“Before you call it a performance problem” is a team leader, Supplier Payments job simulation on FinderK.
You work at Brackwell Supplies, an original fictional company, and complete 3 assignments in about 95 minutes.
It is for anyone who wants to practice team leader, Supplier Payments work. No previous work experience is required.
Role
Team leader, Supplier Payments
Industry
People management
Level
Intermediate
Time
About 95 minutes, 3 assignments
Access
Included in Plus
Created by
FinderK
One of your team has met the quality trigger two months running. Read his error rates like for like, plan the foreign-currency work for November, and decide what to tell him and your manager.
Read the full brief
You lead a team of six payments processors at a supplies wholesaler. One of them, Daniel, has an error rate more than double the rest of the team for two months, and your manager wants to know before her report on Thursday whether you are starting the informal stage. Since September Daniel has done all of the team's foreign-currency invoices. You work out his error rates like for like, plan who processes the foreign-currency invoices in November when he is on leave for a week, and then answer Daniel, who is worried, and give your manager your recommendation. You decide who does which work and what support to give. Spending over your limit and any formal process go to your manager.
What is Brackwell Supplies?
Brackwell Supplies is a wholesaler of office, catering and cleaning supplies, based in Sheffield, with 260 staff. It buys from about 1,900 suppliers in the UK, the EU and the US. The Supplier Payments team in Finance Operations posts about 3,500 supplier invoices a month and prepares the weekly payment runs. Amounts are in pounds sterling (GBP) unless an invoice is in euros or US dollars. Times are UK time.
Who do you play?
You are the team leader, Supplier Payments in the Finance Operations team.
You lead the Supplier Payments team of six payments processors. You took over on 1 October 2026 from Carl Brennan, who moved to the payments systems project. You decide who does which work, hold one-to-ones and arrange training up to 500 GBP per person. You may start the informal stage of the Performance support policy after advice from the People partner. Spending over 500 GBP and the formal stage go to Rachel Okafor, Head of Finance Operations.
These coworkers are fictional. They may make mistakes, so compare their suggestions with the evidence.
Frequently asked questions
How long does “Before you call it a performance problem” take?
About 95 minutes, across 3 assignments. When the time is up, you get 10 minutes to round up and submit. Pausing stops the clock.
Is “Before you call it a performance problem” free?
No. It is included in FinderK Plus. You can also try it without an account, without grading.
Do I need team leader, Supplier Payments experience?
No. No previous work experience is required. The listed level is intermediate.
What do I get when I finish?
You get feedback on each assignment you submit. Completing all required assignments earns a completion certificate. It records participation and is not professional accreditation.
Is Brackwell Supplies a real company?
No. Brackwell Supplies is an original fictional company made for practice. Its coworkers may make mistakes, so check their suggestions against the evidence.
Seven applications, three interview slots and a depot manager who referred her neighbour's son. Score the applications against the specification, tell the manager the result, and prepare a fair interview.
Skills: Score applications against published requirements, not impressions; Keep what the policy does not score out of a decision; Give a hiring manager an unwelcome answer with the reason; Prepare a fair structured interview
Run the monthly absence review for one team, advise a team leader who wants to start a formal process for the wrong reasons, and arrange a fair stage 1 meeting for someone who does meet a trigger.
Skills: Apply attendance triggers using the policy, not the export; Advise a manager on disability and reasonable adjustments; Push back on a manager within your role and escalate; Arrange a fair formal meeting with correct notice
Learning and development coordinator at Corran Foods
About 70 minutes. Included in Plus.
Fourteen training requests and a budget that covers about half. Allocate it by the policy, check the compliance dates yourself, say no to a director's favourite course with a real alternative, and re-plan when Finance cuts the budget.
Skills: Allocate a budget by a published order of priority; Check requests against records before funding; Say no to a senior manager with a real alternative; Re-plan quickly when the budget changes
A licensing partner wants its co-branded cereal bar pack approved before a printer's slot. The logo is too small, the partner's logo too big, the bar is short of fibre for its high fibre claim and short of granola for its made with claim. Review it, decide, and hold the claims when the launch date is used as pressure.
Skills: Review artwork against brand rules and a licence; Separate must fix items from advice; Check claims against evidence and a claims register; Give a partner clear, usable feedback under time pressure; Hold brand and legal standards against commercial pressure