9 SpartanNash SQL Interview Questions (Updated 2024)
At SpartanNash, SQL is often used to analyze sales trends across different regions, helping them understand market demands and customer preferences. They also use SQL to improve supply chain processes by making data-driven decisions that enhance efficiency and reduce costs, the reason why SpartanNash asks SQL questions in interviews for Data Analytics, Data Science, and Data Engineering jobs.
Thus, to help you prepare, we've curated 9 SpartanNash SQL interview questions – how many can you solve?
9 SpartanNash SQL Interview Questions
SQL Question 1: Analyzing Monthly Sales Performance of Products
Assume you work for SpartanNash, a large food distributor. You have access to a database that keeps track of the sales of each product for each day. A single row in the database includes the product id, the number of units sold for a particular day, and the date of that day. Write a SQL query that shows monthly sales performance (total units sold) for each product during the current year, comparing it to the previous month. The output should show the product_id, the month, the total units sold in that month, and the percent increase or decrease compared to the previous month.
Example Input:
| product_id | units_sold | date |
|---|---|---|
| 1001 | 50 | 01/15/2022 |
| 1001 | 75 | 01/22/2022 |
| 1001 | 100 | 02/14/2022 |
| 1002 | 20 | 01/01/2022 |
| 1002 | 30 | 01/08/2022 |
| 1002 | 40 | 02/05/2022 |
Example Output:
| product_id | month | units_sold | percent_change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1001 | 1 | 125 | null |
| 1001 | 2 | 100 | -20% |
| 1002 | 1 | 50 | null |
| 1002 | 2 | 40 | -20% |
Answer:
Here's a SQL query in PostgreSQL that solves this question:
This SQL query first computes monthly sales for each product, then it calculates the percentage change compared to the previous month by joining on the and the . To make sure we do not divide by zero when computing the percentage change, we use the function to replace null from the previous month with 1.
Pro Tip: Window functions are a frequent SQL interview topic, so practice every window function problem on DataLemur
Stay informed with SpartanNash's news releases to see how they are enhancing their operations and community impact in the food distribution space! Understanding SpartanNash's efforts can provide a deeper appreciation for the strategies that drive success in the food industry.
SQL Question 2: Department vs. Company Salary
You're given a table of SpartanNash employee and department salary data. Write a SQL query to find departments where the departments average salary is higher than the company's average salary.
You can solve this question and run your code right in DataLemur's online SQL environment:
The solution is LONG – 30+ lines of SQL. You can find a detailed solution with hints here: Department vs. Company Salary.
SQL Question 3: What's the difference between an inner and a full outer join?
An inner join returns only the rows that match the join condition between the two tables, whereas a full outer join returns all rows from both tables, including any unmatched rows.
Example:
Example:
SQL Question 4: Store Inventory Management Database Design
SpartanNash is a grocery retail and supply chain company that also distributes grocery products to independent and chain retailers, as well as to corporate-owned retail stores.
Design a SQL database schema to manage the inventory of grocery products in its stores. Let's assume there are multiple stores, and each store has multiple products. Some details to consider while designing the database are as follows:
Here’s your text with the correct use of backticks:
- Each will have a unique , , and .
- Each will have a unique , , and .
- There will be a table to manage inventory, which will have , , and .
Create markdown-formatted tables to show some products, stores, and quantities on hand.
example input:
| store_id | store_name | location |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Store 1 | Location 1 |
| 2 | Store 2 | Location 2 |
example input:
| product_id | product_name | price |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Product 1 | 1.00 |
| 2 | Product 2 | 2.00 |
example input:
| store_id | product_id | quantity_on_hand |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 1 | 2 | 5 |
| 2 | 1 | 15 |
| 2 | 2 | 10 |
Write a PostgreSQL query to get the quantity on hand for each product at each store.
Answer:
This query joins the , , and tables using their IDs. It retrieves the store name, product name, and quantity on hand for each product at each store from the combined table.
SQL Question 5: Do NULLs in SQL mean the same thing as a zero?
A NULL value represents a missing or unknown value. It is different from a zero or a blank space, which are actual values. It is important to handle NULL values properly in SQL because they can cause unexpected results if not treated correctly.
SQL Question 6: Average Daily Sales
As an analyst for SpartanNash, you are interested in understanding the daily sales performance for analysis and reporting purpose. Write a SQL query to determine the average daily revenue of each store in the last 30 days. SpartanNash runs a chain of grocery stores and you have a table that logs every transaction.
Example Input:
| sales_id | store_id | sale_date | product_id | quantity | price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8761 | 301 | 08/05/2022 | 20101 | 5 | 3.50 |
| 4821 | 301 | 08/05/2022 | 20759 | 2 | 1.75 |
| 9253 | 305 | 08/05/2022 | 20759 | 3 | 1.75 |
| 3716 | 305 | 08/04/2022 | 20759 | 4 | 1.75 |
| 5821 | 302 | 08/03/2022 | 20101 | 5 | 3.50 |
| 6421 | 302 | 08/04/2022 | 20759 | 2 | 1.75 |
Answer:
This SQL query first calculates the total revenue for each day in each store (, ) and then it calculates the average of these values for each store. The clause ensures that only the records of the last 30 days are taken into account.
