Thursday, March 23, 2017

Problem of manual shift scheduling


Whether you are in retail, construction, healthcare or the hospitality industry, there are few things that cause many "headaches" for managers when you use manual shift scheduling. To develop an efficient schedule, it can take days or sometimes weeks. Last minute change can be incredibly frustrating as managers are forced to do re-scheduling.


It is time to reconsider your current practice and start automating the process.

Here are some of the common scheduling problems where our scheduling tool, “247Shift” can help.

Using Paper and Pen /Manual spreadsheet
  • Spreadsheet formulas are unable to handle the amount of data
  • Depending on the complexities involved and the size of the organization, it may be difficult to manage the employee timetables efficiently.
The 247Shift Solution: Plan shifts across multiple locations, departments and functions.


Time involved in manual planning
  • Manual data entry and administration is required, which eats up time and resources.
  • Shift changes daily and managers will have to continuously edit them.
  • When staff grows and organization becomes more complex, matching employee availability to staffing requirements and controlling labour costs at the same time gets complicated.
The 247Shift Solution: Templates are available for repeated shift patterns.


Error prone
  • Human error which could lead to serious issues, such as over compensation under compensation, non compliance with labour regulations, and more.
  • The complexity of organization size can lead to a number of mistakes and complications in the process.
  • Manual data entry is subject to mistakes and loss of data.
The 247Shift Solution: Automatic scheduling conflict and optimum staff mix checking feature is available.


Not dynamic
  • No notifications of problems, absence of leave, reminder of changes in shift schedule.
  • Employees are frequently unaware of last minute changes because there is no visibility in their schedule.
  • When unexpected events happen, such as someone calling in sick, there is a breakdown in transportation and it coincides with your busiest time, managing replacements can be a nightmare!
The 247Shift Solution: Manage staff leave/time-off request and timely, Personalized Reminder features are available.


Lack of Analytics
  • Inconsistent and poor record keeping does not allow for meaningful data analysis.
The 247Shift Solution: Real time Reports/Analytics are available.

Employee scheduling software is the most efficient way to create and manage employees in the organization. By improving the employee planning processes, you can reduce errors and inefficiencies. This in turn will help to reduce cost and improve the bottom line. An added bonus - happy staff!