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What are shift templates?

Shift templates allow you to create blueprints for new shifts, both single and recurring, for any or all of the schedules that you have set up within LibStaffer. If you find creating similar types of shifts, such as shifts with the same times, repeat patterns, positions, tasks, etc., you can create a shift template to save all of that information. When you create those types of shifts in the future, you won't have to retype or copy & paste that same information over and over. Each template can be made available for all schedules or for a specific schedule, and the shift templates feature can be activated for each individual schedule, which allows you to control which schedules have access to shift templates and the specific templates that are available for reuse within each of those schedules.

Only Admins can create shift templates, but any Regular user with Schedule Admin permission can use them when creating a new shift. Just select the template you want to use and the information from that template will automatically be copied into the new shift—all you have to do is fine-tune it.

Create a new shift template

1. Go to Admin > Shift Templates.
2. In the Manage Shift Templates panel, click the Add Template button.

3. On the Add Shift Template page, set the Template Name.
   • This is how others will know what the template is for when creating shifts.
4. From the Schedule dropdown, select the schedule where the template will be available for reuse.
   • Select "Show in all Schedules" to make the schedule available in all schedules that have templates active.
   • Reminder: A schedule must have the shift templates feature activated in order for any templates to be available for reuse in addition to being selected as a schedule from this setting. 
5. Configure the Shift Details as needed.
   1. Shift Name: Provide a short description for the shift if desired (e.g. "Library Opener").
      • Because this displays directly on the schedule calendar, we recommend keeping the shift name brief (you can use the Tasks & Notes field below for additional notes & info, if needed).
   2. Shift Color: This is the background color for the shift on the schedule, which can be helpful for organizing your shifts (e.g. Color the A.M. shift yellow and the P.M. shift green).
      • Choose from one of the preset colors, or use the color picker field to choose a custom one.
   3. Start: Select the time when this shift begins.
   4. End: Select the time this shift ends.
      • Note: If you pick an End time that is earlier than the Start time, then the shift will end at that time on the following day.
   5. Repeat Pattern: Select either Single Date, Daily, Weekly, or Monthly recurring pattern for your shift.
      • See the section on repeat patterns in the FAQ for creating recurring shifts to learn more about each repeat pattern.
        • Note: The multi-date picker repeat pattern is not available for shift templates
      • Select "Single Date" to create a single shift.
   6. Minimum # of People: Each shift can have multiple people assigned to it. Enter the minimum number of people that need to be assigned to this shift.
   7. Allow Shift Claiming: If you have configured a schedule to allow staff to claim shifts, selecting this option will allow staff to claim this shift if it is unfilled.
      • These shifts will appear under the Open Shifts list on the LibStaffer dashboard.
   8. Positions: If you have Positions added to LibStaffer (from Admin > Org Hierarchy) and the schedule has been configured to have positions assigned to shifts, you can select the position(s) that are required for filling the shift. 
   9. Tasks & Notes: you can add optional notes that staff will be able to see with their shift assignment, such as when viewing their upcoming shifts on the dashboard.
6. Click Save and Exit.
   • Everything you set up in the Shift Details will be applied to new shifts created with this template but can be changed by the user creating the shift.
   • If you change a template later on, those changes will not be applied retroactively to existing shifts that were created with the template.

Activate shift templates for a schedule

In order for shift templates to be available to users creating new shifts within a schedule in LibStaffer, the schedule must have the shift templates option activated for it. If the option has not been turned on for a schedule, users will not see the option to select a template when creating a shift even when templates have been created for the schedule.

To activate shift templates for a schedule:

1. Go to Admin > Shift Templates.
2. In the Activate Shift Templates panel, from the Schedules dropdown, select each schedule that should support shift templates.
   • Multiple schedules can be selected at one time.
3. Click the Save button.
   • After activating, any selected schedules will display a Shift Template dropdown when adding a new shift (single or recurring) to the schedule.

Manage existing shift templates

On the Admin > Shift Templates page, in the Manage Shift Templates panel, you'll see a list of all existing templates. From here you can:

1. Edit a template by clicking on its Edit () icon in the Actions column.
   • When editing a template you can make changes to its name, the schedule it can be used on, and the shift's details.
   • Changes you make will only apply to new shifts created with this template—they will not be retroactively applied to existing shifts that were created using the template.
2. Delete a template by clicking on its Delete​ () icon in the Actions column.
   • This will only delete the template—it will not delete any shifts created from it.