In-Tray Exercise: How to Prioritise and Pass
In an in-tray exercise you are given someone else's working day and a deadline. A manager is away, a client is unhappy, a colleague is off sick, and there are fifteen messages you have never seen before. You decide what to deal with, in what order, and what to do with the rest. It is one of the most realistic exercises in any selection process, and one of the most learnable.
This guide explains the formats (in-tray, e-tray and in-basket), how they fit into assessment centres, how assessors score them, a worked inbox with six practice questions, and a short preparation plan.
What an In-Tray Exercise Is
The US Office of Personnel Management calls the in-basket a frequently used assessment centre exercise designed to simulate administrative tasks, in which candidates play the role of a person new to the job. That is the essence of it in any country: you step into a role, you get a set of documents, and you show how you would handle them.
What is being measured is not knowledge of a particular business. It is how you:
- Prioritise competing demands
- Analyse information spread across several documents
- Decide and take responsibility within your authority
- Delegate appropriately
- Communicate clearly in writing
- Spot links between items, such as a sick colleague who was also due to lead a meeting
In-Tray, E-Tray and In-Basket
In-tray (paper). The traditional format. You receive a folder of letters, emails, memos and reports, plus a briefing document. You write down what you would do with each item, sometimes draft replies, and often explain your order of priority. Some employers follow it with a short interview where an assessor asks about your choices.
E-tray (online). The same idea on screen. You get a simulated inbox; new messages may arrive while you work. Many e-trays ask you to choose or rate possible responses to each email, which makes them close to a situational judgement test; others include a written task. A 2015 post on a UK government blog described the e-tray for the Civil Service's Digital and Technology Fast Stream as a timed exercise (about two and a half hours) testing how well you make decisions in a fast-paced environment, including prioritising and organising. Formats change between years, so read your current invitation rather than old accounts.
In-basket. The usual US name, common in public sector promotion processes and management assessment centres.
If your e-tray asks you to rate responses, read our situational judgement test guide as well; the scoring logic is similar.
Where It Fits in the Selection Process
In-trays usually appear at the assessment centre stage alongside interviews, group exercises, role-plays and presentations. OPM notes that assessment centres use multiple exercises and multiple assessors, and are particularly effective for managerial and leadership competencies. That is why in-trays are common for graduate schemes, management trainee programmes, public sector roles and promotion boards. Our guide to assessment centres explains the other exercises you might face on the same day.
Online e-trays are sometimes used earlier, as a sift between the online tests and the assessment centre.
How In-Tray Exercises Are Scored
Assessors work from a marking guide written for the exercise. It typically covers:
- Priority order. Did you identify the items that are both urgent and important and deal with them first?
- Actions. Did you choose sensible actions: act, delegate, schedule, or decline?
- Links. Did you notice that two or three items are connected and resolve them together?
- Authority and judgement. Did you stay within your role, escalate where needed, and avoid ignoring risk?
- Communication. Are your notes and draft replies clear, polite and to the point?
The rationale matters. In my experience assessors give credit to a candidate who puts an item lower than the guide but explains why clearly, and mark down a candidate who gets the order right with no explanation. In e-trays with fixed responses, your choices are compared with an expert key, often with partial credit for near misses.
A Simple Prioritisation Method
Before you act on anything, read every item once and give it a quick label:
| Label | Meaning | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Urgent and important | Deal with it now |
| 2 | Important, not urgent | Schedule it with a time |
| 3 | Urgent, less important | Delegate it or handle it quickly |
| 4 | Neither | Leave, file or decline politely |
Safety, legal and regulatory issues, and serious customer impact, go to the top. Then look for links between items: a problem in one email is often the solution, or the cause, of another.
Practice: A Worked In-Tray
These questions are our own and all use the same inbox.
Your role: you are the operations coordinator at a regional distribution office. It is Monday, 08:30. Your manager, Sam, is on leave until Wednesday and has asked you to handle the inbox. You have authority to approve spending up to the limit in your role.
| No. | Time | From | Message |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 07:50 | Harbour Foods (key client) | 40 pallets missing from Saturday's delivery. They need them by 14:00 today or two store openings are affected. |
| 2 | 08:05 | Facilities | Fire alarm test at 11:00 today. Please confirm your floor's fire marshal by 10:00. |
| 3 | 08:10 | Warehouse supervisor | The forklift on loading bay 2 has a hydraulic leak and has been taken out of use. Hiring a replacement today is within your spending limit. Today's Harbour Foods reload would need it. |
| 4 | 08:15 | HR | Reminder: December leave requests are due by Friday. |
| 5 | 08:20 | Priya (team member) | Off sick today. She was due to lead the 10:00 supplier call. Priya is also the floor fire marshal. |
| 6 | 08:25 | Finance | Q3 budget report needed by Thursday 12:00. |
| 7 | Friday 17:40 | Colleague | Team lunch next Thursday, are you in? |
| 8 | 08:28 | Marketing | Could you send a quote for the newsletter by the end of the week? |
Practice question 1
Which item is both urgent and important and needs action in the next hour?
A. Item 1, the missing Harbour Foods pallets B. Item 4, the December leave reminder C. Item 6, the Q3 budget report D. Item 7, the team lunch
Answer: A. A key client faces a 14:00 deadline with real business impact. Items 4 and 6 are important but due later in the week; item 7 is neither urgent nor important.
Practice question 2
How should you handle the forklift (item 3)?
