrong from disclosing it passively or from telling the wrong person. The principle: own a lapse to the person who can act on it, and never make the record tidier than the truth.

3. Question 3 of 10

   You are a commercial graduate at Target. Two managers have each asked you for a piece of analysis by Friday. One is for a decision that is being made on Monday; the other is for a paper that will be read at the end of the month, though that manager has said hers is urgent. Both take two days and you have three. You have not told either about the other. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Refer both requests to your manager and let her decide which one you do, without setting out what each piece needs or when it is really wanted.
   2. Do the analysis for the Monday decision first and start the other on Friday, telling the second manager only if she asks where hers has got to.
   3. Give each manager a shorter version by Friday, so that both have something to work with even though neither piece is the full analysis that was asked for.
   4. Tell both managers today that you can do one properly by Friday, explain what each would get and when, and propose doing the Monday decision first.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Tell both managers today that you can do one properly by Friday, explain what each would get and when, and propose doing the Monday decision first.

   Least effective: A. Refer both requests to your manager and let her decide which one you do, without setting out what each piece needs or when it is really wanted.

   A: Hands the decision on stripped of what it needs: she has to go back to both managers to learn what you already know, and Friday is three days away.

   B: Makes the right call and hides it: the manager waiting on the paper plans for Friday and finds out by chasing.

   C: Splits the work so neither is what was wanted: a Monday decision is made on half an analysis, which is the one place a shortcut is least affordable.

   The most effective response is to tell both managers today that only one can be done properly by Friday, explain what each would get and when, and propose doing the Monday decision first: both know where they stand while they can still act, the recommendation is made rather than concealed, and the piece with a real date attached is protected. It beats doing the Monday piece and telling the other manager only if she asks, because she plans for Friday and learns by chasing. It beats giving both a shorter version, because a Monday decision is exactly where half an analysis costs most. The least effective response is referring both requests upwards without setting out what each needs: your manager has to rediscover what you already know, three days before the deadline, which is a different kind of wrong from deciding quietly or from thinning the work. The principle: when two claims collide, put the choice and your recommendation in front of the people affected, rather than passing the problem up bare.

4. Question 4 of 10

   You are a supply chain graduate at Target. 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 customer care assistant at Target. A customer has been waiting three weeks for a replacement and has now rung for the fourth time. You can see a manager’s authorisation code in a shared document, left there for a different type of case, which would let you settle the whole thing today. Your team leader is in a meeting until three, and the customer is on the line now. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Settle the case now with the manager's authorisation code from the shared document, since the customer has waited three weeks and the outcome would be the same either way.
   2. Tell the customer that nothing can be done until your team leader is out of her meeting this afternoon, and ask him to ring the team back himself after three o'clock.
   3. Apologise, take the case number, and put a written request to your team leader so that she can look at it when her meeting finishes this afternoon.
   4. Tell the customer what you can do now and what needs approval, put an urgent note to your team leader with the case number, and commit to ringing him back before five.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Tell the customer what you can do now and what needs approval, put an urgent note to your team leader with the case number, and commit to ringing him back before five.

   Least effective: A. Settle the case now with the manager's authorisation code from the shared document, since the customer has waited three weeks and the outcome would be the same either way.

   A: Breaches an authority that was never given to you: the code was left for another purpose, and a good outcome reached that way is still an approval nobody made.

   B: Ignores the customer's actual need: a fourth call is answered with a fifth call, and the work that could be done meanwhile is not started.

   C: Leaves the customer holding the uncertainty: the request is sound, and the person who has rung four times is told nothing about what will happen or when.

   The most effective response is to tell the customer what you can do now and what needs approval, put an urgent note to your team leader, and commit to ringing back before five: it gives a customer on his fourth call the two things he does not have, which are a picture and a time, and it moves the approval without pretending you hold it. It beats asking him to ring back after three, because the fifth call is his to make and nothing progresses meanwhile. It beats a written request with nothing said to him, because he is left holding the uncertainty for another afternoon. The least effective response is settling it now with a manager’s code found in a shared document: the outcome may be right and the approval is one nobody gave, which is a different kind of wrong from being unhelpful or slow. The principle: an authority you can reach is not an authority you have, and the customer’s wait is not the thing that grants it.

