Directions: Study the following information carefully and answer the question given below.

Eight professionals — A, B, C, D, E, F, G, and H — work in an organization at different designations, namely Director, Vice President (VP), General Manager (GM), Senior Manager (SM), Manager, Assistant Manager (AM), Executive, and Trainee, but not necessarily in the same order. The designations are given in decreasing order of seniority such that Director is the senior-most post and Trainee is the junior-most post.

F is three ranks junior to C. The number of persons senior to H is equal to the number of persons junior to B. Only two persons are designated between H and F. D is two ranks senior to G. A is senior to E but junior to D.

If all the professionals are rearranged in alphabetical order from the senior-most post to the junior-most post, how many professionals will retain their original positions?

The correct answer is One.

Step 1: Understand the given designations and their ranks
The organization has 8 designations arranged in decreasing order of seniority (from rank 1 to rank 8):
1. Director (Senior-most)
2. Vice President (VP)
3. General Manager (GM)
4. Senior Manager (SM)
5. Manager
6. Assistant Manager (AM)
7. Executive
8. Trainee (Junior-most)

Step 2: Determine the positions of each professional

1. F is three ranks junior to C:
Rank of F = Rank of C + 3

2. Only two persons are designated between H and F, so the difference between their ranks is 3. Since Rank of F = Rank of C + 3, H must be junior to F (as placing H senior to F would make H occupy the same rank as C):
Rank of H = Rank of F + 3 = Rank of C + 6

3. Since the maximum possible rank is 8, the only valid rank for C is 1:
Rank of C = 1 (Director)
Rank of F = 1 + 3 = 4 (Senior Manager)
Rank of H = 4 + 3 = 7 (Executive)

4. The number of persons senior to H is equal to the number of persons junior to B. H is at rank 7, so there are 6 persons senior to H. Therefore, there must be 6 persons junior to B, which places B at rank 2:
Rank of B = 2 (VP)

5. D is two ranks senior to G:
Rank of D = Rank of G - 2

6. A is senior to E but junior to D:
Rank of D < Rank of A < Rank of E

7. The remaining unassigned ranks are 3, 5, 6, and 8 for D, G, A, and E. Setting Rank of D = 3 gives Rank of G = 5. Then A and E take ranks 6 and 8 respectively, satisfying Rank of D (3) < Rank of A (6) < Rank of E (8):
Rank 3: D (General Manager)
Rank 5: G (Manager)
Rank 6: A (Assistant Manager)
Rank 8: E (Trainee)

Step 3: Original arrangement of professionals
1. Director: C
2. VP: B
3. GM: D
4. SM: F
5. Manager: G
6. AM: A
7. Executive: H
8. Trainee: E

Step 4: Rearrange in alphabetical order
Arranging alphabetically (A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H) from senior-most to junior-most:
1. Director: A
2. VP: B
3. GM: C
4. SM: D
5. Manager: E
6. AM: F
7. Executive: G
8. Trainee: H

Step 5: Compare original vs. alphabetical positions
- Rank 1 (Director): C vs A (Changed)
- Rank 2 (VP): B vs B (Unchanged)
- Rank 3 (GM): D vs C (Changed)
- Rank 4 (SM): F vs D (Changed)
- Rank 5 (Manager): G vs E (Changed)
- Rank 6 (AM): A vs F (Changed)
- Rank 7 (Executive): H vs G (Changed)
- Rank 8 (Trainee): E vs H (Changed)

Only B (at VP rank) retains its original position. Therefore, exactly 1 professional retains their position.