In almost any type of work environment where shifts are required, this presents a challenge for supervisors and managers entrusted with the task. Having to navigate through papers, scores of workers and leave forms can become quite tedious and time-consuming.
In Ireland, there are many industries and business environments which can benefit greatly from Employee Scheduling Software. It can stem the broad range of challenges which arise due to scheduling hiccups. It is a necessary function which does not have to be so painstaking with the adoption of simplified solutions.
If your company can identify with some of these challenges, you will indeed benefit from the implementation of this software.
Major Employee Scheduling Challenges
- The journey to creating a seamless schedule can be laborious and require much time and effort of managers. This is compounded by the fact that to do so is a monthly or weekly occurrence so it forms a normal part of the workload.
- Factors affecting scheduling include vacation leave, sick days or other unscheduled time away from work. This will sometimes result in last minute shift changes needing to be made. This part is especially problematic at a moment’s notice.
- Planning for sufficient rest time for workers can also be daunting. Best practice recommends giving a 12-hour break between shifts to prevent burnout. This must be especially borne in mind for employees who must lock up and open the workplace. Having to keep track of this is also a grueling task, and especially more so with a larger staff complement.
- Employees feeling as if they have not been scheduled fairly is a challenge for many businesses. Using a paper method or spreadsheet sometimes makes the bigger picture more difficult to see. It often creates an imbalance in the way staff is rostered.
- Manual schedule development poses a challenge to the productivity of labour. This is because a lot of time must be spent to ensure that all critical areas of work are covered by the appropriately qualified staff.
How Employee Scheduling Software Solves the Problems
To keep control of the growing and diverse workforce in Ireland, Advance Systems once again comes to the rescue. Their Employee Scheduling Software solves the challenges in a number of ways. There are many advantages using employee scheduling software.
- Allows a highly customizable platform for scheduling staff work rosters.
It does this by enabling classification based on skills held, staff availability and rate of pay. This means that schedules can be created based on departments, teams and even shifts. It allows for scheduling in a way which will boost productivity and work force efficiency. The flexibility of scheduling based on shifts also allows for forecasting and planning for peak business hours. Customization can also be done based on set parameters determined by the scheduler. If there are schedules created outside of the parameters, a notification will be sent so that it can be addressed.
- Offers a cost effective solution for creating automated schedules.
This reduces the amount of time spent by managers and supervisors on schedule development and ironing out the kinks. With all the data being input on the platform, making schedule adjustments becomes markedly easier.
- The scheduling software allows for seamless use along with the Time and Attendance Solutions.
When both are used in conjunction, the streamlining of scheduling functions becomes possible. The easy availability of information pertaining to time away is within easy grasp. Ordinarily, this information would have to be obtained from the Human Resources department.
- The software allows the Human Resource Department to spend less time on scheduling and time off requests and more time on their core functions. The ability to schedule according to skill sets allows for deficiencies in skill areas to be identified. This puts the HR department in line to identify additional areas of training to strengthen the skill areas.
- The Employee Scheduling Software cuts down on the loss of valuable time and resources spent on tedious schedule creation. Previously created schedules can be used as a basis for future or current ones, and for particular periods or seasons.
With the diverse nature of businesses in Ireland and the equally diverse and growing work force, the matter of employee scheduling is a necessary pain point to be addressed. Inefficient schedules definitely work to the detriment of a company’s productivity. It affects the performance of the staff complement and spills over to profitability. The effect is usually a negative one. It is clear to see that the implementation of scheduling software across businesses in Ireland is a clear and simple answer to the ongoing challenge of accurate scheduling.
