The basics
The Optimize button is a powerful tool within the scheduling interface that leverages an advanced algorithm to construct schedules that align with your staffing requirements and customer service levels. This feature also considers available employee hours, the total number of employees, and each employee's weekly working hour constraints, including maximum and minimum hours.
Feature requirements
Before utilizing the Optimize button, ensure the following prerequisites are met:
1) Demand data integration:
Access the forecast page: Ensure that your demand drivers are populated within your account. This includes data like ticketing, calls, or appointments.
Data integration: This data can be integrated directly or uploaded via CSV.
2) Activity Types & SLA Setup:
Configure Activities: Navigate to the upper right-hand corner of the scheduling screen and click the cog or settings icon, then select 'Activities'.
Manage Activities: In this section, you can view, add, or modify activities that your workers will undertake. Consult the activity setup guide for detailed instructions on setting this up if not already done.
Using the Optimize Feature
Once the necessary data and activities are configured, you can start using the Optimize feature:
View Staffing Requirements: Navigate to 'Metrics' in the scheduling screen to see a bar chart representing the staffing requirements at various times throughout the day, derived from your demand data and activity rules.
Building an optimized schedule: Click the 'Optimize' button located at the top right-hand side of the scheduling screen.
Choose an Optimization Action: Select from three actions—Assign People, Build Shifts, or Assign Activities.
Build Shifts: Opt for this to create a schedule without assigned staff.
Assign People: This will assign staff to the built shifts based on their availability and qualifications.
Multiple actions: You can choose to perform multiple actions with the optimization feature like building schedules, assigning those schedules to employees and creating activities for within those schedules
Define the Scope: You can apply the optimizer for an entire week or specific days.
Running the Optimization:
Once you click 'Optimize Schedules', the system will take between 5 to 30 seconds to process, depending on the complexity and volume of data. The algorithm will calculate the optimal schedule configuration considering your specified demand and employee constraints.
Review and Approve Changes:
After the optimization process completes, review the proposed shifts and employee assignments. Approve the changes to populate the schedule with these unpublished shifts, ready for final adjustments and publishing.
