Critical Reasoning — Assumptions Statement: “Tender specifications will not be issued to firms that have 25% or more default in supplies against earlier purchase orders placed on them.” — Condition stated by Company X while inviting tenders. Assumptions to evaluate: I. Company X will be monitoring and evaluating the past performance quality of its suppliers. II. For this round, firms should keep their percentage of default as low as possible. III. Company X expects quality and a professional approach from its suppliers.

Introduction / Context:
This question assesses your ability to identify implicit assumptions in a tender-condition statement. Company X declares that it will not issue tender specifications to firms with a default record of 25% or more on past orders. We must find which unstated beliefs must be true for the condition to make sense.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• The company has set a cut-off: default rate >= 25% leads to ineligibility.
• Implicit beliefs being tested are three statements (I, II, III) about monitoring suppliers, suppliers’ behavior, and expectations of professionalism.

Concept / Approach:

• An assumption is implicit if the stated policy would be irrational or pointless without it.
• Policies that use historical performance must presuppose access to, and tracking of, such performance data.
• However, prescriptive statements about how suppliers “should” behave in the future are not required assumptions of a current policy—they are consequences or hopes at best.

Step-by-Step Solution:

Verification / Alternative check:

Why Other Options Are Wrong:

Common Pitfalls:

Final Answer: