Can you please tell me about yourself in the context of the opportunity at

Shoprite?
 Personality wise, extremely organised
 A bit of a perfectionist
 I am very self-critical, I find what I am doing wrong or what I can do better
everyday
 I like to keep busy, having a work environment with a high workload is where I
thrive
 I am eager to learn, I feel like a graduate program is an opportunity to further
train myself in an actual work environment
 I have worked in an assistants team the entire year, and have had no major
conflicts throughout the year while making good connections
 I have spoken up when I feel my peers are not pulling their weight, I am fair in
understanding people’s personal situations as long as it doesn’t negatively
affect out team as a whole
 I am generally quiet, very work based individual. This being said I tend to
create very close relationships with my peers over a longer period of time.
Where I may seem shy at first, I tend to come out of my shell once I fully
understand the personalities surrounding me

Tell me about a time when you faced a significant challenge working with
people from different backgrounds.
 My current job has a very diverse team, it was obviously difficult to get along
on personal terms at the beginning, but this did not affect the work efforts we
put in as a team
 Throughout the year these people have become some of my best friends, as
they accept me for my background just as much as I accept them
 We tended to thrive on our differences, the more we learnt about each other
the stronger the relationship got
 I feel that it is important to fully understand a person before “placing them in a
box”. It takes time to understand where people have come from, and I have
gained massive respect for some of my peers who have worked so hard to
get to the position they are in

Think of a time when you had a major role in a team that became very
successful. Tell me one or two things you did that contributed to the team’s
success.
 Major roles would be the successes my team had in third year studies, and
the current job where I am solely in charge of the organisation of a specifically
large module.
 The third year module team was very successful in terms of marks, but I am
especially proud of leading that team as I was able to meet a great group of
people. Where our team looked doomed from the start, we chose to better
know each other which enabled us to do work according to each others
capabilities and time constraints.
 The job this year meant I was in charge of a module for business
management, which had around 1400 students per semester. It took a lot of
effort to mark, pack and evaluate the marks of every single student, while also
 emailing people back with all the problems they were facing. I was in charge
of coordinating my fellow assistants in the marking process as well as the
perusing process. We had a lot of students who were unreasonable, but we
resolved issues through a calm and responsive manner to their issues. This
job required me to have a level of patience I simply thought I did not possess.
But this year taught me that I am very much capable of leading, and keeping a
cool head in times where my job seemed too much.

Tell about a time when you had the opportunity to generate a creative solution
to a problem. What happened? How did you come up with the solution?
In my job we have storerooms which are extremely poorly managed. This is an issue as
some students hope to receive their papers after marking is completed, and we simply
cannot find anything. I spent a large portion of my personal time organising these
storerooms according to year of tests written, and specific modules were placed together.
Every box which contained papers I printed box covers which stipulated which module and
date those tests are from. This helped us be more responsive to students, as well as helping
lecturers fully understand where past papers could be found.

We have persuals with an extremely large amount of students. Papers are organised
alphabetically in order to better find each person’s paper who comes to peruse. However, in
all of our modules we have noticed the large amount of surnames starting with the letter
“M”. This makes the time to find these students papers way longer in comparison to other
surnames. What I chose to do was organise the ‘M’ pile according to the year in which they
began studies. This meant that there were a few smaller piles for the students with a
surname starting with the letter ‘M’. This made it easier to locate which year they started
studies, and meant we looked through smaller piles in order to find the correct paper.

Working on a project with others sometimes causes conflict. Describe one of

the most difficult situations you’ve had involving conflict with another person.
How did you handle it?
I had issues with a person in my current research in my honours year. We had a group
where all aspects of our project was discussed. There would be times where this person
would message after midnight telling the group members what needs to be done, and
would go on to scream at us the next morning for not reading the messages. She was largely
affected by her own stress and anxiety regarding our research, and there were multiple
times where she would scream or cry because she felt as if we were not doing our part. To
fix this issue, I first stated everything which I had contributed to the project, proving that I
was doing my part to my best ability, if not doing even more than her. I then went on to talk
to her privately about the way she talks to me and our group members. I stated that I
understood her anxious feelings towards the project, letting her know that it is stressful to
all of us. I did say it is alright to feel the way she feels, but a direct lack of respect towards
the group was only making it harder to finish. I told her that she needs to start speaking to
us with respect, or it will be simply impossible to perform at our best level.
She realised that she went over the line a number of times and apologised immediately. She
messaged other people in the group as an apology for the way she has acted. Currently she
has not made any issues since our talk, and getting tasks done has been way easier.
Tell about one of the most rewarding experiences. What made it so rewarding?
What did you do?
 Most rewarding things I have done is assisting in times where I get nothing from it
(SPCA, orphanages, etc.)
 The simulation done this year, a 3 day course where my team would have to run the
overall operations of a cookie company. It was extremely difficult and we battled
throughout, but by the end we learnt a multitude of lessons in understanding
demand patterns, as well as the potential external events which a company needs to
be prepared for. We got taught at the end of the course what we could improve on
and what we proved to do really well. I learnt that my personal skills aided a lot in
the optimal procurement of raw materials while enabling long term relationships.

