Having served 30 years in law enforcement, I understand the importance of ensuring every shift is properly staffed. My experience in public safety administrative positions has also taught me that doing so can be a complex and time-consuming task. In my current roll as a scheduling software executive, I see every day how officer and staff scheduling software makes it easy for public safety administrators to ensure each shift is staffed with the appropriate number of properly qualified employees while saving time and money. Here are some reasons many departments have turned to scheduling software to help manage schedules and improve communication.
Accessibility
Paper schedules typically reside on a computer or bulletin board within a public safety department. This means employees can only view the current schedule when they are at work. Officers don’t know when changes are made, and supervisors aren’t sure whether everyone has the correct schedule information. Online scheduling systems allow officers, staff, and managers to see up-to-the-minute schedules anytime, anywhere. Officers always know when and where they work, and managers have peace of mind knowing everyone has the most current schedule information.
Time Savings
Law enforcement administrators already have a lot on their plates and creating weekly or monthly schedules can be time intensive. Scheduling software allows them to assign shifts in just seconds and make schedule changes anytime from anywhere. They can build schedules for each division in minutes, and schedule multiple employees easily. Schedules can be built and viewed weeks, months, or years in advance. Schedulers can quickly copy schedule patterns and rotations, so they don’t spend time and resources entering repeating schedule information.
Proper Coverage
Scheduling software allows administrators to properly allocate resources to ensure officers are accurately scheduled by shift, position, or skill. Administrators can enter staffing requirements and immediately see whether there are too few or too many officers scheduled. They can see shortages or overages ahead of time and change shift assignments in advance to ensure proper coverage without incurring unnecessary overtime. When an officer calls in sick, or if an emergency arises and the department requires extra manpower, administrators need to fill open shifts fast. Software such as ScheduleAnywhere allows managers to instantly send messages to available and qualified individuals or groups of employees to ensure shifts are covered with properly qualified personnel.
Budget Management
Law enforcement departments must maintain high levels of service within their budgetary restrictions. When researching scheduling software solutions, administrators should consider the initial investment, as well as monthly and annual costs. Software such as ScheduleAnywhere offers flexible pricing, which can be adjusted to meet the specific personnel requirements of each public safety department. This ensures the department is paying only for the services they need. For added resource management, the software includes reporting tools, which allows administrators to monitor officer’s shifts and hours — preventing unnecessary overtime costs.
Improved Communication
Scheduling software allows managers to instantly communicate with staff via email and text message. This helps managers alert staff of schedule changes as well as fill open shifts fast. Software that lets managers send messages to a select group of qualified and available employees safeguards against non-compliance by ensuring every department is staffed with properly trained and qualified personnel. Staff scheduling software such as ScheduleAnywhere also provides visibility of multiple schedules to administrators, officers, courts, dispatch, and support staff.
Finding the scheduling program that best meets your facility’s staffing demands helps ensure every shift is properly covered and each employee has the most current schedule information. Additionally, it can cut the time spent on officer and staff scheduling by up to 75% — that’s a sound investment for any public safety department.
About the Author
Steve Lynk lives in Fargo, ND, and served on the Fargo Police Department for 30 years. He held several positions within the department, including patrol officer, sergeant, and lieutenant. Steve retired from the police department in 2015 and is currently the Senior Law Enforcement Account Executive at Atlas Business Solutions, Inc., a software marketing company specializing in employee scheduling software, including ScheduleAnywhere.
