19 Communication & Teamwork Practice Questions & Answers

Every Communication & Teamwork practice question from the Logistics Technician Practice Test, with the correct answer and a short explanation.

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1. At the end of second shift, a dock lead completes the pass-down log for the incoming crew. Which set of information belongs in that log?
- A.Attendance and overtime hours, which the incoming lead needs for staffing
- B.Productivity totals for the shift, which management reviews the next morning
- C.Work completed, work still open, and problems encountered on the shift✓ Answer
- D.Personal notes about which coworkers were slow and which ones were reliable
Shift-to-shift communication exists so the incoming crew can pick up exactly where the outgoing crew stopped. That requires three things: what was finished, what is still open, and what went wrong, because open work and unresolved problems are what cause downstream errors when they are not passed on. Staffing data and productivity totals are reported elsewhere, and personal judgments about coworkers do not belong in an operating record.
Source: MSSC Certified Logistics Associate key work activities, Work CommunicationReport a problem with this question
2. A night-shift picker starts work and finds no entry in the log about a conveyor that jammed twice late in the previous shift. What should the picker do first?
- A.Ask the outgoing operator or the supervisor about the jam and log it✓ Answer
- B.Enter the jam in the log as a fault caused by the outgoing crew's error
- C.Begin picking as usual and mention the jam only if the line stops again
- D.Wait for maintenance to find the fault before running work on that line
An incomplete handoff is closed by going to the people who hold the missing information and then writing down what is learned, so the gap does not repeat on the next handoff. Working around the gap leaves the next shift to rediscover the same fault, writing blame into the log records an assumption rather than an observation, and simply waiting stops production without telling anyone why.
Source: MSSC Certified Logistics Associate key work activities, Work CommunicationReport a problem with this question
3. In a distribution center, the put-away team works from pallets that the receiving team has checked in. For the receiving team, the put-away team is which kind of customer?
- A.An internal customer, the next step in the company's own process✓ Answer
- B.A supplier, since put-away returns the pallets for a second count
- C.Neither one, because a customer is only someone who pays for the goods
- D.An external customer, because the two teams have different supervisors
An internal customer is the next person or department that receives your work inside the same company, while an external customer is outside it, such as a carrier, a vendor or the end recipient. The distinction matters because it sets the standard: the receiving team must hand put-away accurate counts and clean documentation for the same reason it would for a paying customer.
Source: MSSC Certified Logistics Associate key work activities, Work CommunicationReport a problem with this question
4. A shipping clerk radios a change in the load count to a dock worker, and the dock worker repeats the new count back. In the basic communication model, the repeat-back is which element?
- A.Feedback, which confirms that the receiver understood the message✓ Answer
- B.Noise, which is any interference between sender and receiver
- C.The medium, which is the channel that carries the message
- D.The message, which is the content the sender wants to send
The communication model runs sender, message, medium, receiver, feedback, and feedback is the return signal that closes the loop. Without it the sender only knows the message was sent, not that it was received correctly; the repeat-back lets the sender catch a wrong number before the load moves.
Source: ACT Curriculum Analysis Report for the MSSC Certified Logistics Associate and Certified Logistics Technician coursesReport a problem with this question
5. A supervisor explains a new label placement to a group of packers on the floor. Which behavior best shows active listening?
- A.Writing the instruction down word for word without weighing its meaning
- B.Restating the instruction in your own words and asking about unclear parts✓ Answer
- C.Staying quiet through the explanation and saving all questions for later
- D.Nodding along while finishing the carton you were sealing at the station
Active listening is defined as hearing, understanding and responding, so silence alone does not qualify. Paraphrasing back proves the meaning was actually taken in, and a clarifying question fixes the ambiguity while the supervisor is still standing there rather than after a pallet of cartons is mislabeled.
Source: ACT Curriculum Analysis Report for the MSSC Certified Logistics Associate and Certified Logistics Technician coursesReport a problem with this question
6. A carrier representative asks an associate to change the piece count on a load that is already staged. Why is it better to handle that change in writing than over the radio?
- A.A written record fixes the exact numbers and shows who approved them✓ Answer
- B.Written messages are required any time a carrier is part of the job
- C.A written note reaches the carrier faster than a radio call does
- D.Radio traffic is reserved for supervisors rather than for associates
Medium is chosen by audience and purpose: speech is right for urgent or safety-critical traffic, and writing is right whenever exact figures or a permanent record are needed. A count change alters what the paperwork says the trailer holds, so it needs a record showing the number and the person who authorized it if the shipment is later disputed.
Source: MSSC Certified Logistics Associate key work activities, Work CommunicationReport a problem with this question
7. On a noisy dock, a lead calls out the door assignment for a hot load. Which practice most reduces the chance the assignment is heard wrong?
