Employee scheduling software automates the process of creating, maintaining, and tracking employee schedules.
Implementing an employee scheduling software system can help improve productivity and team collaboration, allowing for greater visibility into bandwidth on a company-wide scale. These systems typically track vacations, sick days, and other personal days.
With so many Employee scheduling software on the market today, however, choosing the right option for your needs can be difficult. To help, we analyzed dozens of the leading providers and selected the best Employee scheduling software in 2023 based on pricing, ease of use, features, customer support and more.
Best & Most Used Employee Scheduling Software
Here are my top picks for the best Employee Scheduling Software for Businesses, comparing each & uncovering the unique features each has to offer.
Let’s get started.
Best Overall
Paycor
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Standout features
Paycor Scheduling is a comprehensive employee scheduling and time-tracking tool that can help businesses of all sizes save time and money. It is easy to use and offers a variety of features to benefit both employees and managers.
For employees, Paycor Scheduling makes it easy to view their schedules, swap shifts, and request time off. For managers, Paycor Scheduling helps to create and manage employee schedules more efficiently, forecast labor costs, and track employee hours worked.
Overall, Paycor Scheduling is a valuable tool for businesses that want to improve their scheduling and time-tracking processes.
Best for Retail
Sling
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Standout features
Sling is an employee scheduling and communication app that allows you to automate employee schedules avoid overlapping shifts and communicate with employees.
After completing the setup process a schedule tab opens in front of you where you can create schedules, add shifts and also edit them if necessary.
This app allows you to copy drag or schedule recurring shifts more efficiently. Visibility of time off or unavailability of employees makes it easier to create shifts for employees.
Best for Manufacturing
Deputy
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Standout features
Deputy is a US-based tool for scheduling multiple employee roles in multiple locations. It enables a multi-location schedule and allows you to publish up to 100 shifts per month.
It runs a five-point check ensuring training, stress profile, leave, unavailability, and overlapping whenever you create a shift.
Moreover, it tracks employee qualifications to let you know whether that person is qualified for the assigned task or not.
Best for Service-Based Businesses
Humanity
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Standout features
Humanity is a cloud-based fast and intuitive employee scheduling software that comes with shifts management, leave module, training module, and payroll module for both managers and employees.
One of its main attractions is the dashboard where both managers and employees can access information like upcoming shifts, employees on board, on leave, or late entry, and also the birthdays of employees.
In addition, the notification tiles help the user to go to specific platforms.
Best for Small Businesses
Homebase
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Standout Features
Homebase is software used for scheduling, time tracking, payroll integration, and many more. It offers a feature-rich free plan along with scheduling and time tracking.
The free plan also offers attendance monitoring, job posting, applicant tracking, basic reports, and POS integration. Even though the free plan is limited to only one location, there is no limitation on employee numbers.
The software comes with a library of schedule templates and also allows auto-rescheduling for creating duplicate schedules.
Learn More About Employee Scheduling Software
What is Employee Scheduling Software?
Employee scheduling software is a digital tool designed to streamline the process of creating and managing work schedules for a company’s employees.
It automates the often complex and time-consuming task of assigning shifts, considering factors like employee availability, labor laws, and business requirements.
This software helps businesses optimize workforce management, reduce scheduling conflicts, and improve overall efficiency while ensuring that employees are assigned to shifts that align with their skills and preferences.
How does an Employee Scheduling Software work?
Employee scheduling software works by centralizing various aspects of workforce management. It typically involves the following steps: First, managers input employee data, including availability, skills, and preferences.
Next, they define scheduling parameters and business requirements. The software then processes this information to generate optimized work schedules, taking into account factors like labor laws, overtime rules, and budget constraints.
Employees can access their schedules, request time off, and trade shifts through the software. Any changes made are instantly updated, ensuring that everyone has real-time access to the latest schedule information. This automation helps reduce scheduling conflicts, improve efficiency, and save time for both managers and employees.
Key Features of Employee Scheduling Software
- Shift Scheduling: The ability to create, modify, and view work schedules for employees, considering factors like shift times and duration.
- Employee Availability: A system for employees to input their availability, enabling the software to assign shifts accordingly.
- Time-off Management: Tools for requesting and managing time-off requests, and tracking available leave balances.
- Skills and Certification Tracking: A feature to track and match employees’ skills and certifications with the required tasks or shifts.
- Labor Law Compliance: Automation to ensure that schedules adhere to labor laws, overtime rules, and other regulations.
- Notifications and Reminders: Alerts and notifications for upcoming shifts, schedule changes, or time-off approvals.
Benefits of using Employee Scheduling Software
- Time and Cost Savings: Automation of the scheduling process saves time for managers and reduces administrative overhead, leading to cost savings.
- Reduced Scheduling Errors: Software can minimize errors in shift assignments, ensuring compliance with labor laws and business rules.
- Improved Employee Satisfaction: Employees have more control over their schedules, reducing conflicts and increasing job satisfaction.
- Optimized Staffing: The software helps in aligning workforce with demand, preventing overstaffing or understaffing.
- Enhanced Productivity: Efficient scheduling ensures that the right employees are in place at the right times, improving overall productivity.
- Labor Cost Management: Real-time data and analytics help in monitoring and controlling labor costs, including overtime.
Who Uses Employee Scheduling Software?
- Retail Businesses: Retail stores use scheduling software to manage shifts for their sales associates, cashiers, and other employees to ensure adequate coverage during business hours.
- Restaurants and Hospitality: Restaurants, bars, and hotels rely on scheduling software to create shifts for waitstaff, kitchen staff, bartenders, and front-of-house employees to maintain optimal service levels.
- Healthcare Facilities: Hospitals, clinics, and nursing homes use scheduling software to manage healthcare professionals, including doctors, nurses, and support staff, while ensuring compliance with strict staffing requirements.
- Manufacturing and Industrial Companies: Manufacturers use the software to schedule shifts for assembly line workers, machine operators, and other production staff to meet production demands.
- Customer Service and Call Centers: Call centers and customer service departments use employee scheduling software to ensure agents are available to handle customer inquiries and support requests.
- Public Safety and Emergency Services: Police departments, fire stations, and emergency medical services rely on scheduling software to manage shifts for law enforcement officers, firefighters, and emergency medical personnel.
Trends of Employee Scheduling Software
- Mobile-First Solutions: Employee scheduling apps with mobile functionality are becoming increasingly popular. Employees can access their schedules, request time off, and communicate with their managers on the go, while employers can manage schedules from their mobile devices.
- AI and Machine Learning: Scheduling software is incorporating AI and machine learning algorithms to optimize schedules based on historical data, employee preferences, and changing demand patterns. This helps reduce labor costs and improve efficiency.
- Self-Service Portals: Many modern scheduling tools offer self-service portals for employees, allowing them to set their availability, request time off, swap shifts, and manage their schedules, reducing administrative work for managers.
- Integration with HR and Payroll Systems: Seamless integration with HR and payroll software streamlines workforce management processes, ensuring that scheduling data is connected with other aspects of HR.
- Compliance Automation: Enhanced features for monitoring and ensuring compliance with labor laws and regulations, minimizing the risk of costly violations.
- Demand Forecasting: The use of data analytics and forecasting to predict staffing needs, allowing for more accurate and agile scheduling in response to changing business requirements.
