Ashraf has been working at a cybersecurity company called NuTech Pvt. Ltd. for seven years. Having missed a promotion in the previous appraisal cycle, Ashraf is anxious about it in the upcoming cycle. Ashraf is aware that the HR head is meeting the top management to discuss promotions sometime soon. (At NuTech, the HR head recommends names for promotions to the top management based on inputs from the functional teams.)
On a Friday afternoon, Ashraf receives an email from Sridevi, the HR head. It reads, “Hi, I need an urgent favour from you; please respond if you are free.” It was the first time that Sridevi ever contacted him. Surprised, Ashraf immediately replies back saying, “Sure! How can I help you, Sridevi? Regards, Ashraf.” In a couple of minutes, he receives a reply: “Ashraf, I am in the middle of an important meeting, but have to urgently send gift vouchers worth ₹50,000 to one of our important clients. If you could, please purchase and send the gift vouchers to the email address given below, at the earliest.” Ashraf , without any delay, sends gift vouchers worth ₹50,000 to the given email address.
Ashraf feels happy after this brief email interaction with Sridevi.
Which of the following statements, if true, will BEST make Ashraf strongly hopeful about his imminent promotion?
Which of the following statements, if true, will BEST make Ashraf strongly hopeful about his imminent promotion?
- Sridevi is known for her elite social circle and extravagant life style.
- Ashraf has heard from his industry friends that HR heads accept favours for recommending employees’ promotions.
- It is for the first time ever that Sridevi directly approached Ashraf to contact a client.
- Ashraf’s immediate junior, Shamsher, who worked closely with Sridevi, was promoted last year.
- Sridevi chose Ashraf over others for help, while in the midst of a meeting with the top management.
The Correct Option is
Solution and Explanation
To determine which statement would best make Ashraf strongly hopeful about his imminent promotion, we need to analyze the given options considering the context of his interaction with Sridevi, the HR head:
Option 1: "Sridevi is known for her elite social circle and extravagant lifestyle." This information does not directly relate to Ashraf's promotion prospects and is therefore not relevant to his hopes.
Option 2: "Ashraf has heard from his industry friends that HR heads accept favours for recommending employees’ promotions." While this suggests a potential pathway for promotion, it implies unethical behavior and does not guarantee Ashraf's hope for legitimate promotion.
Option 3: "It is for the first time ever that Sridevi directly approached Ashraf to contact a client." This could indicate growing trust, but it doesn't specifically highlight a promotion-related interaction.
Option 4: "Ashraf’s immediate junior, Shamsher, who worked closely with Sridevi, was promoted last year." This sets a precedent for promotion for those working closely with Sridevi, but it doesn't necessarily increase hope for Ashraf directly.
Option 5: "Sridevi chose Ashraf over others for help, while in the midst of a meeting with the top management." This is the most relevant statement. Being singled out for an urgent task while Sridevi was with top management suggests that Ashraf is valued and recognized, potentially aligning with discussions related to his promotion.
Thus, Option 5 is the statement that would best make Ashraf strongly hopeful about his imminent promotion, as it directly ties into his visibility and importance within the context of promotion discussions.
Ashraf does not hear anything from Sridevi in the next few days. Anxious, he meets up with Sridevi and enquires if the gift vouchers were appreciated by the client. This surprises Sridevi who closely scrutinises Ashraf’s emails and discovers that they originated from sridevi@nutich.com, instead of sridevi@nutech.com, her official email ID.
Taken aback, Ashraf requests Sridevi’s help in getting compensated by the company for his ₹50,000 loss.
Sridevi asks Ashraf to justify his compensation demand. Ashraf gives the following reasons:
1. I erred; however, my financial rectitude is on record.
2. I acted in the greater interest of the company.
3. The spam mail reached my inbox due to the failure of the company’s email filter.
4. A NuTech employee, who was robbed of ₹20,000 of company’s cash, was not punished.
5. In the past, some of my acquaintances had been similarly duped.
Which of the abovementioned reasons, in a combination, will BEST help Sridevi take up the issue with the top management?