6. Question 6 of 10

   You are a supply chain graduate at Target. A planner and a site contact have been arguing for two days about a change to delivery times. The site has said clearly that it will not work for them. The planner has now asked you, in front of both of them on a call, whether the site has agreed. Everybody wants the argument over, and the schedule has to be published tomorrow. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Assure the planner that the site is happy with the change so the argument can stop, and work quietly on the site afterwards to bring them round before the schedule is published.
   2. Say plainly that the site has not agreed and set out what each side needs from the times, so that the call turns into a search for a change that would work.
   3. Say that the position is not clear to you and offer to speak to both of them separately after the call, so that nobody has to give ground in front of the other.
   4. Answer that the site has not agreed and leave it there, since the two of them have been going round this for two days and it is their argument rather than yours.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: B. Say plainly that the site has not agreed and set out what each side needs from the times, so that the call turns into a search for a change that would work.

   Least effective: A. Assure the planner that the site is happy with the change so the argument can stop, and work quietly on the site afterwards to bring them round before the schedule is published.

   A: States an agreement that does not exist: the schedule is published on it, and the site discovers tomorrow that its refusal was reported as consent.

   C: Softens a fact to keep the peace: the site's position was perfectly clear, and describing it as unclear leaves the planner believing there is still room where there is none.

   D: Delivers the fact and abandons the problem: the schedule is published tomorrow, and nothing on the call has moved the two sides any closer.

   The most effective response is to say plainly that the site has not agreed, set out what each side needs, and ask for the one change that would make it work: the fact is on the table, and the call turns from an argument about consent into a search for a workable time. It beats describing the position as unclear, because the site was clear and the planner is left believing there is room to move. It beats stating the fact and leaving them to it, because the schedule is published tomorrow and nothing has moved. The least effective response is assuring the planner the site is happy: an agreement that does not exist becomes the basis of a published schedule, and the site learns that its refusal was reported as consent, which is a different kind of wrong from being vague or from being unhelpful. The principle: end an argument by putting the true position in the middle of it, never by reporting the answer everybody wants.

7. Question 7 of 10

   You are a customer care assistant at Target. A customer is asking for a refund that is larger than you may approve. Refunds above your limit need a manager, and the manager is in a meeting for another hour. The customer is polite, has waited a long time already, and says he needs to know before he leaves for work. The refund itself looks reasonable to you. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Approve the part of the refund that is inside your limit now, and tell him the rest will need a manager's decision that you will chase this afternoon.
   2. Tell him it is fine to expect the full refund and that nobody senior needs to look at a case as clear as his, which you have not actually checked.
   3. Tell him the refund is above what you can approve, put the case to the manager with your recommendation as soon as her meeting ends, and give him a time you will ring back.
   4. Interrupt the manager's meeting to get a decision on the refund now, since the customer is leaving for work shortly and has already waited a good deal longer than he should have had to.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Tell him the refund is above what you can approve, put the case to the manager with your recommendation as soon as her meeting ends, and give him a time you will ring back.

   Least effective: B. Tell him it is fine to expect the full refund and that nobody senior needs to look at a case as clear as his, which you have not actually checked.

   A: Settles the easy half and leaves the substance: he gets part of an answer and still has to wait for the decision he actually rang about.

   B: States as settled something nobody has decided: he leaves for work believing the money is agreed, and the manager may see the case quite differently.

   D: Escalates by interruption: an hour's wait for a call back is a smaller cost than pulling a manager out of a meeting for a case that is not urgent in that sense.

   The most effective response is to tell him the refund is above your limit, put the case to the manager with your recommendation as soon as she is free, and give him a time you will ring back: he knows exactly where his case is, the decision goes to the person who owns it with your view attached, and the call back is a commitment you can keep. It beats approving the part inside your limit, because the decision he is waiting for is the rest. It beats interrupting the meeting, because an hour is a smaller cost than that. The least effective response is telling him it is fine and nobody senior needs to look at it: he leaves for work believing the money is agreed and nobody has decided anything, which is a different kind of wrong from half-answering or from escalating clumsily. The principle: say what is decided, by whom and when, rather than what the person in front of you would like to hear.

8. Question 8 of 10

   You are a supply chain graduate at Target. 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.

