The shared goal of every organization is to meet manpower demands with the right skill levels, at the right time, all while minimizing the cost. Several constraints make planning which employees will work in a given shift a true challenge.

In the event that the shift schedule is planned poorly, there might be a shortage of sufficiently-skilled workers, which may impede how efficiently the organization operates and, simultaneously, dissatisfy the employees themselves. The challenge of making a good shift schedule and the possible negative effects from failing to do so (a lack of properly skilled manpower in one shift, forcing a given worker to work too many shifts in too short a period of time, etc.) grow exponentially with the size of your work force and are compounded further by different skill sets and levels of experience across that work force.

The best way to solve the potential issues of planning shifts is with a shift scheduling software package that will make sure all your manpower needs are satisfied, no matter the constraints. While there are some such packages which are simply digital spreadsheets which require the shift manager to go through the usual process of collecting shift preferences from all his employees and creating a working shift schedule by trial and error. More advanced shift scheduling software packages âEUR" the ones we will discuss for the rest of this piece âEUR" do this part, frankly the most tedious part of being a shift manager, automatically. Once the shift manager inputs all available information about shift timing and rules and the employees submit their shift availability and preferences, the software can automatically create an error-free shift schedule to be distributed to all employees.

Some shift planning software packages also include ways for managers and employees to communicate within the system. These communications platforms make it simple for employees to let managers know about their shift preferences; managers to distribute the final shift schedule to employees; and both parties to let everyone involved know about last-minute shift openings. All this can save untold amounts of time and paper used in reworking a schedule.

While the main purpose of shift scheduling software is to save time and money for shift manager, it can also be used to ensure the health and well-being of their employees. There have been countless studies linking shift work to cardiovascular disease, obesity, and mood disorders. These ailments can be a result of working primarily at night, but also a result of shifting sleep schedules. Incorporating rules into a shift schedule that don't just constrain the schedule according to employee availability and skill, but also incorporate their health concerns, will add almost no time to setting up the scheduling software and add a great deal to the health of the employees in that organization by trying to create a more stable, healthier sleep schedule for all employees.

In conclusion, shift planning software packages not only save the organizations which employ them time and money, but may also help make the organizations' workforces healthier and happier. Check out shift planning software to make your organization more efficient and healthy.