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Different Types of Shift Rosters for Managing Business

If a business needs to function efficiently it needs the right staff and at the right time. A well thought out shift roster can be the competitive advantage especially in industries which need to operate round the clock. Scheduling and organising shifts for a team regardless of the size of the organisation, is time consuming and needs to be planned meticulously.

As businesses are embracing digital transformation, they are expanding beyond geographical boundaries. The traditional 9 to 5 working hours are not feasible for international clients anymore. Therefore in order to offer round the clock service it is necessary for organisations to adopt shift systems. Shifts are essential for prompt customer care and continuous business operations without any service gaps.

What is Shift Rostering

It refers to an organised time table created to evenly distribute workloads across team members, all the while ensuring that there is ample staff at all working hours. This is a time consuming but imperative process. It needs to be planned in such a way that at no time is the organisation overstaffed or understaffed. At the same time it must be ensured that employees are not overworked which leads to reduced productivity.

Why Is Rostering Vital

If there are an insufficient number of employees working during peak hours, too many during lean periods, the more experienced staff on leave during holiday season or the wrong people at the wrong job can all lead to chaos, lowered productivity which in turn affect the baseline and reputation of the organisation.

The following reasons demonstrate the necessity for effective rostering:

1. Provides faster resolution

Resolution time increases since there are enough people to manage the workload. The quantum of carryover of queries is relatively low due to the issues being resolved as soon as they are received.

2. Improves employee productivity

When there is a schedule in place it prepares employees better for their work week rather than being subject to uncertain timings all the time.

3. Reduction in overheads

Scaling becomes easier and more transparent by establishing how many employees work in each shift. The overall labour costs go down since the company knows exactly how many people need to be hired.

4. Better employee performance

Tracking employee performance becomes easier with a roster method. It becomes easier to predict who works better at what time of the day and can be assigned shifts accordingly.

Types of Rosters

There are several different types of shift rosters that can be used to schedule employees in a variety of different settings. Some of the most common types of shift rosters include:

1. Fixed shift rosters: In a fixed shift roster, employees are assigned to work the same hours and days each week. This type of shift roster is often used in industries where there is a consistent demand for labour, such as retail or manufacturing.

2. Rotating shift rosters: In a rotating shift roster, employees are assigned to different shift patterns on a regular basis. This type of shift roster is often used in industries where the demand for labour varies, such as healthcare or emergency services.

3. Flexible shift rosters: In a flexible shift roster, employees are allowed to choose their own work hours and days within certain parameters set by their employer. This type of shift roster is often used in industries where employees have a high degree of control over their work schedule, such as in many professional and technical fields.

4. Part-time shift rosters: In a part-time shift roster, employees work fewer hours than full-time employees. This type of shift roster is often used in industries where there is a mix of full-time and part-time workers, such as in many service industries.

5. Split shift rosters: In a split shift roster, employees are scheduled to work two or more shorter shifts instead of a single longer shift. This type of shift roster is often used in industries where there is a need to provide continuous coverage, such as in many food service and hospitality settings.

6. Dupont shift rosters: A Dupont shift roster is a type of shift schedule that is named after the Dupont Corporation, where it was first developed. It is a rotating shift schedule that consists of three shifts: a day shift, a swing shift, and a night shift. Each shift works for eight consecutive hours, followed by 24 hours off. This schedule is often used in industries where there is a need to provide continuous coverage, such as in manufacturing or emergency services.

7. Pitman shift rosters: A Pitman shift roster is a type of shift schedule that consists of three shifts: a day shift, an evening shift, and a night shift. Each shift works for eight hours, followed by 24 hours off. This schedule is named after the Pitman system, which was developed by Isaac Pitman in the 19th century. It is often used in industries where there is a need to provide continuous coverage, such as in healthcare or emergency services.

Scheduling-Manual or Automated

According to a study most companies which use the manual method for scheduling work spend 19,741 man hours every year. The manual mode is extremely challenging since it relies on human intervention completely. Every modification or update has to be done manually. This makes it the responsibility of the HR team to keep track of who is working and who is not in real time at any given point. This is a close to impossible task. Even a small change will call for the entire schedule to be rearranged. Without access to any kind of central data storage or means to extract the necessary information makes the process time consuming and error prone. On the other hand when the entire process is automated all necessary data is available at the click of a key. The modern age automated shift roster system plans, creates and even distributes the schedule to various teams electronically. It thereby simplifies and streamlines the entire process.

Tips for Creating a Staff Roster that is Good for the Business

1. Identify the needs of your business: Before you can create an effective shift roster, it is important to understand the needs of your business. This includes factors such as the demand for labour, the need for continuous coverage, and any other unique requirements of your business.

2. Consider the preferences of your employees: When creating a shift roster, it is important to consider the preferences of your employees. This includes factors such as the hours they prefer to work, the days of the week they prefer to work, and any other preferences they may have.

3. Use software to create and manage the shift roster: There are many different software tools available that can help you create and manage a shift roster. These tools can make it easier to schedule employees, track hours worked, and manage time off requests. Use a good cloud-based attendance management systems to manage your shifts.

4. Communicate the shift roster to your employees: Once you have created the shift roster, it is important to communicate it to your employees. This can be done through a variety of methods, such as posting the schedule in a central location, sending it out via email, or using a mobile app.

5. Be flexible and willing to make changes: A shift roster is not set in stone, and it may need to be adjusted over time to meet the changing needs of your business and your employees. Be flexible and willing to make changes to the shift roster as needed.

Having a shift schedule that works for everyone is the objective to bear in mind while devising the shift plan. Using rotation helps to break monotony as well as give employees exposure to different scenarios.

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