Open Shifts and Availability

Open Shifts is a lightweight broadcast system that lets managers post available roles for upcoming events and gives staff members an easy way to indicate their availability. It eliminates the back-and-forth of individual text messages when you need to fill roles quickly.

How Open Shifts work

The workflow has three steps:

1. Manager broadcasts — You post an open shift request with the event details and the roles you need filled
2. Staff respond — Team members see the request and click "I'm Available" for any role they can fill
3. Manager accepts — You review the responses and click Accept on the people you want, which creates their assignment automatically

Creating an open shift request

Only managers (Owner and Manager roles) can create open shift requests.

1. Navigate to StaffSync → Open Shifts
2. Click New Request
3. Fill in the request details:

4. For each role:
   • Select the role from your configured staff roles
   • Set how many people you need in that role
5. Click Broadcast to Team

The request is immediately visible to all staff members the next time they open StaffSync.

How staff see open shift requests

Staff members see open shift requests in StaffSync → Open Shifts. The requests list open shifts for all upcoming events, showing:

• The event name and date
• The roles being requested
• How many spots have been filled vs. how many are needed
• Whether they've already responded to a specific role

For each open role, staff see an "I'm Available" button. Clicking it submits their availability response. Roles that are already filled show as "Filled" and don't accept new responses.

After responding, a staff member's button changes to show their status: Offered (they've responded, awaiting manager acceptance) or Confirmed (the manager has accepted them).

Reviewing and accepting responses

When staff respond to an open shift request, managers see their names in the request's role panel.

1. Navigate to StaffSync → Open Shifts
2. Open the request you want to review
3. Expand the role panel to see who has responded
4. Click Accept next to a staff member's name to confirm their assignment

When you click Accept:

• A confirmed assignment is automatically created for that staff member and role
• The staff member's status changes from "Offered" to "Accepted"
• The role's "filled" count increments
• If all spots are filled, the role shows as "Filled" and no more responses are accepted

You can accept multiple people for a role if your headcount target is greater than one. Accept exactly the number you need.

Managing open shift requests

Cancelling a request

If an event is cancelled or you no longer need to fill a role, click Cancel Request at the bottom of the request card. The request is closed and no longer accepts new responses from staff.

Viewing past requests

Fulfilled and cancelled requests appear in the Past Requests section below the active open requests. Past requests are read-only records showing what was requested, who responded, and what the final outcome was.

Staff experience: My Schedule

Staff members who are confirmed for assignments (either through open shifts or direct manager assignment) can see all their upcoming shifts in StaffSync → My Schedule.

My Schedule shows:

• A calendar view with their confirmed assignments marked
• Upcoming shift details: event name, date, role, and expected arrival time
• A list view showing all upcoming assignments in chronological order

Staff can reference My Schedule at any time to check their upcoming schedule without contacting a manager.

Best practices for Open Shifts

Post requests early. Staff need time to plan around their personal schedules. Posting open shift requests at least 2 weeks before an event gives people the best chance to respond.

Be specific with the message. The more details staff have about the event — dress code, hours, special requirements — the better their responses will reflect genuine availability.

Accept quickly. Once staff respond, confirm your selections promptly. Staff may be considering other commitments while waiting for your acceptance.

Use targeted direct assignments for key roles. Open Shifts works best for roles you can fill from a general pool (servers, setup crew). For critical roles like your lead coordinator, use direct assignment with a phone call rather than broadcasting to everyone.

Frequently asked questions

Can a staff member respond to multiple roles in the same request? Yes. If a request has multiple open roles, a staff member can indicate availability for each role they're able to fill. The manager then decides which role to place them in.

Is there a notification when a staff member responds? Yes. Managers receive an in-app notification when a staff member submits an availability response, so you don't need to monitor the Open Shifts page constantly.

Can staff see who else has responded to an open shift? No. Staff members only see their own response status. The list of all respondents is visible only to managers, maintaining a fair process where responses aren't influenced by who else has already responded.

What happens to open responses if I cancel a request? All pending responses are cancelled along with the request. Everyone who had offered their availability is notified that the request was cancelled, so nobody is left waiting on an answer that is not coming.