---
title: "Scheduling 101"
slug: "scheduling-101"
tags: ["scheduling", "WFM", "Dialpad WFM"]
updated: 2026-06-04T08:51:50Z
published: 2026-06-04T08:51:50Z
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.dialpad.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Scheduling 101

In a contact center, agent schedules are carefully planned to balance supply and demand, helping businesses deliver high-quality customer service. By forecasting expected contact volumes and translating this into specific staffing needs, you can ensure the right agents, with the right skills, are available at the right time, maximizing efficiency and customer satisfaction.

Dialpad WFM gives you 3 ways to schedule agents, depending on how much control you want and how many agents you need to schedule at once:

|  | Team | Individual agent |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Full schedule (shifts + activities) | Generate Schedule | - |
| Shifts only | Shift Plans | Auto-schedule |

  

- **Generate** — builds a demand-based schedule for a team (recommended)
- **Shift Plans** — let you create and apply shifts via fixed or rotating patterns manually, for a team or agent
- **Auto-schedule shifts** — helps you schedule shifts for one agent at a time from within the schedule

Most teams should start with the **Generate** **Schedule** flow. It creates shifts and places activities in a single step, using your forecast, activity plan, time off, and each agent's settings.

## Choose the right scheduling method

### Generate a Schedule

Create team schedules based on staffing demand, agent availability, and scheduling rules. Recommended for most teams.

Use it when you want to:

- Create a schedule for a full team
- Match staffing to forecast demand
- Place activities using an activity plan
- Respect agent working days, working hours, and shift options
- Account for approved time off

Generate is best when your team has a forecast, and you want Dialpad WFM to handle shifts and activities together.

See [Generate a Schedule](https://help.dialpad.com/docs/generate-a-schedule) for the full guide.

### Shift Plans

Use Shift Plans to build schedules with predefined shift patterns and greater control over shift assignments.

Shift Plans are the better fit when you need:

- fixed or rotating shift patterns
- multi-week rotations (e.g., 2-week or 3-week cycles)
- overnight shifts
- complete manual control over which agent works which shift on which day
- round robins for fair shift distribution

Shift Plans remain the place where shifts are created and managed. You can reuse those shifts elsewhere, including in agent Schedule settings. After applying a Shift Plan, apply an activity plan separately to place activities and breaks.

See [Create a Shift Plan](https://help.dialpad.com/docs/create-a-shift-plan) for the full guide.

### Auto-schedule

Use Auto-schedule to add or adjust shifts for one agent at a time.

Auto-schedule is best for:

- Filling gaps for a specific agent
- Making a targeted change without regenerating the whole team
- Respecting that agent's current Schedule settings

Auto-schedule uses the same agent Schedule settings as Generate.

See [Auto-schedule shifts](https://help.dialpad.com/docs/auto-schedule-shifts) for the full guide.

> [!TIP]
> Tip
> 
> Choose the scheduling method that best fits your needs:
> 
> | **What you want to do** | **Scheduling method** |
> | --- | --- |
> | Build a schedule for a team based on demand | **Generate a Schedule** |
> | Define and apply shift patterns manually | **Shift Plans** |
> | Fill or adjust shifts for 1 agent | **Auto-schedule shift** |

## Scheduling basics

When creating a schedule, first, you’ll need to create a shift plan.

This is where you will:

- Define work hours: Establish the core working hours for your agents, including shift times, breaks, and time off.
- Balance the workload: Distribute shifts evenly among agents, considering factors like workload, skillsets, and preferences.
- Anticipate future demand: Use forecasting tools to predict future workload and adjust shift schedules accordingly.

After creating the shift plan, the next step is to add activities that define what tasks agents will complete during their shifts. This ensures staffing aligns with forecasted demand across channels and time intervals (e.g., every 30 minutes). To balance demand and agent flexibility, teams often create varied schedules with sufficient breaks. Activity schedules are typically finalized 2-7 days in advance to reflect the most up-to-date forecast data, helping to optimize coverage and accuracy.

> [!NOTE]
> Note
> 
> All schedule edits are made in draft mode. Any adjustments, like modifying shifts or adding activities, remain visible only to admins until the schedule is published.
> 
> You can republish as often as needed, ensuring agents always see the most recent updates, whether shifts include activities or not.