To practice a very similar question try this interactive Wayfair Y-on-Y Growth Rate Question which is similar for computation of sales data or this Amazon Average Review Ratings Question which is similar for average calculation over a period.
SQL Question 7: What does the operator do?
Note: interviews at SpartanNash often aren't trying to test you on a specific flavor of SQL. As such, you don't need to exactly know that is available in PostgreSQL and SQL Server, while is available in MySQL and Oracle – you just need to know the general concept!
Your answer should mention that the / operator is used to return all rows from the first statement that are not returned by the second statement.
Here's a PostgreSQL example of using to find all of SpartanNash's Facebook video ads with more than 50k views that aren't also being run on YouTube:
If you want to retain duplicates, you can use the operator instead of . The operator will return all rows, including duplicates.
SQL Question 8: Find Customers Named 'John' from Customer Data
As a database analyst at SpartanNash, your department wants to analyze the customer data. You have been given a task to filter out the customers whose first name is 'John'. Using the SQL language, write a query that will filter out all customer records that match this condition.
Consider the following table:
Example Input:
| customer_id | first_name | last_name | phone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | John | Doe | john.doe@email.com | (555) 555-5555 |
| 2 | Jane | Doe | jane.doe@email.com | (555) 555-5554 |
| 3 | John | Smith | john.smith@email.com | (555) 555-5553 |
| 4 | Mary | Johnson | mary.johnson@email.com | (555) 555-5552 |
| 5 | John | Davis | john.davis@email.com | (555) 555-5551 |
Answer:
You can use the keyword in SQL to filter data based on patterns. In this case, you are looking for customers whose first name is 'John'. Here is a PostgreSQL query that does this:
This query selects all fields from the table where the field matches the pattern 'John'.
Result:
| customer_id | first_name | last_name | phone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | John | Doe | john.doe@email.com | (555) 555-5555 |
| 3 | John | Smith | john.smith@email.com | (555) 555-5553 |
| 5 | John | Davis | john.davis@email.com | (555) 555-5551 |
SQL Question 9: Customer Purchases Analysis
Write a SQL query to analyze the SpartanNash customer database. You need to find the total amount spent by each customer. Combine this with the country information of the customer.
The table contains customer-related information. And the table contains purchase transaction data of customers.
Example Input:
| customer_id | customer_name | country |
|---|---|---|
| 101 | John Doe | USA |
| 102 | Emma Smith | Canada |
| 103 | David Johnson | UK |
| 104 | Michael Williams | Australia |
Example Input:
| transaction_id | customer_id | purchase_amount | purchase_date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 101 | 150.00 | 2022-01-21 |
| 2 | 102 | 250.00 | 2022-02-10 |
| 3 | 101 | 300.00 | 2022-03-20 |
| 4 | 104 | 90.00 | 2022-04-15 |
| 5 | 103 | 400.00 | 2022-05-10 |
Answer:
This query joins the and tables on . It then groups the resulting records by and and calculates the total purchase amount for each customer.
Since joins come up routinely during SQL interviews, take a stab at this Snapchat JOIN SQL interview question:
How To Prepare for the SpartanNash SQL Interview
The key to acing a SpartanNash SQL interview is to practice, practice, and then practice some more! Besides solving the earlier SpartanNash SQL interview questions, you should also solve the 200+ DataLemur SQL Interview Questions which come from companies like FAANG (FB, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, Google).
Each problem on DataLemur has hints to guide you, fully explained answers along with a discussion board to see how others solved it and best of all, there is an interactive coding environment so you can right in the browser run your query and have it graded.
To prep for the SpartanNash SQL interview it is also useful to solve SQL questions from other food and facilities companies like:
- United Natural Foods SQL questions
- US Foods SQL questions
- Performance Food Group SQL questions
- Sysco SQL questions
However, if your SQL coding skills are weak, don't worry about diving straight into solving questions – go learn SQL with this SQL tutorial for Data Analytics.
This tutorial covers SQL topics like cleaning text data and window functions like RANK() and ROW_NUMBER() – both of these come up routinely in SpartanNash SQL interviews.
SpartanNash Data Science Interview Tips
What Do SpartanNash Data Science Interviews Cover?
In addition to SQL interview questions, the other types of problems tested in the SpartanNash Data Science Interview are:
- Probability & Stats Questions
- Python or R Programming Questions
- Open-Ended Data Case Studies
- ML Modelling Questions
- Behavioral Interview Questions focussed on SpartanNash culture and values
How To Prepare for SpartanNash Data Science Interviews?
To prepare for SpartanNash Data Science interviews read the book Ace the Data Science Interview because it's got:
- 201 interview questions taken from Google, Microsoft & tech startups
- a refresher covering Stats, ML, & Data Case Studies
- over 1000+ 5-star reviews on Amazon
Also focus on the behavioral interview – prep for it with this Behavioral Interview Guide for Data Scientists.