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AI Schedule Generation

Let AI build your schedules automatically with fair hour distribution, employee preferences, availability checking, and smart suggestions.

Manager & Head Manager•7 min read

What is AI Schedule Generation?

AI Schedule Generation automatically assigns employees to open shifts based on your chosen mode (Fair or Max), employee availability, time-off requests, role requirements, and scheduling preferences. Instead of manually assigning each employee one by one, click a button and let the AI do the heavy lifting.

The AI considers multiple factors simultaneously: who's available, who has time off approved, role requirements for each location, avoiding scheduling conflicts, and distributing hours fairly or maximizing hours depending on your selected mode.

Example Scenario

You have 400 empty shifts next week at 3 different locations. Manually assigning would take 8-10 hours. With AI Schedule Generation:

  • • Click "Auto-Generate Schedule"
  • • Choose Fair Mode (distribute hours equally)
  • • Select the date range (next week)
  • • Click Generate
  • • AI assigns all 400 shifts in under 30 seconds

Result: All shifts filled automatically, everyone gets similar hours, no double-bookings, all PTO respected.

1. Fair Mode (Equal Distribution)

Fair Mode distributes hours as equally as possible among all available employees. Employees with fewer assigned hours get priority for new shifts.

How Fair Mode Works

  1. 1. AI checks how many hours each employee currently has scheduled
  2. 2. For each open shift, AI looks at eligible employees (available, no PTO, right role)
  3. 3. AI prioritizes employees with the fewest hours
  4. 4. After assigning a shift, that employee moves down the priority list
  5. 5. Continues until all shifts are filled or no more eligible employees

Example:

Before Fair Mode:

  • • Sarah: 40 hours scheduled
  • • John: 25 hours scheduled
  • • Mike: 15 hours scheduled
  • • Lisa: 10 hours scheduled

AI assigns 10 new shifts (8 hours each):

  • • Shift 1 → Lisa (10 hrs → 18 hrs)
  • • Shift 2 → Mike (15 hrs → 23 hrs)
  • • Shift 3 → Lisa (18 hrs → 26 hrs)
  • • Shift 4 → John (25 hrs → 33 hrs)
  • • Shifts 5-10 distributed to balance hours

After Fair Mode:

  • • Everyone has between 34-42 hours
  • • Much more balanced than before

When to Use Fair Mode

  • • You want to give everyone equal opportunity for hours
  • • Part-time employees who want consistent hours
  • • Avoiding complaints about unequal treatment
  • • Union environments where fairness is important
  • • Building team morale with equal distribution

2. Max Mode (Maximize Hours)

Max Mode gives more hours to employees who want to work more. Employees who already have more hours get priority for additional shifts.

How Max Mode Works

  1. 1. AI checks how many hours each employee currently has scheduled
  2. 2. For each open shift, AI looks at eligible employees
  3. 3. AI prioritizes employees with the MOST hours (who want more work)
  4. 4. Keeps assigning to the same people until they hit limits or run out of availability
  5. 5. Maximizes hours for willing employees before spreading to others

Example:

Before Max Mode:

  • • Sarah: 40 hours (wants full-time)
  • • John: 25 hours (wants full-time)
  • • Mike: 15 hours (wants part-time)
  • • Lisa: 10 hours (wants part-time)

AI assigns 10 new shifts (8 hours each):

  • • Shifts 1-3 → Sarah (40 → 64 hours)
  • • Shifts 4-6 → John (25 → 49 hours)
  • • Shifts 7-8 → Sarah (64 → 80 hours - weekly limit)
  • • Shifts 9-10 → John (49 → 65 hours)

After Max Mode:

  • • Sarah: 80 hours (maximized)
  • • John: 65 hours (got more)
  • • Mike & Lisa: Still 15 & 10 hours (as preferred)

When to Use Max Mode

  • • You have full-time employees who want maximum hours
  • • Some employees prefer part-time while others want full schedules
  • • Seasonal busy periods when you need reliable full-timers working more
  • • Rewarding top performers with more hours
  • • Reducing training needs by scheduling experienced staff more often

3. Preference Matching

The AI considers employee preferences when assigning shifts, helping match people to times they prefer to work.

What Preferences Are Considered

  • • Preferred shift times (morning, afternoon, evening, night)
  • • Preferred days of the week
  • • Preferred locations (if you have multiple)
  • • Hours per week targets (part-time vs full-time)
  • • Role preferences (if cross-trained in multiple roles)

Best Practice

Have employees update their availability and preferences regularly. The AI can only match preferences if employees keep their profiles current. Encourage staff to mark preferred times and unavailable times in their employee settings.

4. Availability Respect

The AI automatically respects employee availability and approved time-off requests. You'll never accidentally schedule someone when they're unavailable.

What the AI Checks

1. Approved PTO (Paid Time Off)

  • • AI checks all approved time-off requests
  • • Will not assign shifts during approved PTO days
  • • Handles overnight shifts correctly (won't schedule if shift ends during PTO)

2. Schedule Conflicts

  • • Prevents double-booking (can't work two shifts at same time)
  • • Checks for overlapping shift times
  • • Ensures proper rest periods between shifts

3. Already Assigned Shifts

  • • Won't assign someone to a shift they're already working
  • • Only fills shifts that still need employees
  • • Respects current assignments when calculating fair distribution

Important Note

The AI only respects APPROVED time-off requests. Pending requests are not considered. Make sure to approve or deny time-off requests before running schedule generation to ensure accurate availability checking.

