JCPenney Business Analyst Interview Questions
& Process

I was reached out to by a recruiter on Linkedin. They arranged a 30-minute phone interview where they asked me screening questions about planning & allocation and retail math. After that, they set up an interview at the company headquarters. I was flown out on a Monday night, and a limo service took me to a nice hotel. The next morning, I took the shuttle from the hotel to the HQ and met the recruiter. I was actually interviewed by 4 people in total - one HR director and 3 hiring managers. The HR director asked me different behavioral questions. The 3 hiring managers also asked me behavioral questions, along with technical questions and about my employment history. They will likely do a background check and make an offer after.

Recruiter reached out after I applied online. They did an initial screen, then I interviewed with 3 senior allocators and the HR Director. The whole thing was pretty unprofessional. The recruiter was bad at communicating, sometimes delaying messages and trying to schedule interviews last minute without checking my availability. The panel asked some personal and inappropriate questions, like about my kids' ages. They said they'd get back to me, but I never heard anything. I'd already decided against the company because of the red flags, but then another recruiter contacted me weeks later asking to set up a time, not knowing I'd already interviewed. It just showed how disorganized they were.

I applied online through my campus career site. Got a basic phone interview about a week later. Then, there was a follow-up phone screen with two interviewers where they asked basic stuff like "why retail" and "why JCP", plus some pseudo-case questions like "we're thinking about rolling out a new jewelry line, what would you consider?". After that, I was invited to the final round. The day before, I got to meet staff and learn about the company. The final round itself was pretty straightforward. It included two behavioral interviews, each with two staff members, and then a group case interview. The group case involved some basic math and a group presentation. Knowing stock/sales ratio and what it means is important. During the group presentation, it's key to speak up and communicate your thought process. The group case is mostly qualitative, with very simple math. The goal is to show you can think outside the box.