The Xavier Aptitude Test (XAT) is one of the most interesting and
challenging entrance exams in India. What makes it so is the ‘Decision Making’
section. It is a curious mix of management case studies, real life scenarios
and some reasoning/math-based problems that call for more than just your aptitude
skills.

This section demands you to use a combination of critical thinking
skills and common sense. In other words, such questions test your ability to
make decisions in tricky situations.

The various questions in this section can be categorised as follows:

1. Ethical
dilemmas: These questions present scenarios wherein more than one decision
can be made and the ethics of the situation are an important consideration.

2. Corporate/managerial issues: Such
questions pertain to human resource or client management issues in a company. They
could also be based on errant behaviour of an employee or the founder/owner of
the business.

3. Financial choices: These issues revolve
around financial aspects and you need to select the most viable option.

4. Real life scenarios: In this, a real
life issue/scenario is provided and you are supposed to analyse it before
drawing suitable conclusions. An example would be a question based on the Anna
Hazare protest that appeared a couple of years back. Thus, keeping abreast of current
affairs would help.

5. Mathematics
and reasoning-based questions: These questions use concepts like interest,
probability and set theory and present a scenario for you to deal with. It is
not necessary that all the questions in such a set will use mathematical
concepts. Some general questions might also be asked based on the given
context.

The questions in this section can either appear in the form of sets (comprising
2-5 questions) or as single questions. Sets with more than 3 questions offer
you the advantage of solving multiple questions with the same data. Remember,
in every question, you need to understand the context of the given situation
and then answer the questions.

How to solve Decision Making questions?

The decision making questions described above can be solved by keeping
in mind some simple points that act as pointers in different cases. Let’s take these
up one at a time.

1. Avoid extreme viewpoints

In most decision making questions you have to choose one of the given
answer options. Therefore, be careful and avoid extreme choices (i.e. options like
firing an employee). Try to find a balanced solution for a situation and adopt
the middle path.

2. Undertake stakeholder analysis

It is essential to do a stakeholder analysis before deciding your
answer. In other words, you should analyse the situation from the point of view
of different stakeholders (employees, managers, directors, company owners,
shareholders, etc.) and ensure that your decision maximises benefit for the sum
total. While some of the parties involved might have to bear some cost, overall
good should always be your objective.

3. The organisation is bigger than the individual

Always remember: the organisation is bigger than an individual.
Whenever you are making a decision, make sure you consider the overall benefits
for the organisation. Do not take decisions that damage the company in some way
or set a bad precedent for others.

4. Long-term benefits vs. short-term benefits

In these questions, unless the situation asks you to resolve some
short-term issue, your preference should always be long-term solutions for
problems.

5. Ethical viewpoints

It is extremely important to take the ethical stand in any scenario.
You might have answer options with street-smart or practical solution to a
problem. However, they might cross ethical bounds and are best avoided.
Remember, this is textbook decision making and thus unethical answer choices
are not acceptable.

6. Use critical reasoning skills for questions with some form of data

You might find questions that require you to make decisions based on some
form of data. For this, you can use critical reasoning skills you might have
learnt in the Verbal Ability section.

7. Filter essential information

Some decision making questions will have a lot of unnecessary
information. It is important for you to filter out the salient details that
will help you pick the right answer.

As a quick recap, we can say that decision making is about taking the
right decisions at the right time. It’s not about considering the best
interests of one party in the short-term; it is about balancing the best
interests of all the stakeholders in the long-term.