A brief immersive assessment that evaluates your behavior via situational judgment and video interview.
The Life at Fidelity assessment uses both video interview questions and situational judgment ranking questions to create your behavioral profile. If this profile suits the one defined for the job, you’ll pass.
In this guide, I’ll provide a full overview of the test, including sample questions, and give you some tips for success.
The Life at Fidelity Assessment is a short immersive assessment focused on evaluating your behavior and personality. This assessment is the second stage of Fidelity’s hiring process and follows the Explore Fidelity Assessment.
Note that unlike the previous test, this assessment does not contain any cognitive questions, but does include video interview questions. Additionally, the test will present a variety of resources such as emails, audio files, and video, all to create an immersive experience.
Test Structure and Question Format
The Life at Fidelity assessment, provided by Cappfinity (Capp) consists of 4 sections, presented as tiles in the main screen of the assessment. This formatting is practically identical to that of the Explore Fidelity Assessment.
(Illustration)
Below, I review each of these sections in further detail.
Section #1 – Video Setup
This section is not scored and is used only to setup your webcam and mic. You will be asked to allow access to these devices, and record yourself answering a basic question (e.g., “What is the weather like?”).
This section counts as one question out of the total 13 in the assessment.
Pro Tip
To prevent unnecessary stress, check your webcam and mic before starting the assessment.
Section #2 – A New Project
This section evaluates your general approach to problem-solving, learning, and leadership. It contains 6 questions:
1 video interview question
3 situational judgment ranking questions
2 personality profiling questions
Let’s review each question type.
Type #1 – Video Interview Question
The video interview question is likely to include three components – goal, action, and effect. You will have 90 seconds to prepare and 90 seconds to record your response.
Sample Video Interview Questions
What actions will you take to make sure your team communicates effectively, and how do you believe these actions will positively impact collaboration?
How will you ensure that each and every client receives the best possible service, and how do you expect these actions to promote the business?
Type #2 – Situational Judgment Ranking Questions
Each question contains a short scenario and 5 optional responses. You need to rank these responses from the one you are most likely to do (1) to the one you are least likely to do (5).
Here is an example of a question you may encounter during the assessment:
Sample Question
As you are working on one of your projects, you find yourself in need of data from one of the company’s servers. Normally, it is the work of the research department to extract data for your team members, but due to overload, every request takes a long while and slows down your work.
While talking to another team member, you learn that several of the more experienced team members have learned how to extract the data themselves, and it allows them to work significantly faster. That is encouraged by your team leader. However, as a new employee, you are not sure that you will be able to properly operate the data server.
Please rank the following responses from the one you are most likely to do (1) to the one you are least likely to do (5).
Ask one of the more experienced team members to help you and extract the data for you, so that your project is not unnecessarily delayed.
Suggest that one of the senior team members trains less experienced members on the data server, so that everyone on the team can extract data on their own.
Ask the research department to extract the data for now but set aside time over the next couple of weeks to learn how the data server works.
Leave the data extraction work to those who are familiar with it and spend your time working on something else.
You should not do others’ work for them. Keep track of the time it takes the research department to respond, and ask for an appropriate extension for your project.
Recommended Answer
The recommended ranking is B, C, A, D, E.
This question measures your ability and willingness to learn and solve problems. Let’s review each response based on this trait.
Response B – Suggest that one of the senior team members trains less experienced members on the data server, so that everyone on the team can extract data on their own.
This response is the most recommended, due to two reasons: Firstly, it takes a proactive approach to solving the problem. Secondly, it offers a method to assist the team as a whole rather than only yourself. This response demonstrates a willingness to learn, as well as a proactive approiach to problem-solving.
Response C – Ask the research department to extract the data for now but set aside time over the next couple of weeks to learn how the data server works.
This response demonstrates willingness to learn, yet to a less er extent than response B. It offers a good balance between learning new things and taking care of your own responsibilities. It is, however, less recommended than response B as it focuses only on you rather than on the team as a whole.
Response A – Ask one of the more experienced team members to help you and extract the data for you, so that your project is not unnecessarily delayed.
This is not a very recommended response, as it shows a lack of interest in learning new things and improving your productivity. You focus primarily on solving the short-term problem at hand rather than resolving the issue in the long term. However, this response is still better than responses D and E as it shows proactivity in making sure your project is not delayed.
Response D – Leave the data extraction work to those who are familiar with it and spend your time working on something else.
This response is similar in nature to response A, but lacks the proactivity element. As such, it ranks even lower.
