How to Effectively Schedule Employees

Written by:  Allied Time

Summary: Running an efficient office requires the right number of employees, and a system to track projects and employee time.

Keeping track of employees can sometimes feel like herding cats. In addition to time clocks, managers must be able to track and quantify an employee’s workload each day. That kind of scheduling requires knowledge of your staff, their capabilities, and your budget. There are also issues like overtime or sick days that can leave you short-staffed or over budget. These tips are designed to help streamline your efficiency in scheduling.

Hiring Practices

Adequate staffing means a lot when you’re scheduling employees. You need to make sure there are a minimum number of people covering the floor. If you overstaff, you may be covered in the event of sick days, but your other employees may not be able to get the hours that they need. Sometimes, the solution is overtime. If you’re still having trouble organizing your workforce, brainstorm with fellow members of management to see if you should contract some employees to fill in the gaps.

You can use data from an acroprint time recorder to make sure those employees are actually working their scheduled shifts. Institute a policy for lateness and set firm repercussions for employees who disregard the rules.

Cross Train

Having an employee that can handle more than one task is invaluable, so cross-train employees whenever you can. Even training your staff on tasks that overlap with others can help streamline your efficiency. For instance, if your sales guys knew how to draw up and send out their own contracts, other members of staff could help out in other ways. It’s fairly common for IT staff to wear many hats, so many businesses rely on IT to help design new additions to the website and manage internal software and hardware.

Schedule Online

An employee time clock is a must for those who work in the building with you. Everyone should have a time card, with an individual employee number, and should clock out at the beginning and end of a shift. Schedule paid meal times, and train employees on clocking out. Definitely allow some leeway for new employees, who may be prone to forgetting some of the intricacies of office life. It’s a good idea to post schedules online, either with time management software or as a spreadsheet. This way, employees have access to their schedules at all times, and can monitor their own hours from home. This will also help both you and an employee report inconsistencies in scheduling or clocking.