Automatic duty watch scheduler?

[jonbuoy]

Anyone know of an Automatic Duty Watch Schedule software or Excel template? I´ve had a Google around and not found anything. I need a monthly calendar that will automatically and evenly allocate one person to be on call for weekends and weekdays. If someone is not available on a certain day or days I need to be able to input that and have it work around to distribute the other days evenly. The pool of people might be as low as 2 or as high as 10.

Cheers

[Oakie]

Jeebus! I know some rostering software but I've not come across anything that does that.

Would be a fairly complex spreadsheet too, probably using the COUNT and VLOOKUP functions and a few IF staements but in my head I can't get past what happens when the staff number increases. Too complex for me.

I think if it was me I'd set it up as a basic:

day 1 = person 1
day 2 = person 2
etc
with the batting order being same and repeated and then just rejig it manually when something changes. Probably still use COUNT as a guideline to make sure of fairness.

Good luck.

[jonbuoy]

Jeebus! I know some rostering software but I've not come across anything that does that.

Would be a fairly complex spreadsheet too, probably using the COUNT and VLOOKUP functions and a few IF staements but in my head I can't get past what happens when the staff number increases. Too complex for me.

I think if it was me I'd set it up as a basic:

day 1 = person 1
day 2 = person 2
etc
with the batting order being same and repeated and then just rejig it manually when something changes. Probably still use COUNT as a guideline to make sure of fairness.

Good luck.

Thanks Oakie - problem is if we just follow a set order quite often one person will end up doing 3 Saturdays in a row or more weekends than everyone else or no weekends depending on the number of people available.

[BMWST?]

Thanks Oakie - problem is if we just follow a set order quite often one person will end up doing 3 Saturdays in a row or more weekends than everyone else or no weekends depending on the number of people available.
well someone cant count then.A set order automatically should default to the next person if the person whose turn it is has already dome more than anyone else in the list!Why does the number of people available vary so much ,surely 8 people arent on leave at the same time?

[Gremlin]

Unless you can find some software I doubt you'd be able to do a spreadsheet.

It falls apart when you have your pool of staff away, but for x period (which I doubt is even months at a time), which means they're available for selection, but not at certain times. When would it insert people into slots, daily, weekly, monthly, how would it know when it could or couldn't use someone and so forth. If you took someone out of the pool then they wouldn't be selected, but then you'd have to run it say, weekly, and you'd do it x amount of time in advance, which would still require manual manipulation...

Yeah... I'd just do it manually... not easy I'm sure, but dealing with the variables is a nightmare itself.

[jonbuoy]

well someone cant count then.A set order automatically should default to the next person if the person whose turn it is has already dome more than anyone else in the list!Why does the number of people available vary so much ,surely 8 people arent on leave at the same time?

People are away or unavailable. One for one doesn´t work out - the same person can get hit with weekends when the number of available people changes.

[mashman]

People are away or unavailable. One for one doesn´t work out - the same person can get hit with weekends when the number of available people changes.

Sounds like a job for FIFO.

Should a person miss their allotted time, keep them at the top of the queue with a next available date and they'll slide ride back in there when they're available?

[jonbuoy]

Sounds like a job for FIFO.

Should a person miss their allotted time, keep them at the top of the queue with a next available date and they'll slide ride back in there when they're available?

That would be ideal - as soon as someone comes off leave they are slotted into the next available Friday/Saturday/Sunday event. Doesn't even have to be complicated - not asking it to work out pay or hourly rates. Just a simple monthly planner with names on it. Will have to stick to the manual method I guess.

[neels]

I have to do an on call roster for work, it sucks.

I can do pretty much anything in excel, and automate pretty much anything in excel, and the only way I've found to work around the almost infinite number of variables for staff is to do it manually.

The only consolation I have is that because I do the roster, I usually get to arrange to not be on call myself for the weekends that I have something on, but even then sometimes I still can't make it work.

[Big Dog]

Unless you can find some software I doubt you'd be able to do a spreadsheet.

It falls apart when you have your pool of staff away, but for x period (which I doubt is even months at a time), which means they're available for selection, but not at certain times. When would it insert people into slots, daily, weekly, monthly, how would it know when it could or couldn't use someone and so forth. If you took someone out of the pool then they wouldn't be selected, but then you'd have to run it say, weekly, and you'd do it x amount of time in advance, which would still require manual manipulation...

Yeah... I'd just do it manually... not easy I'm sure, but dealing with the variables is a nightmare itself.
This sounds like a job for a relational database.

You need a table of:
staff.
availability (actually an unavailability table where you log abscesses)
actual roster could be in another destrabar or imported from one
and a seperart table for your duty roster.



Then you need a default rotation.
A trigger when a new absence is added to your availability table that conflicts with the existing rotation and applies rules you set to create your new default rotation.

on a schedule this needs to publish changes to a read only x week roster table.

