Ridiculous tests on Sainsbury's recruitment site

custardy

Miss_Scrooge wrote: »

This is rubbish!

Months ago I applied online for a position as a cashier - same standard application, even though none of the questions were at all relevant to the role. Took me a good hour filling in my details and answering the questions. Some of them were common sense and others any of the answers would've been suitable really.

Anyhow, I failed the damn thing, "they" took a couple of days to inform me by e-mail. Addressed me as "Dear ,". So I don't even have a name now? :mad: Just basically said I should just try applying again in 6 months. Well I thought sod this. I could tell it was a generic e-mail. Nobody looked at my application. I bet the system assesses them and judges based on how many answers you get correct (forget about qualifications or experience...) and forwards you that e-mail if you were unsuccessful. So I applied again, failed, exactly the same e-mail...

All for a cashier job. I won't be applying to Sainsbury's again...

This is fairly common. Same for my employer. I applied for an internal role I had been working for 8 months.
I still had to go through the same assessment process and failing it would have meant being unable to get the role I was already performing!
For external applications the 1st stage assessment is a filtering process. Experience/qualifications are referenced later in the recruitment process.

Polarbeary

I think it's all a bit mad....why do people applying for minimum wage jobs have to jump through hoops to get them with these crazy group activities and personality tests? If you work in an an office you might have an interview or two and maybe a computer skills test.

makeyourdaddyproud

azules wrote: »

I got frustrated with the Asda questioners also
But they are testing your aptitude.

There are so many jobs that differ they ar advertising,
its seems a little unfair that you cant apply for another position
but at the end of the day.
its their company
if they dont like the sound of you, its too bad
just like me, you will ahve to wait for 6 months
maybe I will consentrate a little more next time

Consentrate [sic] only on the jobs that don't involve putting pen to paper and you'll be fine.

mrs_m_goldsmith

CelticRugger wrote: »

...[snip]...For me, I remember I sat an Aptitude test for Safeway many years ago, and didn't get through. However I'm glad as it would have been bad for my career. Now I have a top job, award winning author, I speak at events, and I even influence global vendors. Also I earn 3-4 times what the Safeway wage was back then. My point is, half of these organisations miss great candidates think their schemes are clever. ...[snip]...

I think perhaps we are all missing the point. Sometimes, these types of tests are meant to screen *out* top performers! Sounds a bit daft, until you realise that someone who will eventually become an "award winning author" is obviously not going to be happy for long in a menial mind-numbing type of position, as most (if not all) of supermarket entry level positions would be categorised. Apologies if this does not apply to you personally, but it certainly applies to many of the other posters.

Years before I retired, I decided I wanted something a bit less challenging that software development and applied for a part-time job in our local supermarket. I was turned away at the first hurdle as being over-qualified. Without a track record of being successful in a lower-tier job, they wouldn't even consider me, never mind interview me.

Fair enough, I slogged through 5 more years and finally was made redundant, so took that as early retirement. Happy days! :j

The moral is, if you don't succeed in even getting an interview with a company, it means you are meant to move on and find something better. So don't brood about it, just go forward!

-Mrs_MG :A

pinpin

Polarbeary wrote: »

I think it's all a bit mad....why do people applying for minimum wage jobs have to jump through hoops to get them with these crazy group activities and personality tests? If you work in an an office you might have an interview or two and maybe a computer skills test.

lol, the working world is like a 'big brother' audition nowadays!

WorkFromHome

I applied for an Asda job and got through to interviews. I agree the online questionnaires are unfair. There is one thing I learnt when it comes to applying to these supermarkets - they are looking for team players. If you see a question that says anything in relation to working in a team or on your own ALWAYS put as a team.

I didn't get the job I applied for but they wanted to offer me another job and put me on their system. I later got a call saying the job went to someone instore instead so in a nutshell I didnt get a job with Asda.

sainsberry

Everyone stop being so naieve.

This is purely and simply a way of them being able to choose who they want. It has nothing at all to do with the test.

It is a clever way of getting around the totally "equal" opportunity employer.

If they didnt have this test you would be within your rights to go to the courts, papers and accuse Sainsberrys of being not an equal opportunity employer. Sainsberrys do not want that so they have a so called "test".

Unless you take them to court, and they know you wont, you will never know the "correct" answers.


ps. I am a member of Mensa.

RedfordML

pinkshoes wrote: »

The questions certainly don't look Sainsbury's specific; they look like logical questions where they can assess how you'd cope, what you'd do in a situation etc... Rather than looking for a trained person, it means they're looking for someone who has good reactions to potential situations they might come across.

I think your letter of complaint was unnecessary.

This. Reading the question correctly can often be many peoples downfall.

tomtontom

sainsberry wrote: »

Everyone stop being so naieve.

This is purely and simply a way of them being able to choose who they want. It has nothing at all to do with the test.

It is a clever way of getting around the totally "equal" opportunity employer.

If they didnt have this test you would be within your rights to go to the courts, papers and accuse Sainsberrys of being not an equal opportunity employer. Sainsberrys do not want that so they have a so called "test".

Unless you take them to court, and they know you wont, you will never know the "correct" answers.


ps. I am a member of Mensa.

I'd put money on that being untrue!

martinsurrey

tomtontom wrote: »

I'd put money on that being untrue!

and irrelevant,

did you know Einstein WASN'T a Mensa member, must have been an idiot.

"People who boast about their I.Q. are losers."
-Stephen Hawking