Utilizing Auto Scheduling

⚡ What Is Auto Scheduling?

Auto Scheduling takes your scheduling experience to the next level, building your schedule for you instead of you piecing it together shift by shift.

It takes the day-to-day thinking that normally goes into scheduling, like who's available, whether you're covering demand, and whether you're staying within budget. Auto Scheduling handles that for you, creating your schedule in just a few clicks. You'll still review the result and make any final edits before publishing.

This article covers how to build and assign shifts with Auto Scheduling on an ongoing basis. If you haven't set up your Schedule Presets or Labour Guides yet, start by Setting Up Auto Scheduling.

🔎 Why Use Auto Scheduling?

Here are some common scenarios where Auto Scheduling can help save time and keep your schedule accurate:

• Saving Time: Builds your schedule for you in a few clicks, instead of piecing it together shift by shift.
• Considering Employee Availability: Only assigns shifts that fit what an employee has submitted for their availability, time off, and desired number of shifts.
• Following the Rules You Set: Respects the priorities set on your Schedule Presets, like an employee who should always be considered for a shift before anyone else.
• Using Your Sales & Labour Data: Can factor in your past and projected sales and labour costs to help determine how many people you actually need scheduled.
• Reducing Repetitive Setup: Build your Schedule Presets and Labour Guides from your account's own scheduling history instead of starting from scratch.

🔐 Access Required

Auto Scheduling is available on the Supreme package.

Who can build and assign shifts with Auto Scheduling?

• Super Administrators: Full access to create, edit, and delete House Shifts, run Auto Scheduling, and make any adjustments in the Scheduler.
• Team Administrators: Can manage these if the View/Update the Scheduler permission is enabled for the relevant Position(s). If you are unable to access, please confirm your permissions with a Super Administrator.

📋 Topics covered in this article:

• Building & Assigning Shifts with Auto Scheduling
  • Manually Creating House Shifts
  • Auto-Creating House Shifts
  • Automatically Assigning Shifts
• Running Auto Scheduling When Needed
• Frequently Asked Questions About Auto Scheduling

📚 Related articles:

• Setting Up Auto Scheduling
• Publishing the Schedule
• Creating & Utilizing Schedule Templates
• Check out our dedicated Scheduler section to find how-to guides, FAQs, and more.

Building & Assigning Shifts with Auto Scheduling

Once your Schedule Presets and Labour Guides are set up, you can begin using Auto Scheduling to build your schedule. This happens in two steps:

1. Create your House Shifts, either by building them yourself or asking the system to generate them for you.
2. Have Auto Scheduling assign those shifts out to employees.

💡 | Tip: Make sure to review any pending Shift Approvals. This can include changes to Weekly Availability and Time Off Requests. This ensures Auto Scheduling has the most accurate information to work from when creating and assigning shifts. We recommend making this a regular step to check! 

The sections below will cover the following:

• Manually Creating House Shifts
• Auto-Creating House Shifts
• Automatically Assigning Shifts

Manually Creating House Shifts

Before Auto Scheduling can assign shifts to employees, House Shifts must be on the schedule. Think of a House Shift as a shift built from a Schedule Preset, just without an employee attached yet. 

The system takes care of that assignment afterward, so for now, focus on building out your ideal schedule with House Shifts. You can create these manually, which is a great option if you already have a go-to week you like to reuse (especially if you've saved it as a Schedule Template).

1. Click the Scheduler tab. 
2. On the left-hand navigation bar, click Weekly Schedule. 
3. To adjust how you view the Scheduler, click the drop-down menu next to Employees, and select either Employees, or Employees Unique, Positions. 
   ⚠️ | Important: Auto Scheduling currently only works on a weekly basis. It doesn't support scheduling from the Daily view at this time. 
4. Locate the House Shifts section on the Schedule and hover over and click the plus icon. 
5. The House Shift pop-up will appear. Fill in the following:
   1. Under Positions, select the relevant Position. 
      💡 | Tip: This filters the list of Schedule Presets available to choose from, based on the Position selected.
   2. Under Employees, this should auto-fill as House Shift. 
      📌 | Note: For Auto Scheduling, make sure this always stays set to House Shift if you want the platform to auto-assign it to an employee. 
   3. Under Tag, select a Tag, if applicable. 
   4. Under Presets, select the relevant Schedule Preset. 
   5. The Start and End Times will be pre-filled based on the chosen Schedule Preset. Click and adjust the times if applicable.  
   6. Under Breaks, click the drop-down and select the relevant break type, if applicable.
      📌 | Note: Only available with the Advanced Breaks or Break Compliance feature. Contact the PUSH Support Team if you'd like this enabled.
   7. Under Comments, add any notes about the shift, if applicable. 
      ⚠️ | Warning: This is visible to employees.
   8. Once done, click Confirm. 
6. You'll be taken back to the Scheduler, where the new House Shift will appear!
7. Once you're done building out your House Shifts, you're ready to have the platform auto-assign them to employees. See the Automatically Assigning Shifts section below for more information.
   💡 | Tip: Want to reuse these House Shifts for another week's schedule? Save them as a Schedule Template!

