Shiftboard, a provider of online scheduling software as a service (SaaS (News - Alert)) for a range of business services, hospital scheduling, staffing companies, fire department scheduling, educational institutions, and non-profits, has also now met the Associated Order Processors (AOP) requirements for a new online scheduling and communication systems.

 

A virtual call center, AOP takes customer calls and monitors Web site chat lines for large retail clients. The company has offices in New York and Kansas City, MO, but 80 percent of its 185 operators work from their homes across four U.S. time zones.

 

AOP officials said that operators must be outfitted and trained remotely, and all this is done without the operators coming to an office location. Also, when new client programs begin, the company plans to hire around another 20 new operators. All these new operators must also be outfitted, trained remotely, and scheduled around the clock.

 

Officials said the company had been using a shared online calendar, but it failed to do the job.

 

Trish Marquis, scheduling manager at AOP said, “No one could see just their own shifts, or print their individual schedule to post on their refrigerator.”

 

“We tried creating one calendar per client, but at the time, that meant 15 different calendars, which in some ways made things worse.”

 

Because of the lack of proper tools, shifts went unfilled as operators couldn’t see what shifts were open, and supervisors spent their days calling operators and program leaders trying to figure out why someone was not “seated” for a shift.

 

Marquis also said they had only one email listserv and program managers would send out notes that were meant for only certain operators, but everyone received the email.

 

To combat all of these issues, the company was in need of an online scheduling and communication system that featured a color-coded calendar that enabled operators to see, request, and fill shifts quickly. In addition, the company expected the system to be equipped with the ability for each operator to see and print their own calendar for a given day, week, or month.

 

Additionally, company required a system that had permission levels. Officials said that this would allow operators to only see shifts based on client programs for which they are trained, while management can see an umbrella view of the entire schedule across all programs.

 

Official said that Shiftboard’s online scheduling system “clearly” met their company’s requirements. “The system is very easy to use, it’s something you can do with very little training,” said Marquis.

“Operators can print their own schedules, and open shifts get filled within 1-3 days, which is a huge improvement.”

 

Earlier this month, Welborn Relief Agency also announced they expanded their relationship with Shiftboard to directly meet efficiency needs for pharmacy scheduling.

 

"When we started using the Shiftboard product a year ago with 40 pharmacist contractors, we were a typical staffing company striving for low overhead,” said Joshua Welborn, owner of Welborn Relief Agency. “Scheduling consumed a lot of management time, but Shiftboard's online scheduling system allows us to focus on client relationships and recruiting. As a result, we are steadily expanding our business in this economy.”