IMPLEMENTATION BEST

PRACTICES FOR
WorkForce Classic Job
Scheduling*
*Formerly known as WorkForce Advanced Scheduler
Implementation Best Practices for Classic Job Scheduling

Purpose This document provides an overview for configuring several key

areas of the WorkForce Time and Attendance solution.
WorkForce Software technical consultants and implementation
Intended Audience partners who are configuring new WorkForce Time and
Attendance environments for the WorkForce Software Classic Job
Scheduling product.
This document assumes that you have training and experience
Additional Information using and configuring WorkForce Time and Attendance (equivalent
to the topics covered in PT102: WorkForce Time and Attendance
Configuration Essentials) and PT140: WorkForce Classic Job
Scheduling Functional Implementation.

Date Info About Change Author of Change

9/12/2019 Document Created AS SME’s:

Kathy Kult, Tracey Watlington, Anne Palmer, Kim
Harper, Evan Mathis
9/18/2019 Updates made to document Kathy Kult

9/24/2019 Review and updates Tracey Watlington

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 Implementation Best Practices for Classic Job Scheduling

Contents
File Setup ......................................................................................................................................................... 4
Naming Convention ......................................................................................................................................... 5
Real Life Scenarios: Naming Conventions ........................................................................................................ 5
Wild Card *....................................................................................................................................................... 6
Models ............................................................................................................................................................. 7
Scheduling Unit / Scheduling Group / Stations................................................................................................ 8
Go Live Considerations .................................................................................................................................... 8
Lunch Breaks .................................................................................................................................................... 8
Schedule Period Rules...................................................................................................................................... 9
Model Filter...................................................................................................................................................... 9
Employee Filters............................................................................................................................................... 9
Auto Scheduler / Callout Rules ........................................................................................................................ 9
Selection Constraint ....................................................................................................................................... 10
Selection Preference Rule .............................................................................................................................. 11
Shift Swap Rules ............................................................................................................................................. 11
List of DO NOT................................................................................................................................................ 11

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Implementation Best Practices for Classic Job Scheduling

File Setup
Organization:
Only create one Organization.

Facility:
Typically, the Facility should be a 1:1 to Organization or multiple facilities can be created so shifts are not
shared among different Facilities. Break up different facilities only if there is a legal or public policy why
one group of employees cannot view or asses another group scheduling Facilities information (aka shifts).

Be careful, before deciding when defining facilities, ask the customer about and sharing of shifts and
permissions.

Shift:
Shifts will roll into a facility; therefore, they can be shared among all scheduling groups/units within that
facility. Having one Facility setup will mean that shifts can be shared across the entire organization.

Not all customer wants to share their shifts with one another. This is a main question that needs to be asked
during the workshop and defining the organization.

Naming conventions can be utilized to separate out different shifts between the same facility.

Station:
Typically, there should be a 1:1 relationship between Stations and Scheduling Units.
Keep Stations simple, unless a greater need is determined.

Remember: Permissions stop at the Scheduling Unit level, if there are stations being used other than
one for one with the scheduling unit, any person that has access to the scheduling unit will have access
to all stations assigned to the unit

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Implementation Best Practices for Classic Job Scheduling

Naming Convention
Naming conventions can vary from customer to customer but should be simple yet descriptive.
Be consistent within each individual customer set-up.

Note
Create the naming convention up-front. This saves time.

Naming Convention Best Practices

2 to 3 Digits Descriptors No Spaces
Upper Case Under Score
Day = D Night = N, NOC, NIGHT

Real Life Scenarios: Naming Conventions

Organization: ORG
Facility: FAC
Scheduling Group: SCG FAC_SCG
Scheduling Unit: SCU FAC_SCG_SCU
*Station: STA FAC_SCG_SCU_STA
Model: MOD FAC_SCG_SCU_STA_MOD
**Shift: HHMM FAC_HHMM_HHMM (use military time)
***Rotation Pattern: RP FAC_SSG_SCU_STA_RP

*If the station and scheduling unit are the same name you only need to utilize one.
**Add SCG and SCU if you need to break shifts out more.
***Remove Stations and Scheduling units if they will be used across the scheduling group

Example 1
Organization DSHS Department of Social and Health Services
FACILITY WSH Western State Hospital
Scheduling WSH_NU Western State Hospital Nursing
Group
Scheduling WSH_NU_CENTRAL Western State Hospital Nursing Central
Unit Campus
Station WSH_NU_C2 Western State Hospital Nursing Central
Campus Ward 2
Model WSH_NU_C2_D8_RN2 Western State Hospital Nursing Central
Campus Ward 2 Day 8-hour RN2 nurse

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 Implementation Best Practices for Classic Job Scheduling

Rotation WSH_NU_D_MTUOFF Western State Hospital Nursing all campuses

Pattern and wards Day shift with Monday and
Tuesday off
Shift WSH_NU_D_0630_1900 Western State Hospital Nursing Day shift.
Starting at 06:30 am and ending 7:00 pm

Example 2
Rotation Patterns SG_SU_Job_Shift_RPDesc Shift= day or night / start or end
times.