- A.Using the term the lead prefers even when the crew says it another way
- B.Raising your voice and saying the assignment louder a second time
- C.Having the receiver repeat the door number back before the load moves✓ Answer
- D.Sending the assignment to the whole dock so that someone catches it
Noise on a dock is a classic communication barrier, and volume alone does not defeat it because a misheard digit still sounds confident when it is repeated louder. A read-back forces the receiver to state what was understood, so the error surfaces before equipment and product move to the wrong door.
Source: MSSC Certified Logistics Associate key work activities, Work CommunicationReport a problem with this question
8. A written work instruction at a pack station says the shipping label goes on the long side of the carton. A lead tells the packer to put it on top instead. What should the packer do?
- A.Follow the written instruction and say nothing about the difference
- B.Choose whichever placement is faster and note it at the end of shift
- C.Follow the lead's spoken direction, since a person outranks a document
- D.Stop and ask the lead to confirm the change against the written instruction✓ Answer
When a spoken direction contradicts an approved written procedure, the conflict itself is the problem and it must be resolved before the work continues, because one of the two is out of date or was misunderstood. Asking for confirmation either corrects the instruction or triggers an update to the document; silently choosing one source leaves the contradiction in place for the next packer.
Source: MSSC Certified Logistics Associate key work activities, Work CommunicationReport a problem with this question
9. A pick list sends an associate to a location where cases are stacked above the load beam and leaning outward. The associate cannot reach them safely. What is the correct action?
- A.Climb the rack beam carefully and pull the top case down by hand
- B.Ask a coworker to steady a ladder while you reach for the leaning case
- C.Leave the pick, report the condition to the supervisor, and record it✓ Answer
- D.Skip the line quietly and let the next shift deal with that location later
An instruction that cannot be carried out safely is not simply skipped or improvised around; the standard is to stop, report the out-of-compliance condition to the supervisor immediately, and document it so the hazard is corrected rather than passed along. Climbing racks or improvising with a ladder substitutes personal risk for the documented procedure, and skipping quietly leaves the same hazard waiting for the next picker.
Source: MSSC Certified Logistics Associate key work activities, Work CommunicationReport a problem with this question
10. An associate writes a discrepancy note after a pallet arrives with fewer cases than the packing list shows. Which entry belongs in that note?
- A.The name of the prior-shift receiver who probably miscounted them
- B.The likely reason this supplier keeps shorting the account lately
- C.The associate's view on whether to stop using this carrier at all
- D.The count found, the count expected, the location, and the time✓ Answer
A discrepancy note is an evidence document, so it carries observations that another person could verify: what was counted, what was expected, where it happened and when. Speculation about causes and blame aimed at a named coworker or carrier cannot be verified, and once written into a record it distorts the investigation the note is supposed to support.
Source: MSSC Certified Logistics Associate key work activities, Work CommunicationReport a problem with this question
11. A coworker who is running late asks an associate to sign the receiving document for a trailer the associate never checked. What should the associate do?
- A.Decline, and ask a different coworker to sign the document instead
- B.Sign it, because the coworker accepts responsibility for the load
- C.Sign it and add a note that the count may not be correct at all
- D.Decline, and sign only for loads that were personally verified✓ Answer
A signature on a receiving document is a personal statement that the signer verified what the document says, and it becomes the company's evidence in any claim over shortage or damage. Signing for an unverified load is a false record regardless of who volunteers to take the blame, and passing the request to someone else simply moves the same false record onto another person.
Source: MSSC Certified Logistics Associate key work activities, Teamwork and Good Workplace Conduct to Solve ProblemsReport a problem with this question
12. A customer calls to say a shipment arrived four cases short. The associate who answers did not build that load. What is the best first response?
- A.Explain that the night crew builds the loads and errors are common
- B.Listen fully, restate the shortage details, and say what happens next✓ Answer
- C.Ask the customer to resend the complaint by email and end the call
- D.Promise that a free replacement shipment will go out that afternoon
Complaint handling starts with listening without interrupting and confirming the specifics back, because an accurate description of the shortage is what the investigation will run on. Blaming another shift damages the company in the customer's eyes, promising a remedy the associate is not authorized to approve creates a commitment nobody can keep, and deflecting the caller leaves the complaint unrecorded.
Source: MSSC Certified Logistics Associate key work activities, Work CommunicationReport a problem with this question
13. A dock crew is setting written team goals for the quarter using the SMART method. What do the letters stand for?
- A.Specific, Manageable, Achievable, Related, Time-based
- B.Simple, Manageable, Accessible, Related, Time-based
- C.Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-based✓ Answer
- D.Specific, Measurable, Accessible, Relevant, Trackable
