Saral Co. is operating in seven north-eastern states of the country. The organization has a history of participative decision making, wherein people deliberate openly about pros and cons of every important decision, and a broad consensus is taken before taking the final decision. In Saral Co. every employee gets a salary proportional to the sales achieved.
A new General Manager (GM) joined during the beginning of this month and challenged the or ganization’s sole focus on sales to determine salaries. He urged the top management to include two more additional parameters in determining the salaries of the employees, viz. collection of information about competitors and the quality of relationship with the retailers.
Manohar, the highest earning employee for the last three years, vehemently opposes the GM’s proposal. Which of the following could be most likely reason for him to oppose the proposal?
Show Hint
- He considers the proposal as a serious threat to his favourable position in Saral Co.
- He is not interested in collecting the information regarding competitors.
- No clarity regarding the relative importance of the three parameters.
- He is not interested in maintaining quality relationship with retailers.
- He may need to work harder to earn the highest salary.
The Correct Option is
Solution and Explanation
Step 2: The GM’s proposal adds two additional determinants—{competitor information collection} and {quality of retailer relationships}. These create extra effort/metrics beyond sales, potentially diluting the weight of sales.
Step 3: Among the options, (E) captures the most direct self-interest for the top seller: with new parameters he must now invest effort in two additional areas to preserve his lead (or risk losing it). Options (A)–(D) speculate about fear, disinterest, or ambiguity; however, the {most likely} cause of strong opposition from the current top beneficiary is the increased effort required to keep earning the highest salary—hence (E).
The top management of Saral Co. refused to implement the proposal of the new GM from the beginning of next month. Which of the following could be the most justified reason for the management’s refusal?
Show Hint
- To ensure that no manager will get credit for a major change soon after joining.
- To avoid attracting criticism for their failure to implement a similar scheme.
- His past experience is limited to seven north-eastern states only.
- The GM is new to the organization and he would require some time to implement the new plan.
- The top management would need time to deliberate and get consensus.
The Correct Option is
Solution and Explanation
Step 2: Refusing immediate implementation next month best aligns with this established process: management needs time for deliberation, consultation, and consensus-building across stakeholders.
Step 3: Options (A)–(D) either assign ulterior motives or focus on the GM’s tenure/experience, which are less justified than adherence to the company’s standard governance. Therefore, (E) most directly reflects the organization’s decision-making culture and is the most justified reason.
Top Questions on Caselets
Mr. Zubin Mistry is the owner and the chief editor of the newspaper The Pluralist, renowned for its high reporting standards and outstanding writing quality. The Pluralist’s authentic reporting distinguishes it from other newspapers that sensationalize news. They are responsible employers, known to be highly supportive towards their employees. Its news editing team is led by Ms. Ramya Kattabomman, a respected veteran in the newspaper reporting industry, wellknown for her stringent adherence to the ethical standards of newspaper reporting.
Mr. Aditya Swaroop Verma, an award-winning senior journalist, has brought in an exposé into the activities of a mining company, operating in an ecologically vulnerable area. In his hardhitting reporting style, he has presented interviews with tens of people, delineating how the mining company has used illegal means to start mining in that area. These mining activities may lead to the destruction of the local ecological balance. However, Aditya Swaroop is unable to obtain an interview with the management of the mining company.
Aditya Swaroop’s investigative report article offers signi cant revelations about the alleged illegal activities of the mining company which were hardly covered in the media otherwise. Nevertheless, his sources have requested for complete anonymityNed Flanders and Homer Simpson Partners Limited is a law rm, known for its unwavering commitment to client satisfaction. They treat the clients as family members who have grown along with the rm. Further, they are highly regarded in the industry, consulted by the country’s top organizations. Among the founders, Homer Simpson is amboyant, while Ned Flanders is serious. Together, they bring a dynamic balance to the team.
The organization believes in a strong socialization ritual that bonds the new lawyers (newcomers) with the existing members. Also, the socialization ritual ensures that newcomers fully understand the nature of their work and integrate seamlessly into the company’s culture. During their rst week, newcomers are overloaded with a barrage of artificial tasks, unexpected client calls, and a challenging meeting with the founders. This results in newcomers getting overwhelmed, and doubting their decision to join the rm, only for the founders to meet them and reveal that this is one big prank and a way to welcome them to the organization. This socialization ritual has served them well for the past two decades. However, not all the newcomers appreciate the utility of this ritual.
One of the lawyers, Ms. Lisa Simpleton, who joined in 2023 and went through the same socialization ritual, found it unwelcoming. She believes that other newcomers might also share the same opinion. Lisa thinks that the current generation, especially post-COVID, needs more friendly welcome, and the rm must put an end to this ritual.- Read the following scenario and answer the questions that follow.
Mr. Singh lived in a sprawling housing society. He employed two part-time domestic helps, Vimla and Sharda. Vimla was responsible for cleaning and dusting, while Sharda took care of cooking.
