A contact centre situational judgement test presents realistic call, chat and email situations and asks candidates to choose the most and least appropriate responses. This guide explains what the Viewpoint Contact Centre SJT measures, works through a generic call example, and gives practical advice for employers and candidates.

What the Contact Centre SJT measures

Contact centre advisers handle a high volume of conversations, often with customers who are frustrated or confused, while meeting targets for call time and quality. Doing that well means building rapport quickly, finding out what the customer actually needs, resolving it properly first time and staying honest under pressure.

The Viewpoint Contact Centre SJT presents 16 realistic scenarios. For each, candidates choose the most and least appropriate responses. It is untimed and takes up to 15 minutes. It measures four competencies:

• Relating to others

• Understanding customers' needs

• Delivering a high quality service

• Professional integrity

A worked example

The following is a generic illustration written for this article, not an item from the Viewpoint test.

A caller says their bill is wrong for the third month running and they want to cancel. You are already over your target call time. Four possible responses are:

• A. Process the cancellation quickly to keep the call short.

• B. Acknowledge their frustration, check the bill with them, explain and correct the error if there is one, and then ask whether they still want to cancel.

• C. Transfer them to the retentions team without explanation.

• D. Promise the bill will be right next month, without checking.

B would usually be seen as most appropriate: it deals with the real problem and respects the customer's choice. D is the clearest least appropriate, because it makes a promise the adviser cannot be sure of keeping, which is an integrity issue. A and C sit in between: both may be legitimate in some circumstances, but neither addresses the repeated billing error.

What research says

SJTs are among the best-supported selection methods for interpersonal roles. Reviews by Lievens, Peeters and Schollaert found that SJTs predict job performance and are well accepted by candidates [1], and McDaniel and colleagues' meta-analysis confirmed their predictive validity across many studies [2]. For contact centres, which often recruit at scale, an SJT also gives candidates a realistic preview of the job, which can help reduce early turnover.

Using a contact centre SJT well

For employers, use the SJT early in volume hiring, interpret results in bands from Very Low to Very High, and explore lower-scoring competencies at interview or in a call role-play. For candidates, think about what an honest adviser who wants to genuinely fix the problem would do, rather than the quickest way to end the call.

See the Contact Centre SJT page, our guide to the customer service SJT, or all our situational judgement tests.

Frequently asked questions

How long does the Contact Centre SJT take?

It is untimed and takes up to 15 minutes, with 16 scenarios.

What does it measure?

Relating to others, Understanding customers' needs, Delivering a high quality service and Professional integrity.

How is it different from the Customer Service SJT?

Its scenarios are set in a contact centre, with calls, chats and messages, and its competencies reflect that role.

Is there a pass mark?

No. Results are shown in bands from Very Low to Very High and used alongside other evidence.

References

1. Lievens, F., Peeters, H. & Schollaert, E. (2008). Situational judgment tests: a review of recent research. Personnel Review, 37(4), 426–441.
2. McDaniel, M. A., Hartman, N. S., Whetzel, D. L. & Grubb, W. L. (2007). Situational judgment tests, response instructions, and validity: a meta-analysis. Personnel Psychology, 60(1), 63–91.