Neither extensive experience in a field nor access to exhaustive

Question

Neither extensive experience in a field nor access to exhaustive industry data, by itself, establishes an executive's ability to make appropriate decisions. Both are required simultaneously since experience can blind one to logical conclusions drawn from data, and exhaustive data is almost always, by definition, a way of measuring past trends that may or may not continue.

If the facts stated in the passage above are true, a proper test of an executive's ability to make appropriate decisions is its ability to

(A) use knowledge gained from experience to determine which trends are likely to continue.

(B) use knowledge gained from experience to direct data-collection efforts.

(C) amass data that competitors are not collecting so that knowledge gained from experience can be set aside.

(D) establish technical infrastructure to collect data that supports the conclusions drawn from extensive experience.

(E) hire middle managers who can maintain the appropriate balance between experience-based and data-based decision-making.

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Chirag2594 · Answer

My answer for this question is B. Hope it is correct.

diasdexter766 · Answer

Option A, works in the specific context!

cdrectenwald · Answer

The best answer is (B), as it aligns with the passage’s assertion that both experience and data are necessary and suggests that experience can help in gathering relevant data, thereby allowing a balanced approach to decision-making.

raymondholt · Answer

I also think it's B since A's 'determining which trends to support' does not necessarily mean a way of measuring if it would continue or not

mohitchowdhury · Answer

I marked D.
Let's hope for the best

vaibhavkataria97 · Answer

can someone provide explanation why   is correct?

annguyen02 · Answer

So my inference, a test for executive's ability to make appropriate decisions should be a test covering two parts: making decision from experience and data.

And data = a way of measuring past trends that may or may not continue

(A) use knowledge gained from  experience  to determine  which trends are likely to continue .
-> Correct as it states about making decision from experience and data insights

(B) use knowledge gained from experience to direct data-collection efforts.
-> irrelevant. The argument is about takeaways from data, not how you will collect it

(C) amass data that competitors are not collecting so that knowledge gained from experience can be set aside.
-> incorrect, why set experience aside?

(D) establish technical infrastructure to collect data that supports the conclusions drawn from extensive experience.
-> incorrect, one should make decision from both source of information, not let one thing influence the other

(E) hire middle managers who can maintain the appropriate balance between experience-based and data-based decision-making.
-> irrelevant, the ability to make decision of executive is not from hiring good people

sreerag_2023 · Answer

I am still not convinced by option A, in the passage it states that so what I understand is that using data only we can find which may or may not continue. So why use experience to do that? I expected something what could get something new from the data that may occur as well.

Bunuel · Answer

OFFICIAL EXPLANATION

A

This is a sort of inference question; it is a little different than usual because so much of the conclusion ("a proper test of an executive's. . . ") is in the question itself. The passage emphasizes a balance between experience- and data-based decisions.

Choice (A) is reasonable: it suggests executives should be able to use one type of decision-making to support the other. (B) is close, but not as good, as directing data-collection efforts doesn't necessarily mean one will use the results of the data. (C) is wrong, since the passage emphasizes using both types of decision-making, not mastering one in order to ignore the other.

Choice (D), like (C), places one type of decision-making over the other - "data that supports the conclusions. . . " (E) is off-topic, as the passage is about executive decision-making, not about hiring employees and/or delegating decision-making.  Choice (A) is correct.

Neither extensive experience in a field nor access to exhaustive

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Neither extensive experience in a field nor access to exhaustive

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