5. Role Requirements

When role-based staffing is enabled, the AI ensures each shift gets the right mix of roles based on location requirements.

How Role Matching Works

  1. 1. AI checks if role-based staffing is enabled in your settings
  2. 2. For each location, AI retrieves required roles (e.g., 2 Lifeguards, 1 Manager)
  3. 3. AI only assigns employees who have the required role
  4. 4. Ensures minimum staffing for each role before moving to next shift
  5. 5. Prevents unqualified employees from being assigned to role-specific positions

Example:

Pool location requires: 2 Lifeguards + 1 Pool Manager

Available Employees:

  • • Sarah (Lifeguard) ✓
  • • John (Lifeguard) ✓
  • • Mike (Pool Manager) ✓
  • • Lisa (Front Desk) ✗ Can't assign to lifeguard position

AI Assignment:

  • • Assigns Sarah (Lifeguard position 1)
  • • Assigns John (Lifeguard position 2)
  • • Assigns Mike (Pool Manager position)
  • • Lisa not considered because she doesn't have Lifeguard or Manager role

When Role Requirements Apply

  • • Role-based staffing is enabled in Settings
  • • Location has defined role requirements
  • • Employees have roles assigned in their profiles
  • • Shift belongs to a location (not a custom location)

6. Running AI Schedule Generation

Follow these steps to let AI automatically fill your schedule.

Step-by-Step Process

  1. 1. Go to Schedule

    Open your schedule calendar where you see all shifts.

  2. 2. Click "Auto-Generate Schedule" button

    Usually located in the top toolbar or actions menu.

  3. 3. Choose Your Mode

    Select either Fair Mode (equal hours) or Max Mode (maximize hours).

  4. 4. Select Date Range

    Pick start and end dates for schedule generation (e.g., next week, next 2 weeks).

  5. 5. Filter by Location (optional)

    If you have multiple locations, you can generate for all locations at once or select specific locations. This is especially useful when each location has different staffing needs or you want to generate schedules separately for better control.

  6. 6. Click "Generate Schedule"

    AI processes all shifts and assigns employees based on your selections.

  7. 7. Review Results

    Check the assignments. You'll see which shifts were filled and which couldn't be filled (if any).

  8. 8. Make Manual Adjustments (if needed)

    You can manually reassign or adjust any shifts the AI filled.

Location-Specific Generation

If you manage multiple locations, you have full control over which locations to include in each generation run.

Location Filtering Options:

Generate for All Locations

  • • Don't select any specific locations (leave filter empty)
  • • AI fills shifts across all your locations in one run
  • • Best when you have employees who work at multiple locations
  • • Distributes hours fairly across entire organization

Generate for Specific Location(s)

  • • Select one or more specific locations from the dropdown
  • • AI only fills shifts at selected locations
  • • Best when locations have different employee pools
  • • Prevents cross-location assignments if not desired

Generate One Location at a Time

  • • Run generation for Location A first, review and publish
  • • Then run for Location B, review and publish
  • • Maximum control over each location's schedule
  • • Easier to spot issues and make adjustments

Multi-Location Example

You manage 3 restaurant locations: Downtown, Westside, and Airport. Each has different staffing needs:

  • • Option 1: Generate all 3 locations together if employees float between locations
  • • Option 2: Generate Downtown separately (busiest, needs careful review)
  • • Option 3: Generate Westside + Airport together (similar staffing patterns)

The choice depends on your employee assignments and how much cross-location scheduling you want.

Pro Tip

Run AI generation for one week at a time instead of a whole month. This gives you more control and allows you to review and adjust before generating the next week. You can always run it again if you need to fill more shifts.

Best Practices

1. Approve Time-Off Requests First

Review and approve all pending time-off requests before running schedule generation. The AI only respects approved requests, so unapproved PTO won't be considered.

2. Create All Shifts Before Generating

Make sure all your empty shifts are created first. The AI can only assign employees to shifts that already exist. Create your shift templates or recurring shifts, then run AI generation to fill them.

3. Start with Fair Mode

If unsure which mode to use, start with Fair Mode. It prevents complaints about unequal hours and helps team morale. You can always manually adjust to give specific employees more hours.

4. Review Before Publishing

After AI generates the schedule, review it before publishing to employees. Check for any unusual patterns or adjustments you want to make. AI is smart but you know your team best.

5. Keep Employee Profiles Updated

Encourage employees to keep their roles, availability, and preferences current. The AI makes better assignments when it has accurate information about each person.

6. Use Location Filtering for Multi-Location

If you manage multiple locations, generate schedules one location at a time for better control. This prevents cross-location assignments unless you specifically want them.

  • • Separate employee pools? Generate each location separately
  • • Employees work at multiple locations? Generate all together for fair distribution
  • • One location much busier? Generate that one first and review carefully
  • • Different staffing requirements per location? Use location filtering to respect those differences

7. Combine with Manual Adjustments

Use AI generation for the bulk work (80% of shifts), then manually fine-tune the remaining 20%. This saves time while maintaining your personal touch on the schedule.

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