Open shifts

What is an open shift?

An open shift is a shift that has not yet been assigned to a volunteer. You can use them to your advantage in a few ways:

• If there will be more than one volunteer doing the same shift, it can be set up as one open shift with multiple shift "slots", then assign the slots to the volunteers. Not only does it save time by avoiding the need to create a separate shift each time, but it also cascades those changes to the assigned slots when you change your original open shift details.
• You can use them to set up your schedule before assigning shifts, for example, if your volunteers are not yet onboarded.
• Use them to let volunteers request shifts that suit them.

How to create an open shift

1. Select the open shift cell corresponding to the role and day for which the shift will be scheduled. A slide-out panel will appear.
2. Fill in the shift details (see below for more information on setting the shift details) and select the Save button at the bottom of the panel.
3. Done! Repeat for all shifts needed.

Setting the shift details

More information on what is available when adding an open shift:

Detail	What it is	Example
Number of slots	How many volunteers are needed for this shift	1 for a single volunteer, 5 for multiple volunteers doing the same shift
Shift title	This will appear on the schedule, and for the volunteer, it should be something that makes sense to both. When there are multiple shifts with the same shift title, the volunteer will see them as categories. Optional.	"Information session" is the shift title
Date and Time	Select the start and finish times of the shift.
Shift status	When a volunteer's request has been approved by you, this is what status their shift will have.	You would like the volunteer to confirm after their request is approved: set the status to 'unconfirmed'. You do not need the extra confirmation: set the status to 'confirmed'
Activities	Add what the volunteer will be expected to do during the shift. The volunteer will be able to see this when requesting the shift. Optional.	Example activities: Check off registrations, Hand out lanyards, take last-minute registrations
Note for the volunteer	Add any extra information needed for this shift that the volunteer will need. The volunteer will be able to see this when requesting the shift. Optional.	"Please wear your conference polo issued at the information session" or "Please meet at door B 10 mins prior to your shift"

What shift details does the volunteer see?

If the schedule is sent to the volunteers, here is what they will see:

(1) Where shift titles appear on the volunteer view. (2) Where the activities and notes appear if added. The volunteer selects the +more info link to toggle visibility.