IoIC Accreditation: Foundation Diploma and Advanced Diploma Pre-Entry Examination, June 2013

Exam Briefing

You will have a total of three hours to complete the examination. You will also be interviewed by a panel of experienced internal communication (IC) specialists about your work, your perspective on IC and on current themes and issues. The interview will take 15 minutes.

For the exam you need to complete the following sections:

A. Grammar and spelling: Correct what’s necessary in the 15 sentences in Part A – 15 marks.

B. Writing for an internal audience 1: Using the information supplied in Part B, write a 250-word news story for an internal briefing or bulletin with employees as your main target audience – 18 marks. Include a headline (max. 50 characters) – 2 marks.

C. Writing for an internal audience 2: Using the information supplied in Part C, write a 120-word story to be read on-screen – 8 marks. Include a headline (max. 25 characters) – 2 marks.

D. Internal communication and its environment: Answer the 15 questions in Part D – 15 marks.

E. Proof-reading: Proof-read the sheet supplied and clearly mark for correction anything that you think necessary. You do not need to rewrite the content – simply highlight and correct anything that is actually wrong – 15 marks.

F. Interview: Take part in a panel interview – 25 marks.

The pass mark is 75 per cent. Good luck!

IoIC Accreditation: Examination, June 2013

A. Grammar and spelling

Correct or improve the following 15 sentences – you can use a dictionary, spell check or any other reference sources

1. The script was holy unsuitable for the speech.

2. I know we all have busy schedule’s but I think that you should make time for this.

3. I wasn’t sure at the time but I think he was inferring that we shall do this in our spare time.

4. The people who have been my greatest inspiration are my parents Winston Churchill and Mother Theresa.

5. We all have a role in safety but its the H,S&E department who’s responsibility it is.

6. In line with our plain langauge policy, we advise you to simplify your texts by subsituting long words for one’s with less sylabbles.

7. You have three sources form which to choose – mint, lemon and avocado.

8. First open the folder, select the flies you need and Save As with todays date.

9. Unless we spice up the presenttion, our audience may be disinterested in what we have to say.

10. One way to raise moral is to hold a family day; another way is simply to pay more money.

11. The thing I didn’t like about the whole business process reeingeneering boom is the affect it has on headcount.

12. You need to check you’re work when youve done with them.

13. Its OK. On the other hand you could of added a bit more back ground information so they can see the bigger picture.

14. Dont you think this infographic off of Google compliments the text nicely?

15. After being the elephant in the room for the whole meeting, I will finally address the question of redundancies.

IoIC Accreditation: Examination, June 2013

B. Writing for an internal audience – 1

Write a news story or an internal briefing note of around 250 words (10 per cent either way) to be read by a broad base of employees. The scenario is an organisation called Vibronox, a hi-tech aerospace engine company employing about 3,000 people near Reading.

ALSO: write a (maximum 50 character) headline for the piece appropriate for an internal publication, bulletin or briefing note.

General information: Information from Leslie Elliott, HR director, who has approached the Vibronox Internal Communication team to raise awareness of the company’s new strategy for working with education and to make clear how employees can play a part in this.

Vibronox is committed to supporting education with the aims of raising standards in education; supporting future resourcing needs; promoting engineering, science and technology; developing our employees; influencing policy and strategy in education; and raising the profile of the company.

We will now be working with the following schools in and around Reading: Blessed Hugh Faringdon Catholic School Fawley Road, Southcote, Reading, RG30 3EP; Hemdean House School Hemdean Road, Caversham, Reading RG4 7SD; and Sixth Form Centre Surley Row, Emmer Green, Reading, RG4 8LR; Hartland Road, Reading RG2 8AF; London Road, Reading RG1 5BN; Shinfield Road, Reading RG2 7DD; Meadway School The Meadway, Tilehurst, Reading RG30 4NN; Cockney Hill, Tilehurst, Reading, RG30 4EX; Queen Anne’s School 6 Henley Road, Caversham, Reading, RG4 6DX.

There are two key areas where Vibronox employees can help:

Firstly, discussions that we have had indicate that there is both a wish and need for teachers in leadership and management roles to access courses. Many heads of department, year heads and subject co-ordinators currently play no active leadership role in schools. In some schools the entire leadership burden falls on the head. This is clearly an area in which we could provide practical support by identifying Vibronox courses which could possibly be made available to headteachers and school managers. Ideas and suggestions from people who run the courses, or people who have attended and can see ways they could be adapted for schools’ use would be welcomed.

