In-Basket Exercise (Supervisor and Manager Assessment)

An in-basket exercise (in the UK, an in-tray or e-tray exercise) is a work simulation used by public employers in the United States and Canada, among others, to select and promote supervisors and managers. The candidate takes on a role, receives a set of emails, memos and messages, and decides what to do with each one within a time limit: act now, hand it to someone, schedule it, escalate it or leave it. Depending on the employer, candidates rank the items, write the action they would take, or choose from set options, and are scored on judgments such as prioritization, delegation, communication and planning. There is no single official in-basket. Each employer writes and scores its own; check your employer's instructions for the format, time limit and any scoring information.