How to Pass the Supervisory Test Battery [2024]

The correct answer is B.

Best response: B
Primary competency: supervising and monitoring staff performance
Secondary competencies: discipline, fostering excellent customer service


Explanation: In this scenario, you receive a complaint about one of your employees. You have a double interest – on the one hand, you want to implement excellent customer service; on the other hand, you believe in your employee’s improved.

Response A takes responsibility for the customer’s feelings. You don’t want to discourage your employee; however not even talking to him about what happened is extreme. Moreover, doing this prevents your employee from receiving the customer’s feedback, from which he can learn.

In response B you take responsibility for the customer’s feelings, while supervising the employee’s performance. You give the employee a chance to explain his side – thus showing respect for his point of view. This is an important first step before taking a disciplinary action.

This response would have been even better if it would mention that such conversation can be used as an opportunity for further training for this employee. This way, your employee benefits from the customer’s feedback (encouraging employee development).

Disciplining the employee (response C) is an appropriate response, but before deciding to do so you should hear your employee’s side of the story. Another thing that this answer choice lacks is an apology or a compensation for the offended customer; this response focuses on the employee and neglects correcting the situation with the customer.

In asking the employee to call the customer (response D), similarly to response C, you fail to ask the employee for his side of the story. In addition, you don’t take responsibility for your employees’ behavior by apologizing yourself. At the moment, the customer is speaking to you – finishing the conversation and then having the employee call him seems like a humiliating disciplinary action. In addition, since the employee and the customer have had a bad interaction before, it may be better if you don’t create an additional interaction between them. Receiving the apology from someone with higher authority – you – should be enough.

The correct answer is C.

Best response: C
Core competency: fostering excellent customer service
Secondary competencies: effective communication, influencing others


Explanation: This is a question about service, and more specifically – customer or public complaints. You want to foster high quality service in your team, and in this question you are asked about the best strategy to do so. The presented situation is a bit sensitive – you overheard a private conversation.

While it may be true that your employees need to vent once in a while (response A), you don’t know if this is the case or if this attitude is broader. Doing nothing won’t allow you to understand the situation better or to improve your team’s service.

A general tip: some SJT questions include a passive response, which means doing nothing. These responses will rarely be the best response to the situation. Supervisors are expected to be active, to lead changes and take action for short and long term improvements. Notice that here the answer choice openly says “doing nothing,” but this won’t always be the case – sometimes the answer would be phrased in a way that sounds active, but in fact the implications of the answer choice would be passive, “doing nothing.”

Stepping in and reprimanding the employees (response B) is the other extreme. As said in response A, employees sometimes need to vent. In this response you don’t allow the employees a chance to explain themselves (you don’t allow your employees the benefit of the doubt), and aggressively stepping into a private conversation doesn’t show respect. 

Response C suggests a balance between ignoring the situation and reprimanding the employees without giving them a chance to explain. This response allows effective communication (allowing discussion) and is more likely to influence the team – you explain the importance of the matter and show your employees how it would eventually benefit them as well. We chose this response as best because it’s balanced. However, a better response would include a more direct discussion with the employees about what happened. Some SJT questions don’t include a perfect response, and you would need to choose the best of the given options.

Sending an email (response D) is more direct – you address the relevant employees and openly say what happened. However, this response also fails in allowing the employees a chance to respond or to explain themselves before you reprimand them.