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Plum · Section 5

Plum Social Intelligence Practice: Workplace Scenarios

Practise Plum-style social intelligence scenarios: pick the most and least effective response to 10 workplace situations, then see why each one works or not.

Practice: 10 scenarios, untimedAlso called “Plum social intelligence”Also called “Plum situational judgement”

How the practice module works

  1. 01Each scenario describes a situation from a graduate’s first year at work, with four possible responses.
  2. 02Choose the response you think is least effective in the left column and the one you think is most effective in the right column. One response cannot be both.
  3. 03There is no timer. Afterwards you see how your picks compare with Candidate Falcon’s effectiveness model, and why each response is stronger or weaker.
  4. 04The model is our own view of good workplace practice, not Plum’s key, which is not public.

Controls

  • Choose one response on the left and one on the right
  • Arrow keys move within each column
  • Next once both are chosen

Included in 1 Game Platform Prep (when you choose Plum), All Games Platforms Prep and Full Access. See plans

Task
Choose the most effective and the least effective response to a workplace situation (Plum’s help center)
Confirmed by
Plum’s Discovery Survey FAQ: decide which statements are the most effective or the least effective
Where it sits
Section 5, the last section of the Plum Discovery Survey; about seven scenarios (one prep site)
Answer key
Not published by Plum
Practice version
10 scenarios from a bank of 30 original ones, four responses each, untimed, with a reason for every response

What the Plum Social Intelligence Scenarios section looks at

Prep sites call the last section of the Plum Discovery Survey social intelligence: it describes situations at work involving colleagues, managers or clients, with several possible responses. Plum’s help center describes choosing the response you think is least effective on the left and the one you think is most effective on the right.

Plum does not publish how many scenarios there are or how answers are scored. One prep site reports about seven scenarios. Plum’s FAQ says this section assesses your behaviour in the workplace.

How the Social Intelligence Scenarios practice works

  1. Read the situation, then the four responses.
  2. Choose the least effective response in the left column and the most effective in the right column.
  3. Press Next. After 10 scenarios, see how your picks compare with Candidate Falcon’s model and why each response is stronger or weaker.

Social Intelligence Scenarios tips

  • Picture a capable first-year employee: which response solves the problem and keeps the relationship?
  • Responses that deal with the issue directly and respectfully usually beat ones that avoid it or escalate straight away.
  • Blaming others, hiding a mistake or ignoring a rule is rarely the most effective option.
  • Read every response before choosing: two can look similar until you notice timing or who is involved.

Common Social Intelligence Scenarios mistakes

  • Choosing the most cautious option every time: escalating to a manager is not always best.
  • Picking the response that is most pleasant in the moment over the one that fixes the problem.
  • Forgetting to choose the least effective response with the same care as the most effective one.

A short Social Intelligence Scenarios practice routine

  1. Do one run, then read the reason for every response, not just the ones you chose.
  2. Do a second run a day later: the 30-scenario bank means you will see new situations.
  3. Finish with the Full Survey run to practise this section after the puzzles, as in the real survey.

Social Intelligence Scenarios FAQ

Are these Plum’s real scenarios?

No. All 30 scenarios and the ratings are Candidate Falcon’s own. The answer format follows Plum’s help center.

Is there a right answer in Plum’s social intelligence section?

Plum does not publish a key. Some responses are clearly more effective than others, and Candidate Falcon’s model explains its reasoning for each one, but it is not Plum’s scoring.

Do I pick or rank the responses?

You pick. Plum’s FAQ says you decide which responses are the most effective and the least effective; an older prep-site description of ranking every response does not match it.

Independent practice by Candidate Falcon, based on the answer format in Plum’s help center; the scenarios and the effectiveness model are Candidate Falcon’s own. Not affiliated with Plum or Phenom, and not their scoring. The puzzles, scenarios and statements are original, and practice results are not Plum scores. For how the Discovery Survey works, timing and results, read the free Plum assessment guide.