Judgement Test Question 10 – Regional leaders give different service standards
Read the scenario and rate every action independently. Several actions can receive the same rating.
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Scenario
Two regional directors have told their teams to use different thresholds when referring complex cases for specialist support. One approach protects specialist capacity, while the other gives customers earlier access to help. Staff compare decisions across regions and argue about which instruction is correct. Customer outcomes are becoming inconsistent, and the two directors now defend their approaches in increasingly personal terms. You own the national service standard and need to restore consistency while making use of the operational evidence from both regions.
Rate the actions
For each action, choose Counterproductive, Ineffective, Fairly Effective or Effective.
Action A
Allow both regions to continue until the quarterly service review so the relationship has time to settle.
Rate this action:
CounterproductiveIneffectiveFairly EffectiveEffective
Action B
Tell staff to use whichever threshold gives the quickest outcome for the customer in front of them.
Rate this action:
CounterproductiveIneffectiveFairly EffectiveEffective
Action C
Issue a single national threshold immediately, based on your current judgement, and review it after the next reporting cycle.
Rate this action:
CounterproductiveIneffectiveFairly EffectiveEffective
Action D
Bring the directors together with referral data and customer outcomes, agree an interim standard and commission a short review to settle the long-term threshold.
Rate this action:
CounterproductiveIneffectiveFairly EffectiveEffective
Click to reveal the answer
- Action A: Ineffective
- Action B: Counterproductive
- Action C: Fairly Effective
- Action D: Effective
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