A holder of the UEFA Pro-Licence, he returned to Norwich where was appointed as manager of the club's U-18s. Adams guided the side to victory over Chelsea in the 2012–13 FA Youth Cup. On 6 April 2014 he was appointed Norwich City first-team caretaker manager following the departure of Chris Hughton.
As a UEFA Pro-Licence holder, Adams resumed his managerial duties at Norwich, initially managing the U-18 team before assuming an interim role with the first team in April 2014 following Chris Hughton's departure.