Taken aback, Ashraf requests Sridevi’s help in getting compensated by the company for his ₹50,000 loss.
Sridevi asks Ashraf to justify his compensation demand. Ashraf gives the following reasons:
1. I erred; however, my financial rectitude is on record.
2. I acted in the greater interest of the company.
3. The spam mail reached my inbox due to the failure of the company’s email filter.
4. A NuTech employee, who was robbed of ₹20,000 of company’s cash, was not punished.
5. In the past, some of my acquaintances had been similarly duped.
Which of the abovementioned reasons, in a combination, will BEST help Sridevi take up the issue with the top management?
- 2, 3, 4
- 1, 2, 3
- 2, 3, 5
- 1, 2, 4
- 3, 4, 5
The Correct Option is B
Solution and Explanation
- Financial Rectitude: Ashraf asserts his financial integrity is well-documented. This is a valid personal quality, helping establish his character and reliability within the company, thereby supporting his position.
- Greater Interest of Company: Acting for the company's benefit implies he intended to fulfill what he believed was a company directive. This indicates his actions were not selfish but aimed at benefiting the organization, increasing the potential justification for compensation.
- Failure of Company’s Email Filter: Ashraf points out a systemic fault—the company’s email defenses failed to capture a spam email. This potentially highlights negligence on the company’s part, as they are responsible for maintaining adequate cybersecurity measures.
- Robbed Employee’s Non-punishment: Previously, an employee who lost money similarly did not face punishment. While potentially relevant, this points more toward company disciplinary action rather than compensation policy.
- Others Being Duped: Past scenarios where other individuals faced similar deceptions can highlight a pattern, showcasing the company’s ongoing vulnerability but doesn’t directly contribute to Ashraf's compensation claim.
- Combination 2, 3, 4: Lacks mention of Ashraf's financial trustworthiness.
- Combination 1, 2, 3: Combines character reference, company interest motivation, and company email filter failure—making it a strong case.
- Combination 2, 3, 5: Omits personal integrity mention.
- Combination 1, 2, 4: Ignores failure of email defenses, crucial for company responsibility.
- Combination 3, 4, 5: Excludes personal integrity and company interest, weakening Ashraf’s position.
Sridevi begins to doubt Ashraf’s competencies, given the way he handled the phishing emails. Thus, she convenes a meeting with the senior leadership to discuss Ashraf’s role in the company.
In the meeting, she shares the following observations:
1. Ashraf is poor at verbal communication, which is critical at subsequent levels.2. Ashraf should have been perceptive, even though the company’s email filter failed him.
3. Ashraf joined the email filter team one month prior to his receiving the phishing emails.
4. Ashraf rushed to act on Sridevi’s request despite his busy schedule.
5. Ashraf appears to be highly anxious to get promoted.
Which of the above observations, in a combination, if true, shall BEST go against Ashraf’s chances of getting promoted?
In the meeting, she shares the following observations:
1. Ashraf is poor at verbal communication, which is critical at subsequent levels.2. Ashraf should have been perceptive, even though the company’s email filter failed him.
3. Ashraf joined the email filter team one month prior to his receiving the phishing emails.
4. Ashraf rushed to act on Sridevi’s request despite his busy schedule.
5. Ashraf appears to be highly anxious to get promoted.
Which of the above observations, in a combination, if true, shall BEST go against Ashraf’s chances of getting promoted?
- 1, 2, 5
- 2, 3, 4
- 1, 2, 3
- 1, 3, 5
- 2, 3, 5
The Correct Option is C
Solution and Explanation
- Ashraf is poor at verbal communication, which is critical for higher roles. Communication skills are essential for leadership positions, hence this observation highlights a key gap.
- Ashraf should have been perceptive of the phishing threat, even though the email filter failed. This concerns his ability to handle unexpected tasks and threats, a crucial skill in cybersecurity.
