In Zendesk Workforce management (WFM) locations are part of your organization structure and are used to group agents together that share the same geographic location. You can also use locations to split teams in the same physical location that have different shifts and scheduling rules.
For example, you might want to create two San Francisco locations, where one has part-time agents and the other has full-time agents.
You’ll define your operational hours and create shifts that apply to agents’ schedules in the locations you add. When you set up a location’s shifts, you create either automatic shifts, where your forecasted requirements determine the shifts’ days and hours, or fixed shifts, where managers have more control.
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Accessing the Locations page
You must be an admin to access the Locations page.
To access Locations
- In the Zendesk WFM web app, hover over the admin icon () in the navigation bar, then select Organization structure.
- Click Locations.
Adding a location
- Access the Locations page.
- Click the add location (+) icon.
- Enter a unique Location name.
- Click the drop-down menu and select the Time zone.
By default, the time zone selected in the Timezone switcher is used.
- (Optional) If you plan to use automatic shifts, choose your Operational Hours. Select either Open 24/7 or select Specific hours to choose certain days of the week and specific hours.
Note: If you select specific hours, it's recommended to set the same length of time for every day.
- (Optional) If you plan to use automatic shifts, set the Automatic shift requirements.
- Click Save.
Next, you’ll create shifts for the location and assign agents. You can create both automatic and fixed shifts for each of your locations.
Creating automatic shifts
Automatic shifts are based on your forecasted requirements. These types of shifts allow Zendesk WFM to automatically decide which day and starting times are best for each agent to work. However, you do have some control of the starting times for your automatic shifts.
To create an automatic shift
- Access your Locations page and then select a location.
- Click the Shifts section in the top right.
- Click the add shift or folder (+) icon and select Automatic shift from the menu.
- Enter a Shift name, then click Add shift.
- Click the add intraday variant (+) icon below the Actions menu.
- In the Settings tab, configure the following:
- Name
- Shift length
- Select either Flexible shift start time or Specific shift start time.
Flexible shift start times allow you to choose the Max difference in shift start time (such as +2 hours). This is the window of time in which agents can be scheduled. For example, if your max difference is two hours, then an agent can be scheduled to work at 9:00 am, and their next shift can only be scheduled to start between 7:00 am and 11:00 am.
For specific shift start times, enter more than one starting time. The start times for each agent will be chosen to best satisfy the forecasted staffing needs.Note: The ability to define a rotation period for automatic shifts is currently in an Early Access Program (EAP). See Rotating automatic shifts (EAP).
- Click the Intraday tab. This is when your agents' general tasks should occur. You can set only one intraday variant per automatic shift.
- Click the Task(+) icon, then select a Task from the menu.
This can be any general task that your agents need to have or accomplish on a daily basis such as a break, lunch, or a daily stand-up meeting. It can also include any workstreams they're assigned to. If you don't select any workstreams, the workstream is auto-populated for you based on what's been forecasted.
- Set the time interval in which the task can occur, counting from the start of the shift, and the duration of the task.
- Click Save.
- Select Agents on the top right to assign users to this shift and then click Save. By default, all users who are assigned to workstreams are displayed, but you can filter by your teams, workstreams, other locations, and your Zendesk groups.
Rotating automatic shifts (EAP)
When you create or edit automatic shifts, you can define a rotation period for these shifts in either days or weeks. Rotation periods allow agents to rotate between shifts with different starting times. For example, if you define a rotation period of one week, then agents that start at 9:00 am can start at 11:00 am the following week, and so on.
By rotating agents' shift start times automatically, managers don't have to decide a specific order in which to rotate shifts.
- Create or edit an existing automatic shift.
- Click the shift's Intraday variant.
- Enter a Rotation period, then select if it's in either day(s) or week(s).
If the intraday variant has a Flexible shift start time, the best starting time for each agent is calculated according to what's forecasted and is maintained for the defined rotation period. During the next rotation period, a new starting time may be selected for agents.
If the intraday variant has a Specific shift start time, agents are randomly assigned to the different specified times and are rotated between the different starting times during each rotation period.
- Click Save.
Creating fixed shifts
Fixed shifts allow you to configure the specific days and times that shifts start. The location in which you create the fixed shift has any operational hours and automatic shift requirements overruled by the fixed shift logic.
- You can set up multiple intraday variants for each shift.
- Each variant can be assigned to one or more days of the week (each day can only have one intraday variant)
- In the top left of the intraday variants screen you will be able to see an indicator showing the days covered by the multiple intraday variants of that shift
To create a fixed shift
- Access your Locations page and then select a location.
- Click the Shifts section in the top right.
- Click the add shift or folder (+) icon and select Fixed shift from the menu.
- Enter a Shift name. For example, 9am MWF.
- Click Add shift.
- Click the add intraday variant (+) icon below the Actions menu.
- In the Settings tab, configure the following:
- Name
- Start time
- Length
- Working days. The days your agents will work. The days that appear dimmed will be their days off.
- Click the Intraday tab. This is when your agents' general tasks should occur.
- Click the Task(+) icon, then select a Task from the menu.
Note: This can be any general task that your agents need to have or accomplish on a daily basis such as a break, lunch, or a daily stand-up meeting. It can also include any workstreams they're assigned to. If you don't select any workstreams, the workstream is auto-populated for you based on what's been forecasted.
- Set the time interval in which the task can occur, counting from the start of the shift, and the duration of the task.
- Click Save.
- Select Agents on the top right to assign users to this shift and then click Save. Make sure that agents are assigned to workstreams so they can be selected.
Rotating fixed shifts
You can add your fixed shifts to a rotation folder so that your agents' shifts are rotated. For example, you may want to rotate agents' shift start times every week so that agents who start at 9:00 am one week, can start at 11:00 am the following week, and so on.
- Access your Locations page and then select a location.
- Click the Shifts section in the top right.
- Click the add shift or folder (+) icon and select Folder from the menu.
- Enter a Name and then click Add Folder.
- Choose your Rotation period. For example, enter 1 week to rotate agents' shifts every week.
Note: All rotations start from Jan 01, 2022, and not from the day or week that your rotations are created. The order of the shifts will dictate the order of the rotation that week.
- Click Save.
- In the Shifts sidebar, select the shifts you want to rotate and drag them into the rotating folder.
After a shift has been added to the rotation folder, you can view the rotation period of your agents by clicking the Rotation preview tab inside of the folder. If you'd like to change the order of shifts, you can reassign agents to different shifts.
Organizing shifts
Arranging shifts in folders can help you keep all your shifts organized and help you locate shifts.
To create a shift folder
- Access your Locations page and then select a location.
- Click the Shifts section in the top right.
- Click the add shift or folder (+) icon and select Folder from the menu.
- Enter a Name and then click Add Folder.
- Click Save.
- In the Shifts sidebar, select the shifts you want to organize and drag them into the folder.
Managing locations
Manage locations by editing or deleting them.
To edit a location
- Access your Locations page and click the location you want to edit.
- Edit the location settings and shifts as needed.
- Click Save.
To delete a location
- Access your Locations page and hover over the location you want to delete.
- Click the options menu () that appears next to the location name.
- Click Delete.
- Confirm you want to delete the location by clicking Delete location.