Auto-Creating House Shifts

Instead of manually creating House Shifts for each Position, the generator analyzes your historical information and Labour Guides to recommend shifts based on how your business has actually operated.

Not every Position needs House Shifts generated. Salaried positions, for example, often work the same hours every day, so there's usually no need to include them. You can filter which Positions are included during generation, so only the ones that actually need coverage have House Shifts created for them.

📌 | Note: If you do not see this option, please contact our Support Team, who can enable it for you.

1. Click the Scheduler tab. 
2. On the left-hand navigation bar, click Weekly Schedule. 
3. To adjust how you view the Scheduler, click the drop-down menu next to Employees, and select either Employees, or Employees Unique, Positions. 
   ⚠️ | Important: Auto Scheduling currently only works on a weekly basis. It doesn't support scheduling from the Daily view at this time. 
4. (Optional) On the right side, click Filter to adjust which positions have House Shifts auto-created. 
   💡 | Tip: This is a great way to skip Positions that don't need House Shifts generated, like salaried roles that work the same hours every day.
5. In the Filters pop-up, under Positions, select the Position(s) you want the system to generate shifts for, or leave it blank to include all Positions.  
6. Once done, click Close.
7. The Schedule will refresh and only include the relevant positions.
   📌 | Note: This doesn't remove or affect shifts for any other Positions already on the schedule. Just impacts what positions the House Shift generator can use. 
8. Once ready, on the right side, click Options, and select Generate House Shifts. 
9. In the House Shift Generator pop-up, review the listed positions and either click Generate Shifts to proceed or Cancel to go back a step. 
   ⚠️ | Warning: Once confirmed, House Shifts will be created for every Position listed. Take a moment to make sure the list is correct before proceeding.
10. When Generate Shifts is selected, a pop-up titled Are You Sure?  will appear as a final warning before shifts are auto-created. Click Generate to proceed or Cancel to go back.
11. If Generate is selected, the page will refresh, and House Shifts will be auto-created and appear on the Scheduler!
12. Once you're done building out your House Shifts, you're ready to have the platform auto-assign them to employees. See the Automatically Assigning Shifts section below for more information.
    💡 | Tip: Want to reuse these House Shifts for another week's schedule? Save them as a Schedule Template!

📌 | Reminder: Generated House Shifts are built from your account's own shift history, so they're a strong starting point. Take a moment to review each one and make any updates needed to align with your current goals and labour budget.

Automatically Assigning Shifts

Once House Shifts are on the schedule, you're ready for the platform to automatically assign them to employees. This uses each employee's latest Weekly Availability, along with the Priority and Preferred Employees set on the relevant Schedule Preset, to decide who gets each shift.

This is the last step of Auto Scheduling. Remember all that initial setup work with your Schedule Presets and  Labour Guides? Plus, creating House Shifts? Once those are in place, assigning shifts is as simple as a few clicks, letting the platform match your team to the shifts your business needs to run day-to-day.

1. Click the Scheduler tab. 
2. On the left-hand navigation bar, click Weekly Schedule. 
3. To adjust how you view the Scheduler, click the drop-down menu next to Employees, and select either Employees, or Employees Unique, Positions. 
   ⚠️ | Important: Auto Scheduling currently only works on a weekly basis. It doesn't support scheduling from the Daily view at this time. 
4. (Optional) On the right side, click Filter to adjust which positions House Shifts are auto-assigned to employees. 
   💡 | Tip: This is a great way to slow down on the auto-assignment to employees, like by department or specific positions. 
5. In the Filters pop-up, under Positions, select the Position(s) you want the system to auto-assign the House Shifts for, or leave it blank to include all Positions.   Once done, click Close.
6. Make sure House Shifts are created in the Scheduler, whether manually or auto-created!
7. Once ready, on the right side, click Options, and select Auto Schedule. 
8. In the Auto Schedule pop-up, review the following information and adjust the relevant settings:
9. Under the Positions to Schedule section, review that the relevant roles are listed. 

   1. Under Shifts To Schedule, check or uncheck which shifts you want the platform to work on. At least one must be selected:

      Setting	What It Does
      Unassigned Shifts	Includes shifts that are currently unassigned (House Shifts).
      Assigned Shifts	Includes shifts that are already assigned to employees, and will reassign them if a better match is found.

