Escalation call: a refund assistant after a bad launch
OpenAICustomer role-playescalation, 45 minutes
30 minwith the VP
Format reported for OpenAI Solutions Architect interviews (1 independent source, latest 2026, month not stated). Our case is original.
The prompt
The candidate's brief:
You are the applied AI engineer on the Tavola account. Tavola (fictional) is a food-delivery marketplace in three countries. Nine days ago it launched a Claude-based support assistant for order problems. The assistant can look up orders and issue refunds. This morning a screenshot of the assistant granting a large refund went viral, and Marco Lind, VP of Customer Operations, asked for an urgent call. You know nothing else yet. You have 30 minutes with Marco, then a 15-minute debrief with the interviewer. Your goals: understand what happened, agree what changes today, and leave Marco with a plan he can take to his CFO.
Your answer
Write what you will say in your first two minutes, the three facts you most need, and what must be true by the end of today. Practise with a partner who reads the hidden brief.
Compare your answer
A weak, a good and a great answer, side by side, then the guide, the follow-ups and the rubric.
