Generate a schedule without a forecast

Create a blank schedule for expected shift patterns when no forecast is available. This method improves the scheduling algorithm by using the shortest, median, longest, or staggered time span for the selected shift length; and the earliest, median, latest, or staggered start times for flexible shifts.

Note: Shift start and shift length options only apply to flexible shifts in the work plan.

  1. Click Admin.
  2. Under Workforce Management, click Schedules.
  3. From the Business Unit list, located in the upper right corner, select a business unit.
  4. (Optional) To change the time zone in which you view data, in the upper right hand corner select the current time zone list.
    Note: By default, the view uses the business unit's time zone.
  5. Click  Generate. The Generate Schedule dialog box opens. 
  6. In the Generate Schedule dialog box, perform the following actions:
    • (Optional) In the Schedule Start Week field, click the calendar button  at the end of the Schedule Start Week box and select the start week.
    • (Optional) In the Number of Weeks field, click the arrows at the end of the Number Of Weeks box to indicate the schedule length, from one to six weeks.
    • In the Schedule Duration field, verify if the schedule duration is displayed accurately.
    • (Optional) In the Description field, add the description for the schedule.
    • (Optional) In the Scheduling Method field, select Create Schedule Without Forecast.
    • Click the Shift Start list and select one of the following options. This applies to every agent within the schedule: 
      Option Description
      Earliest Shift Start This option enables you to select the shift start time according to the workplan. For example, if a workplan with shift start time between 8:00am and 10:00am every 30 min interval, the scheduler generates shifts with 8:00am being the most preferred. In the event where shift start time of 8:00am is unavailable due to a constraint violation, the next earliest start time 8:30am takes priority.
      Median Shift Start This option enables you to select the shift start time as the midpoint between the earliest and the latest time during schedule generation. For example, if the earliest start time is 8:00am and latest start time is 10:00am, then 9:00am represents the midpoint and the same is preferred. In the event where two shift start times represent the median, the lesser of the two values are chosen.
      Staggered Shift Start (Default) This option enables you to select the shift start time after a uniform sampling of shift start times. Here, all the shift start times have equal probability of being chosen. 
      Latest Shift Start This option enables you to select the latest shift time as the shift start time. If this time is unavailable due to a constraint violation, the preceding shift start time is chosen to generate schedule. For example, if the earliest time is 8:00am and latest time is 10:00am, then 10:00am is most preferred. If it is not available, then 9:30am is considered as the next option.
    • Click the Shift Length list and select one of the following:
      Option Description
      Earliest Shift Length This option gives preference to the shortest shift length as per the workplan. For example, if a workplan with shift lengths between 6-9 hours and every 1 hour interval, the shortest length of 6 hours is most preferred.
      Median Shift Length (Default) This option gives preference to the length that represents the midpoint between the shortest and the longest shift duration. For example, if a workplan with shift lengths between 6-9 hours, the midpoint will fall between 7 and 8 hours. In such case, the preferred shift length will be 7 hours. 
      Staggered Shift Length  This option gives preference after a uniform sampling of shift lengths similar to the shift start equivalent.
      Latest Shift Length This option gives preference to the longest shift length for agent schedule generation. For example, if a workplan with shift lengths between 6-9 hours, the preferred shift length will be 9 hours. Only an administrator can select this option to observe maximum coverage in a hypothetical schedule.
  7. Click Generate. 

  1. Open the new schedule.
  2. From the Select Action menu, click Add Agents. The Add Agents dialog box opens.
  3. In the Agents column, do one of the following:
    • Scroll through the list and check the box next to each agent you want to add.
    • To add all available agents to the schedule, click All.
    • To remove all agents from the schedule, click None.
  4. To view only the list of the agents you choose, click Show selected.
  5. When you finish adding agents to the schedule, click OK. 

In the schedule editor, you can perform various tasks related to the selected schedule.

Some available options depend on the current schedule view. In the schedule editor, to view available options click the arrow at the end of the Select Action menu.

Task Description Keyboard shortcut
Assign Shifts Assign shifts from one agent to another. Shift + Q and Shift + T
Replace Shifts with Activity Replace an entire shift or shifts with a selected activity. Shift + R
Replace Activity Replace an activity or activities with another activity in a schedule. Shift + B
Swap Shifts Swap one agent's shifts with another agent. Shift + W
Copy Activity to Agents Copy an activity to one or more agents in the schedule. Shift + A
Copy Shift to Agents Copy an agent's shift to one or more agents. Shift + M
Copy Shift to Days Copy an agent's shift to one or more days. Shift + D
Remove Selected Remove one or more items from the selected schedule. Delete
Add Agents Include more agents in the selected schedule. N/A
Remove Agents Exclude one or more agents in the selected schedule. N/A

In addition to managing the schedule from the Select Action list, you can also:

Task Description
Available schedule views Learn more about the various ways to view a schedule.
Change the schedule view Select to view a schedule by day, date range, week, or vertical view in the schedule editor.
View schedule by management unit or work team

Select work teams or management units in the schedule editor.
Review scheduled, required, difference counts, performance, daily summaries If your schedule was generated based on a forecast, details about scheduled, required (with and without shrinkage), difference counts, and performance are listed in the schedule grid.
Review activity counts and daily summaries Depending on your view, the schedule editor displays metrics that help you analyze and plan schedules.
View agent information Click an agent name to view that agent's assigned skills and languages.
View adherence information in the schedule editor Customize the schedule editor to show agent adherence information for past schedules. Add conformance and adherence columns in the agent area.
View an agent's paid hours per week Depending on your view, you can see various details about an agent's paid hours for a specific day or week.
Add an activity to one or more agents Choose the time frame in which to add the activity to shifts. Or let the system recommend the most appropriate times based on coverage, and then choose from the list of times to which to add the activity.
Adjust an activity's length Adjust a non-default activity's length within a shift.
Modify activity details Edit default values for non-default activities.
Use zoom to adjust the level of schedule detail

Zoom in to see the current schedule in more detail, or zoom out to see a larger time period for the current schedule. 
Undo or redo unsaved changes to a schedule

Undo or redo unsaved changes to a schedule, one at a time, up to the last save.

View from a different time zone

By default, this view uses the business unit’s time zone. Users with administrator permissions can change the displayed time zone by selecting from the list in the upper right corner of the view. The time zone of the business unit is listed at the top of the list of time zones for reference. This option is helpful for administrators who access the view from a different time zone. Click the image to enlarge. Lists the available timezones along with time zone difference.

Click the Publish button on the right side of the toolbar.