A. Ask the supervisor to keep using it carefully until Wednesday. B. Approve the hire today and ask the supervisor to prioritise the Harbour Foods reload. C. Wait for Sam to return and decide. D. Ask Finance whether the budget allows it.
Answer: B. The spend is within your authority, the faulty forklift must stay out of use for safety reasons, and the replacement is what makes the 14:00 client deadline possible. Noticing that link between items 1 and 3 is exactly what assessors look for. A is a safety risk; C and D delay a decision you are allowed to make.
Practice question 3
Priya is off sick (item 5). What is the best way to cover the 10:00 supplier call?
A. Cancel the call without notice. B. Brief a team member who knows the supplier and ask them to lead it, then let the supplier know who will attend. C. Lead it yourself and put the Harbour Foods issue on hold. D. Wait and see if Priya feels better later.
Answer: B. Delegating keeps the call going while you focus on the client problem. C sacrifices the most urgent item; A damages the supplier relationship; D leaves the call uncovered.
Practice question 4
Facilities needs a fire marshal confirmed by 10:00 (item 2), and Priya is usually the marshal. What should you do?
A. Confirm Priya, since she is the named marshal. B. Ask Facilities to postpone the test. C. Nominate a trained deputy marshal, check they are available and confirm to Facilities before 10:00. D. Ignore it, as it is only a test.
Answer: C. A trained person must cover the role; confirming someone who is absent (A) creates a real safety gap. Asking for a postponement (B) is unnecessary, and ignoring it (D) is unacceptable.
Practice question 5
Which set of items can safely be scheduled for later in the week?
A. Items 1, 3 and 5 B. Items 4, 6 and 8 C. Items 2, 6 and 7 D. Items 1, 4 and 7
Answer: B. The leave reminder, budget report and newsletter quote all have deadlines later in the week. Put a time in your diary for each, starting with the budget report (Thursday 12:00). Item 7 just needs a quick reply.
Practice question 6
Which first reply to Harbour Foods is best?
A. Promise the pallets will arrive by 14:00. B. Forward the email to the warehouse and leave it with them. C. Apologise, confirm you are investigating, and commit to an update with a confirmed delivery time by 10:00. D. Wait until you know the cause before replying.
Answer: C. The client gets an immediate, honest response and a specific time for the next update. A promises something you have not checked. B passes the problem on without ownership. D leaves a key client in silence during the most critical hours.
Common Mistakes
- Starting with item 1 and working down. The order in the pile is rarely the order of priority. Read everything first.
- Doing everything yourself. Delegation is a skill being assessed. Use the people named in the briefing.
- Missing the links. Sick colleagues, broken equipment and client deadlines are often connected.
- Ignoring the small safety item. Fire marshals, risk assessments and compliance deadlines are often planted to see if you notice.
- Not writing down reasons. One line per item ("delegated to X because Y") earns marks.
- Running out of time. Spend the first part reading and labelling; leave time at the end to check you have touched every item.
A One to Two Week Preparation Plan
1. How do I start?
Read the job description and the organisation's competency or values framework. The marking guide is usually built from it. For UK Civil Service roles, our guide to civil service interview questions explains how the behaviours work.
2. How should I practise prioritising?
Take your own email inbox, or a practice inbox, and label each message 1 to 4 in under five minutes. Repeat until labelling becomes quick and consistent.
3. How do I practise the written part?
Draft short replies: three to five sentences, a clear action and a time. Ask someone to read them and tell you what they would do next. If they are unsure, your reply is not clear enough.
4. Should I do a full timed simulation?
Yes, at least twice. Use the time stated in your invitation, and practise reading the briefing document first. Afterwards, compare your order with your reasons and see where you changed your mind.
5. How do I prepare for the follow-up discussion?
Some employers ask you to talk through your choices. Practise explaining your top three priorities and one item you deliberately left, using a simple STAR-style structure. Our STAR method guide shows how.
If the same assessment includes online numerical or verbal tests, our all-tests package covers those alongside situational judgement practice.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an in-tray exercise?
An in-tray exercise is a work simulation. You take on a role, receive a pile of emails, memos and documents, and decide what to do with each one within a time limit: act, delegate, schedule or leave. Assessors look at your priorities and your reasons.
What is the difference between an in-tray and an e-tray exercise?
An in-tray traditionally uses paper documents and written answers. An e-tray runs on screen, with a simulated inbox, and often asks you to choose or rate responses to each email. In the US the same exercise is usually called an in-basket.
How do you prioritise in an in-tray exercise?
Sort every item by urgency and importance first, before acting on anything. Deal with safety, legal and key customer issues first, delegate what others can do, schedule what can wait, and write down a short reason for each decision.
Is there a right answer in an in-tray exercise?
There is usually a preferred order and a set of actions assessors expect to see, but they also reward a sensible rationale. If you put an item lower than expected and explain why, you can still score well on that item.
How long does an in-tray exercise take?
It varies by employer. Candidates commonly report assessment centre in-trays of under an hour, while some online e-trays take considerably longer. Your invitation will state the time, so plan around that rather than a typical figure.
About the author
Ingmar van Maurik is a specialist in test and interview preparation who helps candidates perform better in recruitment processes.
References
OPM, Assessment Centers: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/assessment-and-selection/other-assessment-methods/assessment-centers/ GOV.UK Digital People blog, The DaT Fast Stream application process (2015): https://digitalpeople.blog.gov.uk/2015/11/04/the-dat-fast-stream-application-process-what-to-expect/