What is a Round Robin?
The Round Robin method assigns shifts by rotating through agents in order. Each person takes a turn receiving a shift, then moves to the back of the line for the next round. This way, shifts are distributed fairly, giving everyone an equal chance at different times without favouritism.
Round Robins are most commonly used to rotate unpopular or additional shifts amongst your team, such as a weekend or late night shift.
Agents will take turns to work the Round Robin shift(s) in addition to their existing shift patterns. Round Robin shifts and time off in lieu will overwrite any previous shifts that the agent had scheduled.
How to set up a Round Robin
Step 1: Create a Round Robin
Open up a Shift Plan
Click the 'Add Round Robin' in the top toolbar
Give your Round Robin a name, e.g. Weekend rotation
Add the agents you want to be included in the Round Robin.
Step 2: Add shifts and time off in lieu
Next, add shifts. Select the shift and the days of the week it should be scheduled on as well as how many agents you need to work this shift.
You can also opt in to give agents time off in lieu when they work this shift. This is helpful to keep agents within their contracted hours and to provide adequate rest time. You can choose for time off in lieu to be scheduled on the same week or the following week.
When you have added all the relevant shifts for the Round Robin, click Next.
Step 3 (optional): Add scheduling rules
At the next stage, you have the option to add rules to specify how the shifts should be allocated to agents. For example, when it's an agent's turn in the Round Robin, they should work the Saturday shift and the Sunday shift.
Step 4: Check the order of the Round Robin
Finally, you'll be shown a preview of the Round Robin. The preview will show you how many weeks the Round Robin will last, and who will work each shift.
If you don't like the order, you can hit shuffle to generate a new order.
When you're done, click Save. Your Round Robin will now be ready to schedule.
💡 If you have an existing Round Robin order you would like to continue in Dialpad WFM, you can tick the agents in the order you want them to be scheduled when adding them to the Round Robin.
😴 If you delete a Round Robin shift from the schedule, the system will also remove their time off in lieu for you, automatically.
FAQs
How are Round Robin shifts scheduled?
When you apply a Shift Plan, the created shift patterns and Round Robins will be scheduled.
Round Robin shifts and time off in lieu take priority over shift pattern shifts. This means they will overwrite and replace these shifts.
In the schedule, Round Robin shifts are marked with a rotating emoji 🔄 and time off in lieu is marked with a sleepy emoji 😴 .
What happens if an agent is on holiday or sick when it's their turn?
If an agent is off work when it's their turn to work a Round Robin, their time off booking will overwrite the Round Robin shift or time off in lieu. A conflict will be shown in the schedule to alert you to this change.
The shift will not be automatically reassigned and will not affect the order of the Round Robin.
Should I use a Round Robin or a rotating shift pattern?
Round Robins are most applicable when rotating 1 or 2 additional shifts to the standard shift patterns agents work week to week. For example:
A weekend shift
A late night shift
A very early shift
If you are rotating a large number of shifts, or a week-long shift pattern, we usually recommend you create a rotating shift pattern instead. This provides you with more control over the staffing and allocation of shifts.
How is the order of the rotation determined?
If no rules are added, the system will create a rotation which ensures the largest time between turns for agents.
How can I ensure the Round Robin continues when applying shift plans?
When you apply a Shift Plan, the Round Robin will continue for the period you applied it for. e.g. I apply a Shift Plan from Jan 1 - Mar 31, the Round Robin will rotate 12 times in this period.
To ensure continuity when applying Shift Plans across different periods, apply your Shift Plans 'back-to-back'. In practice this means applying the Plan to consecutive periods, e.g. I apply a Shift Plan from Jan 1 - Mar 31. I then apply my Shift Plan from Apr 1 - July 30. Because these dates are consecutive, the order of the Round Robin will continue across all 24 weeks.
What happens if I add someone new to the rotation or remove someone?
If the agents included in the Round Robin change, then the order of the Round Robin will regenerate to accommodate the new agents.