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Weighing trade-offs

Comparing the gains and costs of options against each other to choose the best balance.

Good work shows: Lists the gains and costs of each option; shows what is given up by each choice; explains why the chosen balance is best.

Weighing trade-offs is one of the judgement skills on FinderK.

The job simulations and Skill Paths below include work that is checked for this skill. You do the work in an original fictional company and get feedback on it.

Job simulations

Cover the absences before the bell

Cover officer at Brookfield Academy

About 50 minutes. Included in Plus.

Three teachers are absent and the cover list must be on the staffroom screen by 08:30. Build it within the cover rules, tell the people affected, and deal with the change that comes at lunchtime.

Skills: Allocate cover within workload and safety rules; Weigh a department's priority against the policy; Tell colleagues what has been arranged and what it risks; Choose between costed options when the day changes

Go or no-go for release 5.4

Release captain (senior software engineer) at Orla Books

About 80 minutes. Included in Plus.

Release 5.4 must get a new bank feed connector live before an aggregator switches off its old interface on 31 October, but Android crashes, a slow migration and a quarantined test stand in the way. Judge readiness, recommend a plan and roll it out without over-promising.

Skills: Judge release readiness against written criteria and evidence; Separate what a dashboard shows from what the policy counts; Recommend a release plan that protects a hard external deadline; Ask for only the exceptions the policy allows, with reasons; Plan a staged rollout and the communications that depend on it

Recover the schedule after the fog

Duty operations controller at Skerry Air

About 80 minutes. Included in Plus.

Fog has held twelve morning flights and three crews whose duty limits are running out. Build a recovery plan that stays inside the limits without leaning on captains' discretion, look after the passengers, and replan when an island airport says it will close early.

Skills: Rebuild a flying programme within crew duty limits; Choose which service to protect when not all can run; Refuse to plan on discretion under pressure; Arrange passenger care and priority help through the right team; Replan quickly when a new constraint arrives

The real runway and the way through

Chief executive and co-founder at Fieldnote

About 65 minutes. Included in Plus.

The board pack says the company spends 70,000 dollars a month; the January ledger says more, and the board meets on Friday. Build the runway statement from the ledger, cost the ways through the next ninety days and recommend one, and settle with your co-founder what happens to the integration he wants to finish.

Skills: Build a cash figure from the ledger, not the plan; Choose a way through against the goal, not only the cash; Give a co-founder a decision he argued against

Van three has broken down

Dispatcher at Lockgate Couriers

About 50 minutes. Included in Plus.

A van has broken down with nine parcels, including medicines, funeral flowers and lab samples. Reassign them within three drivers' hours, decide what moves to tomorrow, and keep the customers who will wait informed.

Skills: Reassign work by priority within time and hours limits; Weigh a cost against a service promise; Tell customers about delays early and honestly; Escalate what needs a manager's approval

Will the casserole last until Christmas?

Supply planner at Thornbury Kitchenware

About 70 minutes. Included in Plus.

The lead time from Portugal has jumped from six weeks to nine, and the best seller has a big promotion before Christmas. Project the stock, recommend what to do with the costs, and help sales tell the biggest customer the truth.

Skills: Project stock week by week and find a shortfall; Compare supply options on cost, timing and risk; Request approval within purchasing limits; Support honest customer commitments with numbers

Skill Paths

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