Big Ambitions Employee Scheduling: Fix Your Shifts

Set opening hours before assigning people

Start with the days and hours when the business should serve customers. Then open its schedule and cover the required workstations. The business's opening controls and an employee's assignment are different: closing Tuesday to give one person a day off changes the whole business. A January 2024 developer reply makes this distinction explicitly.

For an established shop, compare the planned hours with its customer graph. Give yourself a reason for extending a quiet morning or late evening: expected extra sales should justify the additional wages. Staff the hours you intend to operate, and review actual demand before expanding that commitment.

Give employees different days without closing the shop

If editing one day changes the entire week, look for Shared schedule for all days. Turn it off when you need a different weekday and weekend team or an employee has a particular days-off requirement. Click the day itself and edit that day's employee assignments. Developer support confirms this workflow in January 2025.

Use a simple handover plan before dragging names around. For example, one person can cover the weekday opening shift while another covers that station on the weekend, provided each person's actual demands allow it. This is a planning example, not a recommended universal shift length.

• 1. Read the employee's hours, workday, and time-of-day demands.
• 2. Disable the shared daily schedule if their days must differ.
• 3. Select the first day, assign the person to a valid station, and set the intended shift.
• 4. Review all seven days and cover any gaps with another suitable employee.
• 5. Recheck each person's weekly total and demand indicators after the edits.

Count weekly hours, including work already completed

Full-time describes a weekly range, not a promise that any eight-hour shift is valid. A November 2024 developer reply describes full-time as 30–50 hours per week. Read the tooltip in your current save for the employee's actual requirement, and also respect separate requests about days and times.

An eight-hour shift repeated over seven days totals 56 hours. That arithmetic explains why a schedule can look reasonable on a single day and fail over the week. A worker asking for a four-day week also needs the correct number of days; changing only the total hours does not address that request.

Midweek edits are a second trap. In May 2025, the developer explained that employees retain hours worked earlier in the week and that the accounting resets on Monday. A newly displayed acceptable schedule does not erase the shifts already completed. Reduce remaining work where appropriate and assess the corrected pattern across the next full week.

Review autofill instead of assuming its result

Autofill is useful for creating a draft roster. After using it, inspect uncovered station hours, each employee's demands, and support work such as cleaning. Sort by hours or demands where those controls are available; the developer documented a scheduler overhaul in April 2025. Old complaints about the earlier scheduler do not establish how your installed version behaves.

Our recommended review is a day-by-day pass through the busiest trading window, followed by a person-by-person pass through weekly totals. These catch different mistakes: a satisfied employee does not prove every station has cover, and complete station cover does not prove every employee's requirements are met.

Treat headquarters schedules as a separate case

Headquarters managers use a fixed schedule. The developer explained in April 2025 that their working week supports management and deliveries across the week. A locked HQ schedule is therefore not evidence that the retail scheduler has stopped working. Check the person's business assignment and desk assignment before trying to extend headquarters opening hours.

After training, a move, or a new hire, inspect the actual scheduled station as part of your routine. Recruiting someone is only the beginning of filling a shift; the roster must still show that person at the intended workplace.

Employee scheduling questions

Why did a valid-looking schedule leave a demand unmet? Check earlier hours worked, selected weekdays, and separate time restrictions. Weekly totals alone do not cover all demands.

How do I give one employee Friday off? Edit that employee's assignment for Friday, with shared scheduling disabled where needed. Do not close the whole business.

When should I report a bug? If a complete new week still shows a mismatch between the displayed requirements and a valid schedule, include the employee, all seven days, and the game version in a report.