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[Big Dog]

It could be built by someone who knows a little bit about sql for around 6-8 hours wages as a stand alone database. About a week if you want it to talk to your payroll and pull leave submissions from there. About another day if you want this to publish to an existing website such as an intranet page or send updates out by email.

Put all the integration in place and it will only need updating when new staff join / leave your roster or an emergency occurs meaning there are changes that cannot be met by your rules.

But it will still only be as good as the discipline of those who use it.

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[jonbuoy]

I have to do an on call roster for work, it sucks.

I can do pretty much anything in excel, and automate pretty much anything in excel, and the only way I've found to work around the almost infinite number of variables for staff is to do it manually.

The only consolation I have is that because I do the roster, I usually get to arrange to not be on call myself for the weekends that I have something on, but even then sometimes I still can't make it work.

It must be a pretty common scenario which is why I can´t understand why no one has done it yet. Would be great to just click on the available names, click whichever days of the month people can´t do and have the program balance out the week day and weekend schedule.

[jonbuoy]

Unless you can find some software I doubt you'd be able to do a spreadsheet.

It falls apart when you have your pool of staff away, but for x period (which I doubt is even months at a time), which means they're available for selection, but not at certain times. When would it insert people into slots, daily, weekly, monthly, how would it know when it could or couldn't use someone and so forth. If you took someone out of the pool then they wouldn't be selected, but then you'd have to run it say, weekly, and you'd do it x amount of time in advance, which would still require manual manipulation...

Yeah... I'd just do it manually... not easy I'm sure, but dealing with the variables is a nightmare itself.

I don´t think so either - Excel is good but not that good. Especially as Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays need to be spread evenly.

[BMWST?]

It isnt roster,if people are not available except for ordinary events. You could get excel to do it,but the information required for input would have to be always correct, so much so the effort required would equal a manual job

[Swoop]

You simply require slaves.

The Egyptians never had this "roster" issue when the pyramids needed building.:msn-wink:

[bogan]

Have you asked bunnings? :innocent:

[Tazz]

You simply require slaves.

The Egyptians never had this "roster" issue when the pyramids needed building.:msn-wink:

Doesn't seem to be an =slave function in M$ Excel. Bit of an oversight eh :laugh:

[jonbuoy]

You simply require slaves.

The Egyptians never had this "roster" issue when the pyramids needed building.:msn-wink:

I am one of the slaves :laugh:

[Big Dog]

Doesn't seem to be an =slave function in M$ Excel. Bit of an oversight eh [emoji23]
There is if you declare and define it... again much easier in a relational database like sql.

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[wharekura]

Hi - I am a developer (vba if i really must, but mainly c# / sql server / asp.net). I am currently doing an online scheduling system for 16 sub business and over 350 staff. After months of discussion with the client, it was decided (due to the many variables) that managers will be manually rostering people on shifts.

We tried to put smarts in to make it automatic. For example, need 1 head chef, 2 k/hands, 1 bar manager, 3 front of house for lunch service between 9am and 3pm Sunday. Then allocate skill sets and levels to staff. Then allocate staff to shifts based on these and other factors. It just got to hard for managers to do all the upfront prep for little gain.

My initial thoughts on what you are after is allocation of staff is done by a simple tally system and a way to state when staff are not available. If you want to discuss, please contact david@arisesoftware.co.nz and I will try and give you ideas on what you can do.

Cool.

[jonbuoy]

Hi - I am a developer (vba if i really must, but mainly c# / sql server / asp.net). I am currently doing an online scheduling system for 16 sub business and over 350 staff. After months of discussion with the client, it was decided (due to the many variables) that managers will be manually rostering people on shifts.

We tried to put smarts in to make it automatic. For example, need 1 head chef, 2 k/hands, 1 bar manager, 3 front of house for lunch service between 9am and 3pm Sunday. Then allocate skill sets and levels to staff. Then allocate staff to shifts based on these and other factors. It just got to hard for managers to do all the upfront prep for little gain.

My initial thoughts on what you are after is allocation of staff is done by a simple tally system and a way to state when staff are not available. If you want to discuss, please contact david@arisesoftware.co.nz and I will try and give you ideas on what you can do.

Cool.

Hi,

Thanks for the reply - we don´t need anything near as complicated as that. I have seen a lot of scheduling software online and it all seems to be geared at large businesses and is scheduled by the hour. I thought a lot of outfits that share 24 hour call/duty would have the same issue? Ours is a little bit tricky in that everyone takes their leave in the winter and we downsize on people so we can go from a minimum of 2 to a maximum of 12 in the available pool. We actually have 2 duty lists as there are two departments that need to be covered by people with two different skill sets.

[Akzle]

hire some fuken gimp to permanently be rostered sat-sun save this rotational horseshit.