A goal is SMART when it is Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-based. Measurable is the word that matters most on a dock, because a goal tied to a countable facility metric such as on-time shipments or order accuracy can be compared against actual performance, while a merely manageable or accessible goal gives the crew nothing to check itself against.
Source: MSSC Certified Logistics Associate key work activities, Teamwork and Good Workplace Conduct to Solve ProblemsReport a problem with this question
14. A picker finishes an assigned zone early while a teammate two aisles over is behind. Which action best fits an effective team member?
- A.Tell the lead you are free and offer to help clear the other zone✓ Answer
- B.Start a second zone alone so your own pick rate stays the highest
- C.Wait at your station until the next assignment comes over the radio
- D.Move to the other zone and pick there without telling anyone else
An effective team member works toward the team's result rather than a personal score, and shares information so the lead can redeploy help where it is needed. Chasing an individual pick rate optimizes the wrong number, waiting silently wastes available labor, and moving zones without telling anyone breaks the lead's picture of who is working where.
Source: MSSC Certified Logistics Associate key work activities, Teamwork and Good Workplace Conduct to Solve ProblemsReport a problem with this question
15. Two associates on the same shipping crew argue repeatedly about who refills the label printer, and the arguing is slowing the line. What is the best first step?
- A.Raise it in the team huddle so the whole crew can pick a side
- B.Take the matter to the plant manager before it grows any larger
- C.Avoid the coworker and work the far end of the dock every night
- D.Talk with the coworker directly about the task, not the person✓ Answer
Interpersonal conflict is settled promptly and at the lowest level that can resolve it, addressing the behavior or the task rather than the person's character. Jumping straight to senior management skips the step that usually works, avoidance leaves the line slow, and turning the crew into an audience that takes sides converts a two-person problem into a divided team.
Source: ACT Curriculum Analysis Report for the MSSC Certified Logistics Associate and Certified Logistics Technician coursesReport a problem with this question
16. A team has defined a mis-shipment problem, gathered data, identified likely causes, and brainstormed several possible fixes. What is the next step in a structured problem-solving process?
- A.Put every proposed solution in place and see which ones hold
- B.Go back to brainstorming until one obvious answer appears
- C.Weigh the strengths and weaknesses of each proposed solution✓ Answer
- D.Report the causes to management and close the problem record
Idea generation and idea evaluation are deliberately separate stages: criticism is held back during brainstorming so options are not lost, then each option is judged on its strengths and weaknesses before one is selected, implemented and followed up. Implementing everything at once makes it impossible to tell which change worked, and closing the record at the cause stage leaves the problem unfixed.
Source: MSSC Certified Logistics Associate key work activities, Teamwork and Good Workplace Conduct to Solve ProblemsReport a problem with this question
17. A conveyor drive fails and is repaired the same night. A month later the team adds a scheduled inspection of that drive. How are the two actions classified?
- A.The repair is corrective and the scheduled inspection is preventive✓ Answer
- B.Both are corrective, because both actions involve the same drive
- C.Both are preventive, because both keep the conveyor line running
- D.The repair is preventive and the scheduled inspection is corrective
The dividing line is timing relative to the failure: corrective action repairs something that has already gone wrong, while preventive action is taken before failure to stop it from happening. Both actions touching the same equipment does not merge the categories, and a team that only ever repairs never moves from reacting to preventing.
Source: MSSC Certified Logistics standards, corrective and preventive action terminologyReport a problem with this question
18. A cycle count comes up short, and a lead suggests entering the expected number so the accuracy metric stays clean. Why is that a serious code-of-conduct violation?
- A.It records something untrue and hides a real inventory error✓ Answer
- B.It moves the accuracy metric outside the range management set
- C.It needs a supervisor password that the lead does not have
- D.It slows the count team more than a full recount would have
Falsifying a count is dishonest in itself and it also destroys the value of the record, because inventory decisions downstream are made from numbers everyone assumes were observed. Hitting a metric is never a defense: the shortage still exists physically, and burying it means the real cause, whether theft, mis-picks or a put-away error, is never investigated.
Source: MSSC Certified Logistics Associate key work activities, Teamwork and Good Workplace Conduct to Solve ProblemsReport a problem with this question
19. A new crew member is mocked repeatedly for their accent, first during breaks and then on the floor. What does professional workplace conduct require of a coworker who sees it?
- A.Move the joking to the break room where customers cannot hear it
- B.Report it through the company's channel and stop taking part in it✓ Answer
- C.Wait to see whether the new member complains before doing anything
- D.Join in lightly so that the new member feels included in the crew
A code of conduct commits the workforce to a harassment-free workplace and places a reporting obligation on anyone who observes the behavior, not only on the person targeted. Waiting for a complaint puts the burden on the newest and least secure member of the crew, joining in normalizes the conduct, and relocating it out of earshot changes only who hears it.
Source: MSSC Certified Logistics Associate key work activities, Teamwork and Good Workplace Conduct to Solve ProblemsReport a problem with this question