9. Question 9 of 10

   You are a supply chain graduate at Target. In yesterday’s planning call a colleague from the site team said, sharply, that your volume numbers were “made up in a spreadsheet by somebody who has never seen a delivery”. You run that call every week and he is the person who knows what the sites can actually take. Next week’s call is on Monday and the volumes have to be agreed on it. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Stop inviting him to the planning call after that exchange, and send him the agreed numbers afterwards so that he still has what he needs for the week.
   2. Raise it with his team leader before Monday, since a remark like that in front of the whole call is not something you should have to work around every week.
   3. Say nothing and carry on running the call exactly as before, on the basis that the numbers speak for themselves and the remark will be forgotten by Monday.
   4. Ask him for twenty minutes before Monday to walk through how the volumes are built and what he would change, so that Monday's numbers carry what he knows about the sites.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Ask him for twenty minutes before Monday to walk through how the volumes are built and what he would change, so that Monday's numbers carry what he knows about the sites.

   Least effective: A. Stop inviting him to the planning call after that exchange, and send him the agreed numbers afterwards so that he still has what he needs for the week.

   A: Removes a colleague from a meeting after a disagreement: the person with the best information about what sites can take is now outside the conversation that decides it.

   B: Escalates a two-person problem: the remark is dealt with by somebody else, and the working relationship the Monday call depends on gets worse rather than better.

   C: Avoids the conversation the call needs: the numbers are not the point, his confidence in them is, and nothing has changed that by Monday.

   The most effective response is to ask him for twenty minutes before Monday to walk through how the volumes are built and what he would change: the complaint contains real information about what the sites can take, the conversation is with the person who made it, and Monday’s call gets better numbers rather than a colder room. It beats raising it with his team leader, because a remark between two people becomes a matter between three and the working relationship gets worse. It beats carrying on as if nothing happened, because his lack of confidence in the numbers is the problem, not the numbers. The least effective response is dropping him from the call and sending the numbers afterwards: the person who knows most about the constraint is removed from the meeting that decides it, which is a different kind of wrong from escalating or from staying quiet. The principle: answer a challenge to your work by involving the challenger in it, never by removing them from the room.

10. Question 10 of 10

    You are a brand assistant at Target. Three things are due before Friday: a customer announcement, a set of images for the team who publish them, and a summary for your manager. The announcement has to go on a shared channel whose owner runs a queue and has given you a slot on Thursday. Your announcement matters most this week, and you can post to the channel yourself. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

    1. Do the images and the summary first because they are quick, and take the announcement to the channel owner on Thursday exactly as the queue arranges it.
    2. Ask your manager to tell the channel owner to move your announcement up the queue, since it matters more this week than the items sitting in front of it.
    3. Ask the channel owner today whether the announcement can move up, explain what is riding on it, and do the images and the summary while you wait for his answer.
    4. Post the announcement on the shared channel yourself ahead of the queue, since your item is the most time-critical this week and the slot system is only there to keep things orderly.
    Show the answer

    Most effective: C. Ask the channel owner today whether the announcement can move up, explain what is riding on it, and do the images and the summary while you wait for his answer.

    Least effective: D. Post the announcement on the shared channel yourself ahead of the queue, since your item is the most time-critical this week and the slot system is only there to keep things orderly.

    A: Sequences by what is easy: the two small jobs are cleared, and the item with the most riding on it gets whatever attention Thursday leaves.

    B: Escalates before asking: the person who runs the queue has not been spoken to, and the first thing he hears is a manager rearranging his week.

    D: Breaches somebody else's control of a shared channel: the queue exists because everybody's item feels urgent, and jumping it decides that question on your own behalf.

    The most effective response is to ask the channel owner whether the announcement can move up, explain what is riding on it, and do the images and the summary while you wait: the request goes to the person who owns the queue, the case for it is made rather than assumed, and the other two jobs progress meanwhile. It beats doing the quick jobs first and taking Thursday as it comes, because the most important item is then given the least thought. It beats asking your manager to have it moved, because nobody has yet asked the person who runs the queue. The least effective response is posting ahead of the queue yourself: a shared arrangement is set aside by somebody who decided their own item outranked the others, which is a different kind of wrong from sequencing badly or from going over somebody’s head. The principle: where a shared queue decides the order, the way to move up it is to ask its owner, not to step round it.