The following information mainly details the processes used by the National ADC Toolkit, which the vast majority of FRS in England, Wales and Northern Ireland adhere to. Many Scottish FRS use an ADC comprised of a written exercise, a one-to-one roleplay, and a group role-play.  (Transferability conditions may vary between individual FRS). Exercises may vary slightly at Strategic Manager level.

ADC exercises usually fall into the categories of:

• Written Exercises
• Group Discussions
• Role-plays

Context

Each ADC will begin with the candidate reading Background Information that is relevant to the environment that all of the day’s exercises will be set in.  It is not necessary to do any research or studying before the ADC; all of the information that you need will be presented on the day. Instructions may be read out by an administrator before each exercise begins. Each exercise will be set within the context you will read about in your Background Information. For instance, the Background Information may describe a charitable organisation, and your role as a manager within that. All further exercises will require you, as manager of that organisation, to deal with a number of issues that the holder of such a position may be likely to face.

* Tip *

You will be unaware which PQAs are being assessed; consistent advice from candidates is to not worry about the PQAs, and just deal with the issues that are presented to you.

In Basket/ In- Box/ Written exercise

Irrespective of format, the written exercise will require you to respond to one or more requests, using the range of information presented to you to inform your decisions.

The National ADC Toolkit uses an In-basket or In-box as the written exercise. You will be presented with a number of items, each containing different information, concerns and priorities. You will need to deal with as many of the items as possible, outlining the actions you would take in response to them. As with all of the exercises, the type of tasks you will find in the In-basket would be similar to the sort of thing you would need to do at either supervisory or Middle manger level, as appropriate.

In some cases (i.e. at Strategic level and in many of the ADCs used in Scotland) the written exercise may be a case study or require you to respond to a specific request i.e. write a proposal, evaluate a course of action or make/recommend a strategy You will still be required to use the Background Information, manage your time and evaluate relevant information.

Group Discussion

The National ADC Toolkit uses a Group Discussion exercise. You will have 20 minutes to read the relevant information and make notes. Then you and the rest of your group (usually 6 candidates) will have the opportunity to discuss the issues outlined and make collective decisions/ recommendation based on analysis of the information.

A group discussion is the most difficult of all ADC exercises to control in terms of uniformity of experience. Some organisations choose to avoid use of this exercise and instead create a role-play environment to explore a candidate’s responses. The Group Discussion exercise is not used in many Scottish FRS ADCs.

Role-play

For this exercise you will have approximately 15 minutes to read thorough the relevant information and prepare, and up to 20 minutes to meet with an individual (a role-player) and deal with issues presented.

Multiple Role-play

The timings may vary, but in this exercise you will be required to deal with 2 role-players, who usually have their individual perspectives and expectations which you need to manage. At Strategic Manager level the exercise may involve 3 role-players.

Meeting/ handover/ briefing/ consultation/ analysis and presentation exercise

This is the exercise that will vary the most depending on the Toolkit exercise-set being used, and level of ADC you are attending. Despite the differences in title, it is an exercise which involves you presenting information to an audience, either assessors or role-players, who will then ask you questions on your understanding of the issues.

The National ADC Toolkit also has optional personality and learning styles questionnaire components, although most FRS choose not to use these.

Would you like to see practical examples of each of the ADC exercises, relevant to your level? Click here for details of our products, that include practical exercises that will improve your performance