Once Sharda fell ill and consequently took leave for three days. When Sharda returned to work, she learned that Mr. Singh’s gold ring, a gift from his mother, was missing. Suspecting theft, Mr. Singh had terminated Vimla. Mr. Singh asked Sharda to take additional responsibility of cleaning the house, along with an offer to double her salary. Sharda accepted the offer as her previous two jobs were lost due to frequent health-related absences. She was struggling to make ends meet; this offer would go a long way to help her.
Next day, while cleaning under the dressing table, Sharda found the gold ring. Overjoyed, Mr. Singh expressed his gratitude by presenting Sharda a reward of one thousand rupees! However, he made no mention of reinstating Vimla. - Read the following scenario and answer the questions that follow.
In Symbolis, an upcoming medium sized IT services organization, only 1% of the employees were awarded an annual performance bonus. This annual performance bonus was decided by a committee formed of different functional heads. When Ms. Nalini Kattakayam received the annual bonus for the first time in her five years at Symbolis, Ms. Shalini Sampath, a colleague with seven years of tenure at Symbolis, told Nalini that this annual bonus was less a reflection of Nalini’s performance and more a recognition of those who have fostered a strong rapport with the powers that be. Incidentally, Shalini had never received any performance bonus in her tenure at the company. - Read the following scenario and answer the questions that follow.
Raman had been working tirelessly as a Project Manager in the IT department of Flying Groceries, a renowned app-based supply chain company, for the past three years. Having graduated from a top-tier engineering college, he dived straight into the corporate world, managing projects with great zeal that inspired his seniors.
At the end of his first year with Flying Groceries, impressed with his hard work, Raman’s boss, Suraj, the founder-CEO of Flying Groceries, fast-tracked his promotion and made him Delivery Manager responsible for multiple projects of a vertical. Suraj also promised Raman the position of Chief Operation Officer in the fifth year of his tenure.
In search of a greater career trajectory, Raman pursued entrance exams for business schools. His efforts bore fruits as he secured a place in the country’s best business school, known for a strong alumni base, stellar placement records and demanding academic requirements.
Raman was delighted; he had three months to join the business school. Flying Groceries demanded that any employee who wished to leave the organization should give at least a month’s notice. Raman decided to continue working and enriching his work experience, which will be beneficial when applying to companies after graduating from the business school. Therefore, he decided not to share the news of the offer with anyone else for the time being.
Questions Asked in XAT exam
Match the following renowned Indian personalities with their respective awards.
Names Award 1. Shri Ratan Naval Tata A. Dadasaheb Phalke Award 2. Manmohan Singh B. Grammy Awards 3. Zakir Hussain C. Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy 4. Shyam Benegal D. World Statesman Award - XAT - 2025
- Famous personalities and their contributions
Match the following authors with their respective works.
Authors Books 1. Andy Weir A. Dune 2. Cixin Liu B. The Time Machine 3. Stephen Hawking C. The Brief History of Time 4. HG Wells D. The Martian 5. Frank Herbert E. The Three Body Problem - XAT - 2025
- Books and Authors
Match the following airlines with the countries where they are headquartered.
Airlines Countries 1. AirAsia A. Singapore 2. AZAL B. South Korea 3. Jeju Air C. Azerbaijan 4. Indigo D. India 5. Tigerair E. Malaysia - XAT - 2025
- Business and Economy
The diagram below represents a road network connecting five towns, namely Meeren, Lannisport, Winterfell, Oldtown, and Gulltown. The maximum speed limits along any stretch of road are as shown in the diagram. The straight road that connects Meeren to Gulltown passes through Oldtown. Another straight road, running west to east, connecting Meeren to Winterfell, passes through Lannisport. Further, two straight roads, one from Lannisport to Oldtown and another from Winterfell to Gulltown, are perpendicular to the road joining Meeren to Winterfell, and run from south to north.
Consider a car always travelling at the maximum permissible speed, and always taking the shortest route. It takes 1 hour to reach Oldtown from Meeren, 2 hours to reach Gulltown from Oldtown, and 45 minutes to reach Winterfell from Gulltown. (For this problem, always consider the shortest route in terms of distance.)
- XAT - 2025
- Logical and Analytical Reasoning Skills
The plots below depict and compare the average monthly incomes (in Rs. ’000) of males and females in ten cities of India in the years 2005 and 2015. The ten cities, marked A-J in the records, are of different population sizes. For a fair comparison, to adjust for inflation, incomes for both the periods are scaled to 2025 prices. Each red dot represents the average monthly income of females in a particular city in a particular year, while each blue dot represents the average monthly income of males in a particular city in a particular year. The gender gap for a city, for a particular year, is defined as the absolute value of the average monthly income of males, minus the average monthly income of females, in that year.
- XAT - 2025
- Data Interpretation