In the summer of 1997, I was offered a management job at Little Caesar's pizza. One of my former managers from Taco Bell convinced me to interview for that job, which I could do in my sleep. After that came the test, consisting of the most ridiculous questions I've ever seen on a test. More on that later.I did not accept the job, because the seven years I spent at Taco Bell taught me three things...
1) I HATE restaurant management.
2) As a college student, I knew it was only a matter of time until they began demanding too much of my time.
3) I knew that it was only a matter of time until my former Taco Bell manager was fired from Little Sleazers (which he was), prompting scrutiny from his former bosses onto me and everyone else my former Taco Bell manager brought into the company, which is more inconvenience than I needed for a job I didn't want in the first place.
But I digress. Back to the test. I aced it, and was offered a higher wage as a result, since nobody that ever interviewed for Little Seizure's at that district office ever got a perfect score on the test. From the questions, I thought even a drooling idiot could at least get a passing score on it.
Here are a few samples, based on my memory. All questions are multiple choice...
EX 1) Buffalo wings are made from the meat of what animal?
(recall that Buffalo refers to the name of a city, and is not among the choices)
EX 2) You are responsible for ordering supplies for a bakery. Based on your projections, you expect that the bakery will sell 25 cakes next week. Each cake is made with 2 eggs. Eggs are purchased in increments of one dozen. What is the minimum number of dozens you must order for the next week?
EX 3) You are the manager of the Little Caesar's restaurant in Billings, Montana. At 9:00 a.m., you step outside the front door of the restaurant, and the sun hits you squarely on your left cheek. Which compass direction does the restaurant face?
EX 4) For the past month, total sales receipts at your restaurant are $80,000. The amount spent on supplies was $40,000. What is the profit from the last month?
(the correct answer is "cannot be determined". The word "profit" refers to the amount of money left after paying for supplies, payroll, utilities, taxes, depreciation, et. al., none of which are stated in the question. I think this is the question that spoils a lot of perfect scores.)
I never had to take a "walk and chew gum at the same time" type of test for Taco Bell; those tests were specifically about job duties. Do McDonald's managers have to subject themselves to such insulting questions? Perhaps any place other than Little Sleazer's ar McDonald's. If anyone has taken such a test and remembers "goodies" like my examples, I think they would make for amusing reading.
Please Bring Two #2 Pencils,
Hugh Morris