Response E – You should not do others’ work for them. Keep track of the time it takes the research department to respond, and ask for an appropriate extension for your project.
This is the least recommended response. Here, you show a rather selfish and petty mindset, focusing on your reputation rather than on the success of the project and the team. This response is passive, lacks willingness to learn, and disregards the importance of keeping the project’s deadline.
Type #3 – Personality Profiling Questions
Each of these questions is structured as a statement with two contradicting behaviors, and a scale in between. You need to place yourself on the scale, closer to the behavior towards which you more naturally incline. Note that you cannot place yourself in the exact center of the scale and will always have to choose one response that describes you better than the other.
Here’s an example:
Pro Tip
Several data resources will be presented in the top row, including audio files, videos, and documents. However, in this section, these are given mostly to create an immersive setting and are not directly related to the questions.
Section #3 – Working with Others
The “Working with Others” section evaluates your communication and cooperation skills, as well as your ability to adapt to change. It contains 5 questions:
4 situational judgment ranking questions
1 video interview question
The formatting of the questions is identical to that in the previous section, but their context will be different.
Sample Question
You have been working in Fidelity for the past year, and your managers are very pleased with your performance. Your direct manager has even implied that your name has come up as a suitable candidate for promotion.
During a very busy day in the office, Brad, one of your colleagues, approaches you and asks for your assistance in preparing an investment portfolio proposal for a major client. Brad is concerned that Fidelity may lose the client if a the proposal is not ready on time.
Please rank the following responses from the one you are most likely to do (1) to the one you are least likely to do (5).
Apologize to Brad but explain you have your own commitments.
Talk with Brad for several minutes, giving him some tips from your experience. This way, you will be able to help him and get back to your own work on time.
Meet Brad for an hour or two to learn about the project and provide some insights. Success is eventually a team effort.
Send Brad the highly detailed proposal you prepared last month for a similar client. He will find whatever he needs in there.
Have a short pep talk with Brad to motivate him to keep trying. Tell him that you are sure he can make it on his own.
Recommended Answers
The recommended ranking is C, B, E, D, A.
This question measures two traits simultaneously – cooperation and adapting to change.
Let’s review each response:
Response C – Meet Brad for an hour or two to learn about the project and provide some insights. Success is eventually a team effort.
This response demonstrates effective cooperation and teamwork on the one hand, and a high level of adaptability to change, on the other. You quickly react to the new situation, reset your priorities, and assist your colleague to ensure that a major client is preserved.
Response B – Talk with Brad for several minutes, giving him some tips from your experience. This way, you will be able to help him and get back to your own work on time.
This response gets a reasonable score on the cooperation trait, due to the active attempt to assist Brad, but gets a moderate to low score on the adaptability trait. Your main focus here is doing the least amount of work required so you can get back to your own work on time. However, while this is not a very recommended response, considering the alternatives, it comes second.
Response E – Have a short pep talk with Brad to motivate him to keep trying. Tell him that you are sure he can make it on his own.
This response is moderate on cooperation, but low on adaptability. While you show support for your colleague and attempt to motivate him, you do not make any meaningful change in your actions and priorities to promote his (and the company’s) success.
Response D – Send Brad the highly detailed proposal you prepared last month for a similar client. He will find whatever he needs in there.
While this response demonstrates some adaptability by providing Brad with professional material in an adequate scope, it lacks teamwork and cooperation. Having this level of experience with a similar client, one or two hours of your time would probably be much more valuable for Brad than going over a written proposal, and are more likely to promote his success.
Note: As you see, response E ranks before response D in this case. This is due to the fact that in this particular question, coopeartion and teamwork is the major trait and adaptability is the minor trait. The major and minor traits of questions can be derived from the context.
Response A – Apologize to Brad but explain you have your own commitments.
This response scores low on both cooperation and adaptability. It is a passive, do-nothing response that does not demonstrate to any of the two traits, and therefore ranks the lowest.
Pro Tip
Similar to section 2, additional data resources will be shown in the top row. This time, you should definitely read them carefully, as they describe the attitudes, expectations, and priorities of the fictional characters with whom you interact during the scenarios.
Section #4 – Roll Out
The fourth and last section contains one question that revolves around your grit and ability to overcome a challenge.
1 situational judgment ranking question
The single question in this section will be similar to those in sections 2 and 3, but will evaluate a different trait.
Test Invitation
Once you have successfully passed the Explore Fidelity Assessment, you will receive an invitation to take the Life at Fidelity Assessment via email.
The invitation will provide some basic information about the assessment and a completion deadline – normally 7 days from the email being received.
