The Student Room Group
Reply 1
Can you post some examples, I've never had a multiple choice application form, but could have a look at the questions for you :smile:
Reply 2
There used to be one on the tesco website, alas it's not there anymore. ggrrrrr
I guess the key is to sound as keeeen as possible - even if you are (understandably) not that excited about working in a supermarket :smile:
Reply 4
I found the tesco one pretty tough, I like to think it's because I'm think about what the correct answer is too much!

The Sainsburry's one was less troublesome. Their multiple choice questions were on scenarios, for instance

You are in the car park hurry to the store as you are nearly late for your shift. You see a gentleman has dropped a bottle of tomato sauce which has smashed, do you....

a. continue on your way as if you stop you will be late?
b. tell the man he should inform customer services
c. tell the man you will get him a new bottle of sauce and inform customer services for him
d. ask the man if there is anything you can do to help?
c i suppose, although i'm not sure what supermarket 'protocol' is on people smashing their bottles of tomato ketchup once outside of the shop - shows you care for customers outside of your 'line of duty' but at the same time don't let this get too much in the way of getting to work on time - you didn't stop to ask if there was anything you could do to help, like a prize idiot, you used your initiative without wasting too much time, and you helped out - giving a better image to your supermarket of choice :P
Reply 6
I think I said D. My thinking was that the supermarket might be against the policy of giving out free replcaements. If you dropped a TV in the carpark I doubt they'd be too keen to replace it!
Reply 7
I think I would have gone for B. I think in this instance it would be best to pass the responsibility on to someone else who knows more about company policy in terms of replacing broken items once they have left the store :smile:
The most mind-boggling one is:

"A customer wants a particular magazine but you don't have a copy in stock."

Do you:

a. Call the other stores and see if they have a copy they can send to your store?
b. Apologise and suggest some other shops in the area?
c. Suggest contact the customer when it gets delivered?
d. Tell the customer you'll arrange for more copies to be delivered?


Now, to me, EVERY SINGLE ONE of those options sound equally as viable! How the hell am I supposed to know what company policy is? In the end I said 'c', which is probably wrong. ******* stupid.
Reply 9
cosmik_debris
The most mind-boggling one is:

"A customer wants a particular magazine but you don't have a copy in stock."

Do you:

a. Call the other stores and see if they have a copy they can send to your store?
b. Apologise and suggest some other shops in the area?
c. Suggest contact the customer when it gets delivered?
d. Tell the customer you'll arrange for more copies to be delivered?


Now, to me, EVERY SINGLE ONE of those options sound equally as viable! How the hell am I supposed to know what company policy is? In the end I said 'c', which is probably wrong. ******* stupid.


Yes! That was another of the questions on the Sainsburry's form. I think I said D because it didn't make any extra work for the store - eg calling someone - apart from the person who orders in stock doing their job!
i'm sure you could cross b off that list
The Ace is Back
i'm sure you could cross b off that list


Yes, but could you? Is the profit of £2 they would make on the magazine more beneficial than the satisfaction the customer gets when they are put in the right direction instead of being fobbed off and made to wait until more copies have arrived, thus inducing possible good-feeling and perhaps more repeat custom?
not entirely sure but i would assume that you should do everything in your power to keep the customer going to your shop, in the eys of the shop you're applying to, without appearing desperate. Sending him off to another shop seems like you haven't tried at all to help the customer yourself, rather it seems you've put this problem on someone else's shoulders, and have sent him away from your store
Reply 13
Personally, if I was a customer, if I had the choice of being pointed in the direction of a local shop there-and-then or having to wait a few days til they could replenish their stock of the magasine, I'd WANT to be pointed in the direction of another local shop. To be honest, it's not like a customer is going to stop shopping at Sainsburry's and, forever more, do their grocery shopping at a news agent!

That said, I definitely agree that from Sainsburry's point of view, B is not the best answer.
Reply 14
The tescos one was sooooooooooo hard! It was like 4 good qualities and you had to say which was most and least like you - i'm yet to hear back from them
Reply 15
Pigmy Goat
The tescos one was sooooooooooo hard! It was like 4 good qualities and you had to say which was most and least like you - i'm yet to hear back from them


I've failed to answer those questions correctly twice!
Reply 16
I aplied like you smeets, all with no success.