   2. Under Auto Schedule Settings, check or uncheck the settings that apply:
      💡 | Tip: We recommend leaving all of the settings below turned on for the most accurate results.

      Setting	What It Does
      Allow Employees To Work Multiple Shifts Per Day	Let employees be assigned more than one shift on the same day.
      Observe Employee Number Of Shifts Preference	Respects each employee's preferred number of shifts per week.
      Observe Time Off Requests	Avoids assigning shifts during approved time off.
      Observe Employee Availabilities	Only assigns shifts during times employees have indicated they're available.

10. Once done, click Assign to proceed or Cancel to close out on auto-assigning. 
11. If Assign is selected, a pop-up titled Are You Sure? will appear as a final warning before shifts are auto-assigned. Click Assign to proceed or Cancel to go back.
12. If Assign is selected, the page will refresh, and an Auto Schedule Results pop-up will appear, showing:
    1. Shifts Processed: the total number of shifts considered (House Shifts and already-assigned shifts combined).
    2. Assignment Results: the total number of shifts that were successfully assigned.
    3. Unassigned Shifts: a list of any shifts that couldn't be assigned, with the Position, date, and time for each.
    4. Employee Summary: the total number of employees considered, how many received shifts, and how many didn't have availability recorded in the platform.
       📌 | Note: The Employee Summary can help explain why certain shifts went unassigned. 
13. Click OK, and the Scheduler will refresh, showing assigned shifts under the relevant employees. Review the schedule and make any changes needed, then publish when ready! 
    📌 | Note: Any shifts that couldn't be assigned will remain listed under House Shifts. 

Running Auto Scheduling When Needed

Once your Schedule Presets, Labour Guides, and House Shifts are in place, running Auto Scheduling is a quick, repeatable process rather than building the schedule from scratch, however often you build out your schedule. 

Remember to review the following on an ongoing basis, to ensure things stay accurate:

• Employee Availability: Review this often. Outdated or unapproved availability is the most common reason shifts get assigned inaccurately.
• Labour Guides: your staffing needs can shift throughout the year, whether due to seasonality or other business changes. Adjust your sales ranges and counts as needed.
• Schedule Presets: revisit these periodically, adjusting positions, timing, or priority or preferred assignments as your team grows and business needs change.

Frequently Asked Questions About Auto Scheduling

Have questions about setting up or running Auto Scheduling? Whether you're wondering about subscription requirements, Priority Employees, or the difference between manual and auto-generated House Shifts, this section provides quick answers to help you use Auto Scheduling with confidence.

Q: Does Auto Scheduling require an additional fee? 
A: Yes, your account needs to be on the Supreme package to have access to the Auto Scheduling feature. If you're interested, reach out to our PUSH Support Team, who can connect you with the right team member.

Q: Can I still make manual changes to the schedule after running Auto Scheduling? 
A: Yes. You can add, remove, and drag and drop shifts as normal after Auto Scheduling assigns them.

Q: Do I still need to publish the schedule after using Auto Scheduling? 
A: Yes, Auto Scheduling will create and assign the shifts, but you'll still need to publish the schedule for employees to see it.

Q: What's the difference between manually creating House Shifts and Auto-Generating them? 
A: Manually creating House Shifts means adding each one individually in the Weekly Schedule view. Auto-Generating House Shifts uses your Labour Guides, Schedule Presets, and employee availability to create the required House Shifts for you. Both options are available; use whichever fits your workflow, or a mix of both. 

Q: I don't see the option to Generate House Shifts. Why not? 
A: Auto-Generating House Shifts is rolling out in phases across eligible accounts. If you don't see this option and would like access, please contact our PUSH Support Team to have it enabled.

Q: Do I have to build or generate House Shifts every single week? 
A: Not necessarily. If a week's House Shifts don't change much from week to week, you can save that week as a Schedule Template and load it into future weeks instead of rebuilding or regenerating it each time. Or use the Auto Scheduling feature to build out multiple weeks' worth of shifts and adjust and publish as needed. 

Q: Can Auto Scheduling account for an employee working too many days in a row, or grant automatic days off? 
A: Not currently. You can still manually move shifts after Auto Scheduling runs, and we welcome feedback on features like this for future versions.

If this is something you'd like to see improved, let us know by submitting product feedback under the Roadmap & Ideas page.

Q: Can I copy a schedule built with Auto Scheduling to another week? 
A: Yes, you can copy an auto-scheduled week to another week, or to a custom date range, like any other schedule.

Additional Information

Need further help? Refer to our Getting Help & Contacting Support article for the latest support options and ways to connect with our team.