Secondly, strengthen the Vibronox governor network. LEAs have a responsibility for delivering governor training but quality is variable. The primary function of a school’s governing body is to help raise educational standards and support the work of the head teacher and the staff. The governing body is expected to oversee the school’s aims, values and ethos, plan the school’s long-term future and monitor staff performance. /…

IoIC Accreditation: Examination, June 2013 (Continued) The governor network can be used to inform us of their schools’ priorities and how we can best shape our support. We need people to volunteer as potential school governors and we need to develop our governor network, putting together our own governor teaching initiatives when necessary.

The new strategy has been developed over the last eight months by a cross- functional working party including two local head teachers, the Vibronox HR team and representatives from the business including Suzanne Williams, Finance; Gerome Fewgood, IT; Donna Mosley, Marketing; Dean Baundy, Machine Shop 2; Allison Copeland, Admin Shared Services. Clarke Peters (Unite) was also on the team. The strategy was officially unveiled to the Board on Thursday 24 October and was unanimously endorsed. The board allocated funding of £8,000 for communication and publicity purposes to help the scheme get off the ground in its initial year. Further detailed information can be gained by contacting the Vibronox HR team.

C. Writing for an internal audience – 2

Write a story in 120 words (plus or minus 10 per cent ) for the Welsh Assembly’s Department of Administrative Affairs’ (DAA) electronic newsletter Connect. You will also need to write a headline of no more than 25 characters. Connect has an extremely popular ‘people’ section which features lighter stories about outside interests, DAA’s sports teams, charity events, etc. The story required is for TODAY’s page.

General information: Your information has come from Cardiff-based Simon Gallacher, who is the DAA’s Whittle House charity and social representative for 2013. The DAA believes strongly in its CSR credentials and pledges to match all donations to charity made by its employees.

General information from Simon for publication: The New York Marathon is the largest of all the World Marathon Majors and a must-do for any serious marathon runner. The 2013 ING-sponsored New York City Marathon takes place on 3rd November (this Sunday – two days’ time). The event has grown over the last 40 years to become the international marathon that every marathon runner wants to run in. Tom Bannion has averaged 40 miles a week and 1800-2000 miles a year since he began to run seriously in 1995. He set his best marathon time of 2:56 three years ago. When he competes in New York on Sunday it will be his 50th marathon. Tom is 42 and works as the department’s deputy chief finance officer at Whittle House, Cardiff. Tom will be accompanied to New York by his 14 year-old son, Chris.

Quotes from Tom: “I wanted to make 50 special, so I aimed for six marathons last year and two this year so that New York would be my golden celebration. “Marathons are a mental challenge. The test is not to stop, to keep going. Chris and I ran the fun-run a few days ago and although it was longer than expected Chris pleased me by going all the way.”

IoIC Accreditation: Examination, June 2013

D. Internal communication and its environment

1. What is a pixel and why might it be relevant to the work of an IC practitioner?

2. With what body of work related to IC is Nita Clarke associated?

3. In what circumstances might an IC practitioner face an ethical dilemma? Give two brief examples.

4. With what aspect of the world of work are Fons Trompenaars and Geert Hofstede associated?

5. What is gamification? How might it be used in IC?

6. Briefly, what is discretionary effort and what does it have to do with IC, if anything?

7. About 130 characters appear in Tolstoy’s classic text ‘War and Peace’. What text-based communication tool features up to 140 characters?

8. What is Sharepoint?

9. ‘Content is king and context is the kingdom.’ What do you understand this to mean?

10. How are business objectives relevant to internal communication?

11. What are infographics and what role can they play in IC?

12. According to consistent survey findings, to whom in an organisation do employees most frequently turn for information?

13. Apart from libel, slander or defamation, how might the law have a bearing on internal communication? Give two brief examples.

14. If public relations is about ‘relations with publics’, how might IC fit within this definition – and how might it not fit?

15. When writing a communication plan, what should you include so that you can demonstrate the impact of communication activity?

IoIC Accreditation: Examination, June 2013

E. Proof-reading

Proof-read the sheet supplied and clearly mark for correction anything that you think necessary. You do not need to use specialist proofing notation but make sure your marks are clear.

F. Interview

The interview is intended to give IoIC a sense of the candidate’s personality, experience and professional outlook. It will be business- like but informal and conversational in tone. There will be no trick questions. The panellists are all long-standing IC specialists. Treat it as a business conversation with peer practitioners.

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IoIC Accreditation: Examination, June 2013