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Growth · Supply Chain Interview Guide

Interview language: English

How to Pass the 1KOMMA5° Supply Chain Interview in 2026

The 1KOMMA5° DNA (TL;DR)

1KOMMA5°'s 'Hand Heartbeat' principle guides assessments, seeking individuals who can drive the energy transition with practical impact. Interviewers look for tangible contributions to projects like Solaranlage Wie, demonstrating initiative and a clear vision for sustainable solutions.

The 1KOMMA5° Interview Loop

Your onsite loop will typically consist of 5 rounds.

  1. 1

    Round 1

    Recruiter Screen
    Motivation, operations background, supply chain interest.
  2. 2

    Round 2

    Operations Case
    End-to-end supply chain optimization, bottleneck diagnosis, network design.
  3. 3

    Round 3

    Forecasting & Planning
    Demand planning, S&OP, inventory optimization, working with statistical and ML forecasts.
  4. 4

    Round 4

    Optimization
    Linear programming intuition, route optimization, facility location, trade-offs between cost/service/CO2.
  5. 5

    Round 5

    Behavioral / Leadership
    Past evidence of ownership, influence, resolving conflict.

The Danger Zone: Top Reasons Candidates Fail

Based on our database of 1KOMMA5° interview outcomes, avoid these common traps:

  • Focusing solely on the supplier without considering internal processes or demand signals.
  • Overlooking the trade-offs between cost, speed, and sustainability.
  • Focusing on the emotional aspect of the disagreement rather than the resolution process.
  • Focusing only on the 'green' aspect without understanding the operational complexities of hardware deployment.

Test Yourself: Real 1KOMMA5° Questions

Three real prompts pulled from our database.

Type · behavioral

Tell me about a time you had to influence stakeholders (e.g., suppliers, internal teams, management) who had different priorities or were resistant to your proposed supply chain changes. How did you approach it, and what was the outcome?

Type · case

Our demand for solar panels and battery storage fluctuates seasonally and is also influenced by government incentives. How would you approach building a demand forecast that accounts for these factors, and what data would you prioritize?

Type · motivation

What specifically about 1KOMMA5°'s mission in the energy transition and our role in scaling solar and battery solutions excites you from a supply chain perspective?

+ many more questions, signals, and worked examples

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1KOMMA5° Interview Question Bank

A sample from our database, grouped by round. Sign up to see the full set.

10 of 18 questions shown

1

Recruiter Screen

2
  1. 1

    Type · motivation

    What specifically about 1KOMMA5°'s mission in the energy transition and our role in scaling solar and battery solutions excites you from a supply chain perspective?
  2. 2

    Type · background

    Describe your experience managing the supply chain for physical goods, particularly hardware or components, and how you've handled challenges related to lead times, quality control, and supplier relationships.
2

Operations Case

3
  1. 3

    Type · case

    Imagine our installation capacity is growing 50% year-over-year, but we're experiencing delays in solar panel deliveries, causing project backlogs. How would you diagnose the root cause of these delivery delays and propose solutions to ensure we meet installation targets?
  2. 4

    Type · case

    We're considering expanding our service area into a new region. How would you approach designing the optimal supply chain network (warehousing, distribution points, inventory strategy) to support this expansion while balancing costs, delivery speed, and CO2 emissions?
  3. + 1 more questions in this round (sign up to unlock)
3

Forecasting & Planning

4
  1. 5

    Type · case

    Our demand for solar panels and battery storage fluctuates seasonally and is also influenced by government incentives. How would you approach building a demand forecast that accounts for these factors, and what data would you prioritize?
  2. 6

    Type · case

    We're looking to optimize our inventory levels for key components like inverters and mounting hardware. How would you balance the risk of stockouts against the cost of holding excess inventory, and what role do forecasts play in this decision?
  3. + 2 more questions in this round (sign up to unlock)
4

Optimization

3
  1. 7

    Type · case

    Explain the intuition behind linear programming. If we needed to decide how much of each type of solar panel and battery to stock in our regional warehouses to meet projected demand while minimizing total transportation costs, how might LP help?
  2. 8

    Type · case

    We need to optimize the routes for our installation teams across Germany. What factors would you consider, and what are the typical trade-offs between minimizing travel distance/time, maximizing installations per day, and ensuring technician well-being?
  3. + 1 more questions in this round (sign up to unlock)
5

Behavioral / Leadership

6
  1. 9

    Type · collaboration

    Describe a situation where you had a technical disagreement with a colleague or team member regarding an approach to a feature or system. How did you handle the discussion, and what was the resolution?
  2. 10

    Type · conflict resolution

    Tell me about a time you had a significant disagreement with a colleague or manager. How did you approach the situation, and what was the outcome?
  3. + 4 more questions in this round (sign up to unlock)

Unlock all 18 1KOMMA5° questions, free

No credit card. Every question with its framework, the grading signals interviewers score against, and a worked answer for each.

Unlock all 18 1KOMMA5° questions

Interview tracks at 1KOMMA5°

How 1KOMMA5°'s DNA translates across functions. Pick your role.

Compare 1KOMMA5° with similar employers

Same DNA, different bar. Browse the closest companies in our database and see how their loops differ.

Practice 1KOMMA5° interviews end-to-end

Sample answers

What a strong answer to these 1KOMMA5° interview questions shows.

Tell me about a time you had to influence stakeholders (e.g., suppliers, internal teams, management) who had different priorities or were resistant to your proposed supply chain changes. How did you approach it, and what was the outcome?

A strong answer shows: Demonstrated ability to understand and address different stakeholder perspectives.; Effective communication and negotiation skills.; Successful achievement of desired outcomes through influence..

Our demand for solar panels and battery storage fluctuates seasonally and is also influenced by government incentives. How would you approach building a demand forecast that accounts for these factors, and what data would you prioritize?

A strong answer shows: Understanding of forecasting methodologies beyond basic time series.; Consideration of external factors (seasonality, incentives, market trends).; Emphasis on data quality and collaboration with other departments..

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