Have you ever been on a team with an unproductive person? What did you do?
Yes, in fact it was one of my best friends! I knew he had a poor workrate, but he needed a
group and we had a space available. When he failed to perform at the correct rate, I let him
know in a way he understood. Whenever he gets told off in a more aggressive manner, his
productivity simply gets worse! I chose to talk to him in a relaxed manner, just asking what
other activities he had been busy with. We agreed that he needed to contribute more, but
he also let me know that he wanted assurance that his part was being done correctly. I let
him know that he could send his rough work to me so I can evaluate it, just to give him
assurance that his work was worthwhile. And it was! He was more knowledgeable in the
module than he had previously thought, and this year he has gone on to have a great job in
the logistics field. He gained confidence in his views of the logistical environment, and I like
to think I helped him with that process.

If you were the successful candidate. Why should I hire you? What are your
greatest strengths? What are your greatest weaknesses?
Why Hire Me?
 Attention to detail
 I am trustworthy and responsible, I won’t let you down. I take any
shortcomings from my side personally, I find myself very accountable for all of
my actions.
 I tend to be good at conflict resolution, I like to work in an environment which
extracts the best performance from a number of differing personalities
 I have proven through my studies that I have the critical thinking skills
required in this field.
Strengths
 Trustworthy
 Very reliable
 Good at maintaining personal relationships
 Very much work-oriented, I love having tasks to complete on a daily basis

Weaknesses
 I have a bit of anxiety when working with new people, this does go away after
a bit but at the start I may seem very quiet.
  I do not currently have work experience in the logistics field. Where my
current job entails a large degree of organisation, I do not have official work
experience in the logistics field.
 I do wish to better my public speaking in future, one on one communication is
no issue for me but speaking to larger crowds has been an issue in the past.
 I am very closely attached to my long-term girlfriend who I wish to live with
next year. She is my rock, and currently is studying genetics honours. I do not
wish to live somewhere where she isn’t, so for that reason I am currently
trying my hardest to find her work opportunities in the Western Cape. She has
a job offer at the University of Pretoria next year, but she is happy to move
with me if any opportunities arise for her. For this reason I would like to know
the availability of doing this programme in Pretoria, Durban, or Cape Town.
 I am going on a trip the beginning of next year until March. I am going on this
trip as a way of alleviating the burnout I have had from the years of studying. I
wish to come into the job with my full capabilities as well as coming fully
energised for the tasks that come with the job.

Short-Term Career Plans:

To attain a better understanding of the supply chain work climate, and to gain the
necessary work experience. I feel as if I have a lot to learn about the actual work
environment before I jump into a higher position.

Medium-Term Career Plans:

I hope to build myself through a company and gain a sense of loyalty and trust with
the personnel I work alongside.

Long-Term Career Plans:

I wish to find job opportunities in an international atmosphere.

What Sparked my Interest in the Field:

The field is based around having a high regard for organisation, and entails knowing
all aspects of a company's operations in order to make decisions. I feel like this job is
highly related to my personality, I am a person who enjoys a large degree of detail
when investigating issues. For this reason, I feel this field is perfect for my
personality.

Relocation Details:
Currently I am staying in Pretoria, this being said I live with my family a few hours
from Durban and I actually prefer being somewhere such as Durban in future. I have
always wanted to work in either Durban or the Western Cape, I am fine staying in
Pretoria but I will be more than happy to work somewhere closer to the coast!

Other Approaches:
I was approached 3 weeks ago by Glencore, a mining company with offices in
Sandton. It would be a graduate program, and they did let me know the interview
went well. However, I wasn't sure that the company culture was a good fit for me, I
didn't get along too much with the people at Glencore and it is situated in an area
requiring me to drive long distances each day. On top of this, I will be travelling to
Vietnam and Thailand in the early months of 2023. Glencore was not happy about
this, so it is looking as if they will look to give the job to someone else. Mr De Swardt
has also been kind enough to offer me the opportunity of a graduate programme at
Performance Brands. I am applying to this, but from what I know that position is
exclusively in Cape Town. It will take a lot of preparation from my side to move my
life to a city I have never lived in beforehand.

Shoprite Information
 The largest South African retailer by market capitalisation, sales, profit and number
of employees and customers.
 Extensive application of King IV Codes
 Entails a full sustainability report, proving the ethical manners of operations
 Cash flows through investing activities increasing, proving the company’s goals to
further invest into company assets
 Less repayments were necessary in the past financial year as the company owes
less
 Sales increase by 9.6%
 4.1% growth in SMME employment (supporting of local suppliers)
 R157 million in surplus foods and goods donated


SDGs which are contributed to the most

 SDG 2 (Zero Hunger)
 SDG 8 (Decent work and economic Growth)
 SDG 12 (Responsible consumption and production)

Checkers Offering
 Offers low cost products to a large customer base
 Situated throughout SA and Africa
 Company culture based on critical thinkers, teamwork and ethical behaviour
 High demand certainty, and strong supplier relations
 Higher convenience to consumers through longer service offering hours
 Company known to supply reliable products, happy to replace damaged or off
products
 Store setup is done well in areas I have shopped (Loftus, Brooklyn, etc)