Enable and configure alternative shift trading

PrerequisitesClick to expand

Alternative shift trading enables agents to trade daily shifts with the system, based on business rules and service goals configured by the administrator. This option provides agents with shifts that they can use to modify their schedules as per their choice and also reduces the administrator’s effort of manually modifying agent schedules.

Enable alternative shiftsClick to expand

Click Admin.
Under Workforce Management, click Business Units.
Click Menu > Workforce Management > Workforce Management Configuration > Business Units.
Perform one of the following steps:
- Add a new business unit.
- Open an existing business unit.
Click the Alternative Shifts tab.
Enable the Enable Alternative Shifts toggle. For more information about enabling alternative shifts, see Add a business unit.

Set the minimum hours until either trade shift startsClick to expand

Under Alternative Shift Starts, the administrator can set the limit on the earliest start time of the shifts involved in the alternative shift trade. Depending on the number you set, agents cannot create trade requests when the first possible trade occurs less than the duration set in the future. For example, if the minimum is 24 hours, agents cannot request trades for the current shift. However, agents can request trades for shift 24 hours from the current time.

This constraint gives agents and administrators proper warning about a schedule change that results from a schedule trade. For example, if the Alternative Shift Starts field is set to 4 hours and 15 minutes, and the current time is 7:00 a.m. on Monday, the system will not offer these shifts:

Any alternative shifts to the agent’s shift that start earlier than 11:15 a.m. on Monday.
Any alternative shifts starting that start earlier than 11:15 a.m. on Monday to any of the agent’s existing shifts.

Specify activity categories as protectedClick to expand

If agents must perform activities at the assigned time, the administrator can mark the activity category as protected. If the agent’s shift has a protected activity, then the system always includes the activity in any alternative shifts that are offered for that shift.

For example, suppose that the Meeting activity category is marked as protected and Company All-Hands is an activity in the Meeting category. If the agent’s Tuesday shift has a Company All-Hands activity at 11:00 a.m., then alternative shifts offered for the agent’s Tuesday shift include the Company All-Hands activity at 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday.

To protect an activity category, perform the following steps:

Under the Alternative Shifts tab, enable Enable Alternative Shifts.
Under Protected Activities, select the activities that you want to protect.

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