The Participant assumes the role of a Middle Manager within The Community Services Agency and is required to meet with one of their Team Leaders to discuss a decline in the teams performance. The Participant needs to investigate the reasons for the decline, offer support and agree a solution. The Participant must consider how to develop the Team Leader’s skills, improve team performance and to provide a high standard of customer service. In preparation, the Participant is given information about the Organisation, impending changes and the teams performance.
Competencies: Persuasive Oral Communication
The Participant plays the role of a Senior Manager in a utilities organisation, Spec Utilities. They are representing their Head of Department who is unable to attend a meeting with the Head of Sales & Marketing. Each department has two projects they propose to run this year, but with limited funds available, it is not possible to support all four. The Participant and the Head of Sales & Marketing must agree which two are put forward for approval by the Board who will otherwise allocate the funds arbitrarily. The Participant is only provided with details about the projects their manager would like to put forward.
The Participant is a graduate who has recently been appointed by Peter Masons, a large department store chain, as a Management Trainee. The Participant has been placed on a 3-month assignment in the Customer Service Department as part of a rotational programme designed to provide broad exposure to business operations. The Participant has been asked to interview one of the Customer Service staff who has recently been the subject of a number of complaints regarding customer handling. The Roleplayer’s brief is designed to challenge the Participant’s skills of managing others, creating increased motivation and dealing effectively with performance related problems.
The Participant assumes the role of a newly appointed Area Sales Manager for SoftWorld Solutions, a medium-sized software and services supplier. They are required to conduct a review meeting with a member of their sales team regarding productivity and performance issues. The Exercise requires the Participant to use management skills such as providing direction, encouragement and motivation, as well as establishing the causes of any performance problems.
The Participant plays the part of a Regional Human Resources (HR) Manager in a large clothes retailer who has been asked by their Regional Manager to conduct a counselling interview with a Store Manager whose performance is substandard. The situation needs to be handled with care and diplomacy, as there are non-work related issues to be dealt with and the Participant also needs to consider the relationship between the Regional Manager and the Store Manager.
The Participant plays the role of the HR Manager in CoolCustomers, a medium-sized firm which supplies and installs air conditioning equipment and systems for commercial and domestic applications. The performance of one of the four Regional HR Business Partners has been declining on a number of different fronts. There are concerns around the individuals attitude to change, their relationship with peers and the quality of their work. Information about these issues are provided for the Participant along with details of several complaints. The Participant has called a meeting to try and resolve these performance problems with their team member.
As a Trainee Manager in a motor manufacturer, the Participant is currently on secondment to one of their larger dealerships, Swain Auto Dealers. The Participant, having reviewed a written complaint, is asked to interview the member of the sales team at fault. The Roleplayers brief is designed to challenge the Participants interpersonal and management skills.
The Participant plays the role of a Senior Manager in the Finance Department of a Government Agency. The organisation runs a buddying system and the Participant has been asked by an individual that they buddy to meet up. The individual is a Senior Technical Specialist who wants to talk over some upcoming decisions about an internal career move. The challenge for the Participant is to coach the individual (who is at the same level in the organisation structure as them) to make the best decision. During the discussion further information arises around personal issues outside of work and conflict with another employee.
The Participant assumes the role of the Assistant Director of Internal Project Co-ordination for the Department of Personal Data, which is responsible for the collection, co-ordination and dissemination of all personal data for use by other government departments. The Participant is required to meet with a colleague to discuss a ministerial briefing in preparation for the opening of a new Computer Data Centre. The colleague is the Chair of the Task Force responsible for overseeing the launch of the Centre. The challenge for the Participant is to brief the colleague that the meeting agenda has now changed due to a serious security breach and to liaise with the colleague to address ministerial and public concerns, agree the content and actions required, and to motivate the colleague to agree a high level plan of the next steps to take to resolve the situation.
The Participant plays the role of a manager at a firm of consulting engineers who has to deal with a supervisor who reports to them and is alleged to have harassed another member of staff. The Participant brief contains details of the complaint, which has come to them through the normal grievance procedure, together with guidance notes on company policy from the Human Resources Department. The objective of the interview is to come to an understanding of the supervisors position and develop a suitable course of action in response to the complaint.
