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Raising citizens' share of private-sector retail jobs
You run the case. Read the prompt, answer questions from the notes below, and share data only when the candidate asks for it or gets stuck. Score at the end.
Case timer
00:00
1. Read the prompt aloud
Read it slowly, then pause. Let the candidate ask questions before they structure.
A Gulf government wants to raise the share of citizens in private-sector retail jobs from 20 percent to 35 percent within five years. How realistic is this, and what should it do?
Format note: Candidate-led: you ask for data and drive; the interviewer answers what you ask. All figures are illustrative.
2. Answers to clarifying questions
Give these answers only if the candidate asks. If they ask something not listed, give a sensible answer or say it does not matter here.
If asked: How many private-sector retail jobs are there, and is that number growing?
Answer: About 500,000, roughly flat.
If asked: How many citizens enter the job market each year interested in retail?
Answer: About 10,000 a year, at current conditions.
If asked: How do wages compare?
Answer: Citizens' average expected salary is about SAR 6,000 a month; the current average in these roles is about SAR 3,500.
3. The hypothesis a strong candidate states
Listen for an early, testable guess like this one. It does not need to match word for word.
The target will need both more citizen candidates and help with the wage gap. My hypothesis is that the number of interested candidates, not jobs, is the binding constraint.
4. A model structure
Compare the candidate's structure with this one. A different split can be just as good if it is clean and fits the problem.
- Size the hiring need, compare with supply, and design levers
- Extra citizen hires needed a year
- Key: Supply of interested candidates
- Cost gap for employers and budget for support
- Levers: training, job design, wage support, phased targets
5. The working, step by step
Each step shows how a strong candidate works it out. Share a new fact from it only when the candidate asks or is stuck, and let them do the math: the result in the dark box is what they should reach.
Step 1: Citizen jobs at the target
What a strong candidate does: Candidate: "35 percent of 500,000 jobs is:"
Citizen jobs at target: 500,000 × 0.35 = 175,000
Step 2: Extra citizens needed
What a strong candidate does: Today 20 percent, or 100,000, are citizens.
Extra citizen hires: 500,000 × 0.35 - 500,000 × 0.2 = 75,000
Step 3: Per year
What a strong candidate does: Over five years. These are net figures: citizens who leave must also be replaced, which raises gross hiring.
Extra hires a year: 75,000 ÷ 5 = 15,000
Step 4: Supply gap
What a strong candidate does: Candidate: "Only about 10,000 interested citizens enter the job market each year, so there is a gap of:"
Missing candidates a year: 15,000 - 10,000 = 5,000
Step 5: Extra cost per hire for employers
What a strong candidate does: Interviewer: "Employers say the salary difference is their main concern." Candidate: "The yearly gap per hire is:"
Extra salary per hire (SAR a year): (6,000 - 3,500) × 12 = 30,000
Step 6: Budget for wage support
What a strong candidate does: Candidate: "Suppose the government pays 30 percent of salary for each new hire's first two years. At full run, two yearly groups of 15,000 are supported at once:"
Wage support (SAR a year): 15,000 × 2 × 6,000 × 12 × 0.3 = 648,000,000
The recommendation to listen for
At the end, say: "The CEO walks in. What is your recommendation?"
The target is reachable only if the government raises the number of interested candidates, not just the number of places. First, reaching 35 percent needs about 15,000 extra citizen hires a year, but only about 10,000 interested citizens enter the market each year, a gap of about 5,000, and because these are net figures, replacing citizens who leave raises gross hiring and widens the gap. Second, employers face about SAR 30,000 a year of extra salary per hire, so wage support of about 30 percent for two years, costing about SAR 650 million a year at full run, would ease adoption. Third, making retail careers more attractive (training, clear promotion paths, flexible and part-time shifts) widens the candidate pool. Phase the target by role, starting with supervisory and customer-facing roles where citizens are most interested, and track hires and 12-month retention each quarter.
Risks a strong answer names: Candidates may leave early if roles do not match expectations; Quotas without support can raise prices or push some shops to close; Wage support is costly if it continues too long.
Next steps: Survey young job seekers on what would make retail attractive; Pilot wage support and training with five large retailers; Set quarterly KPIs: hires, retention, and cost per retained hire.
Strong versus weak
A strong answer
Turned the share target into hires per year, found the candidate supply gap, sized the cost gap and support budget, and set phased KPIs.
A weak answer
Recommended a strict quota from year one without checking whether enough candidates exist or who pays the wage gap.
Score the candidate
Score each criterion from 1 to 5. A 2 or a 4 sits between the descriptions.
This case has no exhibit. Score Exhibit reading on how the candidate used the data you gave them: did they pick out the number that matters and say what it means?
Total
0 out of 25
Score all five criteria to see the band and the feedback template.