SG_SU_DAY_8H_SUSAOFF DAY 8h = Days 8 hours

SUSAOFF = Sunday and Saturday
off

SG_SU_MF_D5X8 MF = Monday through Friday

D5x8 8-hour Day shift
Constraints SG_SU_STA_CO_Name CO = Call Out

SG_SU_STA_AS_Name AS = Auto Scheduler

Qualification SU_SG_STA_QUAL QUAL = RN, LPN, Mechanic

Wild Card *
The Wild Card (*) is utilized in Rotation Patterns to identify the model(s) the rotation pattern is
trying to fill. Only use the Wild Cards in Rotation Patterns if you know what you are doing.

When using a Wild Card there must be a Constraint that matches and supporting employee
records.
Common Usage
An asterisk (*) is used as a wildcard within the model name.
Example 1:
When to use an asterisk (*):
There are multiple model names with similar names. The only differential
is the qualification at the end of the model name. The models are
associated with the same rotation pattern.

Model name: DAY_8H_RN, DAY_8H_LPN, DAY_8H_PSW (Note: RN,

LPN, PSW is the qualification.)

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 Implementation Best Practices for Classic Job Scheduling

You could use the following wild card so that only one rotation pattern is
needed for all three jobs: DAY_8H_*

The qualification constraint will make sure the employee will get the correct Model.
Example 2:
When not to use an asterisk (*):
There are multiple model names with similar names. The only
differential is the time frame; day, night, evening.

Model name: DAY_8H, NIGHT_8H, EVE_8H

If you use the wild card: *_8H you would not be able to tell if it is day or
night. In this situation do not utilize the wild card. Use the entire model
name.

Models
Be aware that on the modify schedule screen, in the Model view, the models are listed
alphabetically.

If you use multiple qualifications on a model, during auto schedule the auto schedule considers
those as “AND” statements – meaning the employee must have ALL the qualifications to be
assigned during auto schedule.
Common Usage
Model Type = Work

If using Qualification Proficiencies, You must have 1 Qualification per Model.

Do not use the push pins (time details) on the Model. (Used only for FM NIP)

Do not use “FM Status” (Used only for FM NIP)

Do not use “Reassignment flag”

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Implementation Best Practices for Classic Job Scheduling

Scheduling Unit / Scheduling Group / Stations

Be sure to discuss Scheduling Unit, Scheduling Group, and Stations with the customer to ensure
you are meeting their requirements.

Home and assign Scheduling Units are the same.

The AS_ASSIGNMENT import should not assign different values to Home Scheduling Unit and
Assigned Scheduling Unit

Go Live Considerations
These items will need to be re-imported as part of go live activities:
• Employees
• OT Bank balances
• Employee Qualifications (if necessary – Script available)

The following items will also need to be assigned after the above has been completed:
• Assign employee qualifications
• Assign employee rotation patterns
• Assign employee Organization, Scheduling Group, Schedule Unit, Station
(Always try and use Policy Mapping Screen for the above items)
****Classic Job Scheduling Clients will need an additional 2-4 weeks PRIOR to go live to
set up their production environment with the above items and have schedules ready to
be posted to TA. Please allow for PROD to be set up 2-4 weeks before the actual go live
– PLAN EARLY IN YOUR PROJECT TIMELINE.

Note:
The customer should never DELETE ANYTHING IN A PRODUCTION or TEST
ENVIRONMENT. There are employee schedules and employee data that are tied to
the data. If it gets deleted, then null pointers could occur.
In the TEST environment the customer can add DELETE in front of the names of the
items they want to delete. Once the application is migrated to PROD we can delete
those items PRIOR to employees being loaded.

Lunch Breaks
Generally, never use the standard AS Lunch Break functionality. It usually does not
satisfy the customers’ expectations because it does not actually remove time that is
posted, it is only used to calculate how much time an employee is scheduled for in AS.

