SkillsSkill 2 of 5
Show judgment, including about AI
Worked example
Tell me about a decision you made without all the information you wanted.
Tests: a clear call, a rejected option, a reversal trigger, and judgment about AI.
Canva’s Simon Newton, on its engineering interviews: “Do they understand when and how to leverage AI effectively?” (Simon Newton, opens the source) Jun 11, 2025
The question
Maya is an operations analyst at a 120-store grocery chain: 40 high-volume stores and 80 low-volume. She and every number here are invented.
| Store-units | Cost | |
|---|---|---|
| (a) Even split: 120 stores at 60% | 72 | Usual |
| (b) 40 high-volume stores at 100%, 80 others at 40% | 72 | Usual |
| (c) Substitute supplier for the full amount | 120 | +22% |
Invented figures. A store-unit is one store’s usual weekend order. (a) and (b) ship the same total.
“Tell me about a decision you made without all the information you wanted.”
Your turn
Say your answer out loud, or jot notes below. Both work. Or skip to the worked answer.
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The shape of a strong answer
- Decision and deadline
- Two or three options
- What you knew and didn’t
- The call and why
- What would reverse it
- Outcome and lesson
A strong answer, step by step
Open each step in turn. This is one strong answer, not the only one.
Step 1: State the decision and the gap
“Before a holiday weekend, our strawberry supplier could send only 60% of usual, and I had a day to decide without knowing if they’d top up.”
Why it works: Names the deadline and the gap.
Step 2: Lay out the options
“Even split: 120 × 0.6 = 72 store-units. Or 100% to the 40 high-volume stores and 40% to the other 80: 40 + 32 = 72. Or a substitute at 22% more.”
Why it works: Same 72 either way: the choice is service, not volume.
Step 3: Say what you did with the AI suggestion
“An AI assistant’s comparison picked the substitute. I rejected it because it ignored the margin hit.”
Why it works: Judgment about AI, said openly.
Step 4: Make the call, with a trigger and the outcome
“I chose (b): high-volume stores sell out first and carry the holiday traffic. A confirmed Friday top-up would have switched me to (a). Spoilage was lower at the small stores; next time I’d ask store managers sooner.”
Why it works: Call, reason, trigger, honest outcome.
The answer, in short
- Decision
- Option (b): 100% to the 40 high-volume stores, 40% to the other 80.
- Because
- It ships the same 72 store-units as an even split, but where the holiday demand is; the substitute’s 22% premium wasn’t worth the margin.
- What would change it
- A confirmed Friday top-up from the supplier: then switch to the even split.
Common traps
- “I gathered all the data”, which contradicts the question.
- No rejected option.
- Hiding that AI was used, or following it blindly.
- No outcome.
Weak vs strong
“I analyzed everything carefully and made the best decision for the business.”
Fails all four checks: no one-sentence decision, no rejected option, no trigger, no outcome.
“I prioritized the 40 high-volume stores, rejected the AI’s substitute because of margin, and would have switched to an even split if the supplier topped up.”
Check your answer
- Did I state the decision in one sentence?
- Did I name a rejected option and why?
- Did I say what would change my mind?
- Did I say how it turned out, bad parts included?
Practice judgment out loud with follow-up questions → Socratify
Last reviewed Nov 9, 2026