- Ashraf joined the email filter team one month before the phishing incident. He might lack adequate experience in this role, highlighting a concern about his technical adaptability.
- Ashraf acted quickly on Sridevi’s request, despite his busy schedule. This could show him in a positive light, demonstrating responsiveness and willingness to assist.
- Ashraf appears highly anxious to get promoted. Excessive anxiety about getting promoted might reflect negatively on his emotional stability or readiness for higher responsibilities.
Top Questions on Statements and Conclusions
Humane Dynamix is a leadership training organization based in Mumbai. Established in 2015, the organization is gradually becoming a leader in behavioral training. In the organization, trainers are assigned to training projects based on their expertise. Corporates seek behavioral training services on a regular basis, from Humane Dynamix, for upskilling their executives. Humane Dynamix is headed by the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), to whom the Training Assignment Officer (TAO) reports. The TAO position rotates among the senior trainers for a fixed tenure; the CEO assigns this position to a senior trainer.
Companies, desirous of hiring Humane Dynamix, share their training needs with the organization. The TAO assigns a trainer to the client. Typically, the satisfied client requests for a particular trainer that the client is satisfied, giving repeat business to Humane Dynamix from the same client company. However, the TAO takes the nal call. Years of training experience plays a big role in client satisfaction, and hence, senior trainers conduct most training programs while the newly recruited trainers apprentice with them. However, the senior trainers have the autonomy to decide on who they want to accept as an apprentice..
Further, during a training program, the senior trainer takes most of the sessions, if not all, while the apprentice helps the senior trainers to organize their sessions, and occasionally take a few sessions. As the apprentices gain experience, they start getting their own independent projects, but that typically takes quite some time..
Dheeraj, a senior trainer, takes over as the TAO. As soon as he assumes the office, the CEO shares a concern with him: “We have a lot of young trainers who we have recently recruited. Since they are not known to the outside world, they do not get enough opportunities. Many of them are impatient to prove their mettle. Unless they are assigned more programs, we risk losing them rapidly.”- XAT - 2025
- Decision Making
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Statement:
Some mangoes are exported to Europe and most mangoes are consumed in India. In India, some mangoes are used for preparing mango juice and some are used for making jellies. All mangoes are consumed by humans unless they are raw mangoes. All raw mangoes are exported outside India.
Conclusions:
I. All the mangoes exported to Europe are unfit for human consumption.
II. Mango juice can also be prepared with raw mangoes.
III. Most mangoes are consumed in India in the form of mango jelly.
IV. No raw mango was used to prepare jelly.- NPAT - 2025
- Logical Reasoning
- Statements and Conclusions
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Statements:
In a university, some students can speak English and German, but not French.
Some students can speak French and Japanese, but not Korean.
Some students can speak German and Korean, but not Japanese.
Some students can speak English and Japanese, but not Korean.
Conclusions:
I. All students who speak Japanese can speak English.
II. Among the students who speak German, some can speak English and some can speak Korean.
III. Students who speak French can speak German as well.- NPAT - 2025
- Logical Reasoning
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Statement:
In a library, some members were issued non-fiction non-academic books and these were returned exactly 3 weeks later. Some members were issued non-academic fiction books written by American authors and they returned these books within 20 days. More than half the members were issued academic textbooks and these were returned after 20 days.
Conclusions:
I. The non-academic fiction books were borrowed by library members for the shortest duration.
II. Most library members prefer to read non-academic non-fiction books.
III. Academic textbooks were perhaps the most issued books in the library.
IV. Non-academic fiction books are preferred more than the non-academic non-fiction books by library members.- NPAT - 2025
- Logical Reasoning
- Statements and Conclusions
- Select the conclusion that best follows from the statement given below.
Statement:
No one who likes to watch baseball likes to watch basketball, and all those who like to watch basketball also like to watch football.
Conclusions:
I. All those who like to watch football like to watch baseball.
II. No one who likes to watch baseball likes to watch football.
III. Some of those who like to watch football like to watch baseball.- NPAT - 2025
- Logical Reasoning
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