Since Lunch Break parameters are assigned at the Scheduling Group level, everyone
in that group will get the same lunch deduction. Often that is not the case as the

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Implementation Best Practices for Classic Job Scheduling

customers would prefer lunch deductions at the model/job level, not at the ‘people’
level.

Schedule Period Rules

The first day of the week should match the week definition in Time and Attendance.
The Midnight Method rule selection does not matter, but you must select something.
The constant behavior is that the system will always record time on the start date of the
shift. If your customer has a different day definition in time and attendance then when
the shift starts, you will need to discuss how this will work in Classic Job Scheduling.

Model Filter
At a minimum, configure one per Scheduling Group, and one per Scheduling Unit.

If using "non-worked models," be sure to exclude these from any model filters attached
to auto scheduling criteria. Not doing so will cause employees to be auto scheduled into
non-worked models. This is usually not what the client wants, but some exceptions
could apply. Or make headcount zero for both optional and required and then you do
not have to worry about the model filter.

Employee Filters
At a minimum, configure one per Scheduling Group, and one per Scheduling Unit.
Always include the option “If active for Scheduling”.

Auto Scheduler / Callout Rules

It is always best to configure at least one Auto Schedule rule and one Callout rule at the
Scheduling Unit level. In general, that is how most groups of employees are scheduled.
The reason for different Auto Schedule rules and Callout rules is that most of the time
Auto Scheduler will use a different set of Constraints and Preferences than Callouts uses.

Example of Auto Scheduler Rules:

Pass1: Pass1 of Auto Scheduler is utilized to create the golden schedule. The
golden schedule is when employees are scheduled based on their rotation pattern.

Pass2: Pass2 of Auto Scheduler is utilized to fill in the empty slots from Pass1. The
empty slots are typically employees that are on paid or unpaid leave. Pass2 will
ignore the rotation pattern and schedule based on qualification.

Example of Callout Out Rules:

Non-OT: This rule will be based on creating a call out list that does not include
employees that would be in a scheduled Overtime situation. Using Overtime and Cost
Control rule.

OT: This rule will be based on creating a call out list that could include employees that

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Implementation Best Practices for Classic Job Scheduling

maybe in a scheduled Overtime situation. Using Overtime and Cost Control rule.

Selection Constraint
At a minimum, mark the option to "exclude if model time overlaps (when model time overlaps)"
or "exclude if scheduled on the same day." If neither of these are marked, the same employee
can be assigned to each slot in a model.
Create a separate rule for Auto Schedule and Callout (most of the time, the requirements are different).

Create a constraint for every scheduling unit even if they are the same – this way if changes are
ever made, they only affect one unit not all units attached to the constraint.

Example of Common Constraint Rules:

Auto Scheduler Pass 1 Ignore Employees when…
..Not in Same Home/Assigned Scheduling Unit
..When scheduled on the same day
..that are inactive
..with time off
..when unavailable based on “My Availability” Calendar
..Without required Qualifications
..Outside of Rotation Pattern
Auto Scheduler Pass 2 Ignore Employees when…
..Not in Same Home/Assigned Scheduling Unit
..When scheduled on the same day
..that are inactive
..with time off
..when unavailable based on “My Availability” Calendar
..Without required Qualifications
..if overtime will be incurred
..if fatigue management rules will be violated
Callout No OT Ignore Employees when…
..Not in Same Home/Assigned Scheduling Unit
..When scheduled on the same day
..that are inactive
..with time off
..when unavailable based on “My Availability” Calendar
..Without required Qualifications
..if overtime will be incurred
..if fatigue management rules will be violated
Callout OT Ignore Employees when…
..Not in Same Home/Assigned Scheduling Unit
..When scheduled on the same day
..that are inactive
..with time off
..when unavailable based on “My Availability” Calendar
..Without required Qualifications
..if fatigue management rules will be violated
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Implementation Best Practices for Classic Job Scheduling

Selection Preference Rule

Create separate rules for each scheduling unit. This will allow administrators of that
scheduling unit to impact their own rule.

Create ‘blank’ or ‘empty one’ for each Scheduling Unit. These will have no preference options
selected. A ‘blank’ or ‘empty’ preference typically occurs when running auto schedule based on
the employee’s rotation pattern.

Shift Swap Rules

Create a shift swap rule for each Scheduling Group.
Try to stay away from too many custom constraints. The more custom constraints the
longer the shift swap rule could take to populate.

List of DO NOT
‘No Call Model List’ - DO NOT USE IT

Area – DO NOT USE IT

Lunch Breaks – DO NOT USE IT

Never use a Custom Constraint or Custom Preference for utilizing Auto Scheduler.

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