At the end of each quarter, Merkin's Tire Shop rewards its top salespersons with a $100 gift card to an expensive restaurant. In previous years, at least five salespersons qualified each quarter. In the past year, an average of two salespersons qualified for the $100 gift card. Worried about the effect of declining motivation on his sales staff, Merkin's owner issued a bulletin reminding the sales staff that despite the decline in the number of gift cards distributed, the criterion for issuing the gift cards has never changed, and encouraged them to try to improve their sales.
If Merkin's total sales of tires have always remained the same, each of the following could explain how that could occur EXCEPT?
A)In prior years a few salespersons were clear standouts, but now most salespersons sell an almost equal amount of tires.
B)Merkin's built a website in the past year, and sales from the website are not attributed to any individual salesperson.
C)Merkin's does not attribute the sale of snow tires to any individual salesperson, and sales of snow tires have increasingly made up a larger percentage of Merkin's business.
D)Fewer salespersons now work at Merkin's than in years prior.
E)More salespersons now work at Merkin's than in years prior.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The only answer that does not explain the apparent paradox is that fewer salespersons now work at Merkin's than in years prior. All of the other responses help explain how fewer salespersons could be making bonuses while overall sales are the same. Answers A and E explain how the sales could be distributed more evenly or among more salespersons. Answers B and C explain how certain sales are not attributed to salespersons, and these sales have become increasingly common. D is the only answer that does not potentially explain the paradox.

At the End of Each Quarter, Merkin's Tire Shop Rewards