Practice questions based on the MSSC national logistics standards and the published key work activities of the Certified Logistics Associate and Certified Logistics Technician assessments, together with federal general-industry safety requirements and standard warehouse and distribution practice. MSSC, CLA and CLT are marks of the Manufacturing Skills Standards Council; this site is not affiliated with or endorsed by MSSC. Questions here never depend on recalling a regulatory limit, a citation number or an equipment rating — always follow your own facility's written procedures and the data plate on the equipment you use, and confirm current requirements before testing. About the CLA and CLT certifications →

1. At the end of second shift, a dock lead completes the pass-down log for the incoming crew. Which set of information belongs in that log?

2. A night-shift picker starts work and finds no entry in the log about a conveyor that jammed twice late in the previous shift. What should the picker do first?

3. In a distribution center, the put-away team works from pallets that the receiving team has checked in. For the receiving team, the put-away team is which kind of customer?

4. A shipping clerk radios a change in the load count to a dock worker, and the dock worker repeats the new count back. In the basic communication model, the repeat-back is which element?

5. A supervisor explains a new label placement to a group of packers on the floor. Which behavior best shows active listening?

6. A carrier representative asks an associate to change the piece count on a load that is already staged. Why is it better to handle that change in writing than over the radio?

7. On a noisy dock, a lead calls out the door assignment for a hot load. Which practice most reduces the chance the assignment is heard wrong?

8. A written work instruction at a pack station says the shipping label goes on the long side of the carton. A lead tells the packer to put it on top instead. What should the packer do?

9. A pick list sends an associate to a location where cases are stacked above the load beam and leaning outward. The associate cannot reach them safely. What is the correct action?

10. An associate writes a discrepancy note after a pallet arrives with fewer cases than the packing list shows. Which entry belongs in that note?

11. A coworker who is running late asks an associate to sign the receiving document for a trailer the associate never checked. What should the associate do?

12. A customer calls to say a shipment arrived four cases short. The associate who answers did not build that load. What is the best first response?

13. A dock crew is setting written team goals for the quarter using the SMART method. What do the letters stand for?

14. A picker finishes an assigned zone early while a teammate two aisles over is behind. Which action best fits an effective team member?

15. Two associates on the same shipping crew argue repeatedly about who refills the label printer, and the arguing is slowing the line. What is the best first step?

16. A team has defined a mis-shipment problem, gathered data, identified likely causes, and brainstormed several possible fixes. What is the next step in a structured problem-solving process?

17. A conveyor drive fails and is repaired the same night. A month later the team adds a scheduled inspection of that drive. How are the two actions classified?

18. A cycle count comes up short, and a lead suggests entering the expected number so the accuracy metric stays clean. Why is that a serious code-of-conduct violation?

19. A new crew member is mocked repeatedly for their accent, first during breaks and then on the floor. What does professional workplace conduct require of a coworker who sees it?