Now that you’ve created the structure of your Digital Assessment Centre (DAC) template, it’s time to build the running order of the day.
This is where you define:
1. The order of exercises
2. Where breaks sit
3. Timings for candidates and assessors
4. Virtual meeting room requirements (if needed)
Whether your DAC includes a single interview or a full day of interviews, group exercises, and case studies, this step ensures everything runs in the right sequence.
Adding a New DAC Event
To begin building your schedule after you followed the steps in Creating a DAC Template:
Click Add New DAC Event:
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Choose whether you would like to create:
Exercise
Break
All event setup, including timings and room requirements, is managed here in one place.
Adding an Exercise
Step 1: Select the Exercise
If you choose Exercise, select the appropriate exercise from the dropdown list.
⚠️ Note: This may not always be a traditional “exercise.” For example, a welcome session may have been created as an exercise in the setup, so it will appear in this list.
Select the exercise you would like to schedule first.
Step 2: Event Naming
The default exercise name will automatically pull through.
You can leave this as is, or
Rename it if you would prefer a different display name in the template
Step 3: Set the Timings
Enter the Start Time and End Time for the exercise.
Remember: This is a template.
When you later schedule the DAC, you can change the overall start time - and all events will automatically adjust.
Example:
Template exercise runs 9:00am – 10:00am
You schedule the DAC to start at 2:00pm
The exercise will automatically run 2:00pm – 3:00pm
All subsequent events will shift accordingly.
Step 4: Assessor Timing
By default, Matching Assessor Time is selected.
If assessors should attend for the full candidate session, leave this checked.
If assessors require different timings (for example, further discussion time between assessors before or after the candidate time), uncheck the box.
Additional timing fields will appear, allowing you to specify assessor start and end times separately.
Step 5: Virtual Meeting Room Options
You will see the option:
Create virtual meeting room
✅ Check this box if you want Sova to create an integrated virtual meeting room for this exercise.
-
⛔ Leave this unchecked if:
The session is face-to-face
You are managing meetings externally (e.g. via Zoom or another provider) If you are doing this please check out the article Manage Rooms for more detail on how to do this.
If selected, two additional options appear:
Lock Rooms: Candidates must be admitted by assessors before entering the session.
- Separate Room for Each Group: Creates individual virtual rooms for each group.
You can learn more about this functionality in the article Understanding Placeholders.
Step 6: Save
Click Save.
Your first exercise will now appear in the template.
Next, refer to Understanding Placeholders to learn how to allocate candidate and assessor spaces within the session.
Adding a Break
If you need to schedule time between exercises:
Click Add New DAC Event
Select Break
Break Setup
- Name the Break (e.g 'lunch break' or 'comfort break')
- Set the Duration (Specify the length of the break)
Virtual Meeting Room (Optional)
You can choose to create a virtual meeting room for a break.
This might be useful if:
Candidates can network or chat informally
Assessors are running a Q&A session
You want a shared space during downtime
As with exercises, you can manage candidate and assessor access using placeholders (see Understanding Placeholders).
Click Save to add the break to your template.
Building the Full Running Order
Continue adding exercises and breaks by selecting Add New DAC Event until your template reflects the full flow of the day.
Your template might be:
A single interview session
A half-day with one or two exercises
A full-day assessment centre with multiple exercises, group work, case studies, and structured breaks
At this stage, you are defining:
The sequence of events
The timings
Digital room requirements
Your template is saved automatically - you can make changes to your template at any time but any sessions that have already been booked in will not change to reflect retrospectively.
Once complete, move on to Understanding Placeholders to configure candidate and assessor spaces within each event.