### Scheduling checklist

Before building a schedule, make sure you've completed the following setup steps:

- [ ] You've connected your customer service or CRM platforms.
- [ ] You've set-up your forecast using queues.
- [ ] You've connected your time off calendars.
- [ ] You've added all of your agents and set-up their profiles.

Once those steps are done, you're ready to start scheduling!

## How to build a schedule

Let’s walk through each step involved in building a schedule.

### Option 1: Generate a schedule (recommended)

Generating a schedule is the quickest way to build a schedule for your team.

To [generate a schedule](https://help.dialpad.com/docs/generate-a-schedule):

1. Go to **Schedule** tab in Dialpad WFM.
2. Select **Generate**> Choose a team
3. Choose a date range (1 day to 12 weeks).
4. Select an activity plan
5. Select **Generate draft**

![Schedule generation interface displaying date range and team selection options.](https://cdn.us.document360.io/0f28ad44-2863-4372-a27e-c6728808d742/Images/Documentation/generate-schedule(1).png)

### Option 2: Build a Shift plan

Use this scheduling method when you want more manual control over the shift structure.

To build your own Shift plan, Select **Shifts**

1. Select **Shift plans**
2. Select **+ New plan** ![Dashboard displaying shift plans with options to create new plans and view tiers.](https://cdn.us.document360.io/0f28ad44-2863-4372-a27e-c6728808d742/Images/Documentation/Create shift plan(1).png)
3. Name the shift plan, then select **Next**
4. Select the agents and/or teams you want to schedule with this Shift Plan![Interface for creating a shift plan with agent selection and team addition options.](https://cdn.us.document360.io/0f28ad44-2863-4372-a27e-c6728808d742/Images/Documentation/Group%20101(1)(2).png)
5. Select **Save**
6. You'll now be taken to the homepage for your newly created shift plan. Select shift patterns to enter the shift pattern builder.

![Overview of shift patterns for team scheduling in Dialpad WFM application.](https://cdn.us.document360.io/0f28ad44-2863-4372-a27e-c6728808d742/Images/Documentation/Create shift plan (2).png)

> [!NOTE]
> Note
> 
> All schedule edits are made in draft mode. Any adjustments remain visible only to admins until you publish.
> 
> You can republish as often as needed. Agents always see the most recent published version.

> [!WARNING]
> **Tip**
> 
> To remove a Shift Plan from the schedule, select **Clear Shifts** under **Tools.** ![](https://cdn.us.document360.io/0f28ad44-2863-4372-a27e-c6728808d742/Images/Documentation/clear-shifts.png)

## Migrate from Working Days

If you previously used Working days to define which days agents can work, you will need to update those settings in each agent's **Schedule** tab.

Existing Working Days settings are migrated automatically into the Schedule. The newer Schedule setup gives you additional control.

For example, instead of only marking Monday as a working day, you can now set specific working hours, allowed shift templates, or weekly shift options.

See [Configure Agent Working Hours](https://help.dialpad.com/docs/configure-agent-working-hours) for a full walkthrough.

## Common use cases

| Use case | Recommendation |
| --- | --- |
| Create a schedule for an entire team based on forecasted demand | **Generate a Schedule** |
| Create a predefined shift pattern, such as fixed or rotating schedules | **Shift Plans** |
| Add or adjust shifts for a single agent | **Auto-schedule shift** |
| Allow an agent to work multiple shift options (for example, Early or Late) | **Schedule settings with Generate a Schedule or Auto-fill** |
| Create a balanced mix of shifts throughout the week | **Schedule Settings with weekly Shift schedule** |

## Frequently asked questions

### When should I use Auto-schedule shift?

Use Auto-schedule to add or adjust shifts for a single agent.

### Do Schedule settings affect scheduling?

Yes. Both Generate a Schedule and Auto-fill use an agent's Schedule settings.

### What happened to Working Days?

Working Days settings are automatically migrated to the Schedule tab, which provides additional scheduling options and flexibility.

### Can I assign multiple shifts on the same day?

Yes. Multiple shifts are treated as alternatives, and Dialpad WFM selects the best option for that day.

## Related

- [Create a Shift Plan](/create-a-shift-plan.md)
- [Auto-Schedule Shifts](/auto-schedule-shifts.md)