Shift Scheduling Tool With Incentive Bidding

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Solution Overview

Problem

Scheduling employee shifts can be challenging and time-consuming for employers due to varying employee availability, preferences, and skill sets, as well as the need to manage absences and unexpected surges in customer business.

Innovation Solution

A shift management tool with a graphical user interface that automatically schedules shifts based on employee availability, preferences, performance ratings, and compatibility, allowing employees to bid on shifts and offering incentives for less desirable times, while also using built-in intelligence to recommend scheduling and handle absences by contacting on-call employees or nearby staff.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If manual shift scheduling is used, then employer control over scheduling decisions is maintained, but the time and effort required to create and manage schedules increases significantly

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveease of schedulingVSAvoidtime for scheduling

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system enables employees to self-manage their shift schedules by submitting availability preferences, bidding on desired shifts, and automatically receiving assignments based on their preferences and employer needs, eliminating the need for manual employer intervention in routine scheduling decisions

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

Employees are required to submit their availability and preferences in advance before scheduling decisions are made, allowing the system to pre-process and evaluate multiple employee preferences against business needs before final schedule generation

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

2Productivity

If automated shift scheduling is implemented, then scheduling time is reduced, but the complexity of the scheduling system increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvescheduling efficiencyVSAvoidsystem complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The scheduling system is divided into distinct functional modules including employee preference submission, shift bidding, automated assignment algorithms, and employer oversight interfaces, allowing each component to be developed and maintained independently

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The system introduces an automated scheduling intermediary that acts as a mediator between employee preferences and employer requirements, using algorithms to balance competing interests and generate optimal schedules without direct human intervention in the matching process

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

3Ease of operation

If employee preferences are prioritized in scheduling, then employee satisfaction improves, but the ability to meet business needs during peak periods may be compromised

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveemployee satisfactionVSAvoidstaffing reliability

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The scheduling system dynamically adjusts the weight given to employee preferences versus business needs based on current and forecasted business conditions, automatically prioritizing employee preferences during normal periods and business requirements during peak periods or staffing shortages

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

Solution Approach 2:

The system incorporates feedback loops where scheduling outcomes are monitored against both employee satisfaction metrics and business performance indicators, allowing continuous adjustment of scheduling parameters to balance competing objectives over time

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

4Reliability

If incentives are offered for less desirable shifts, then shift fill rates improve, but labor costs increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveshift fill rateVSAvoidlabor cost

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

Instead of offering incentives for all shifts, the system selectively applies incentives only to specific shifts that are difficult to fill or occur during critical business periods, minimizing the total incentive expenditure while maintaining adequate coverage

Inventive Principle:

Principle #16Partial or excessive action

Solution Approach 2:

The system dynamically adjusts incentive parameters such as the amount of extra pay or benefits offered based on shift demand, historical fill rates, and business needs, optimizing the balance between attracting employees to undesirable shifts and controlling labor costs

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Data Source

PatentUS10572844B1Determining employee shift schedules

Publication Date: 2020.02.25 BLOCK INC

AI summary

In some examples, a service provider may associate, with an employer profile of an employer, a plurality of employee profiles of employees that are available to be assigned to one or more shifts of a plurality of shifts. The service provider may determine, based at least in part on shift information and the employee profiles, a shift schedule that indicates employee assignments for individual shifts. In some cases, in response to determining that a first shift is unfilled, the service provider may add to the shift schedule an incentive for one of the employees to select the first shift. Alternatively, in response to determining, based at least in part on the employee profiles, that multiple employees indicated a preference to work a second shift, the service provider may leave the second shift unassigned to enable the employees to bid on being assigned to work the second shift.