How to create a schedule in six easy steps

Good hours are the backbone of small businesses. Without them, everything from your labor budget to customer service and staff relations crumbles, so you need to make sure yours is airtight.

But writing schedules takes time and there are other job responsibilities to consider, not to mention your own work-life balance.

So we created this guide on how to create a schedule that fits your budget, respects your team's preferences, and doesn't take hours to complete. Find out how Homebase can help you every step of the way. We've included:

Business requirements to consider before getting started Tips for scheduling employees based on their availability and preferences How to create reusable schedule templates What to pay attention to when reviewing your schedule How to manage your schedule in case of last minute changes Lead a better team with smarter planning.

Optimize your schedule and keep your team in sync with Homebase.

Find out more

Step 1: Determine schedule requirements

There are many things to consider before starting an employee schedule. You need to balance:

Respond to labor needs Respect your budget Have the right combination of roles Comply with applicable federal and state laws

Take care of several items on this list using Homebase's planning forecast tool. Instead of spending hours poring over numbers, you can automatically calculate how many employees you need and what sales you can expect to make based on past data. Homebase even includes your sales-to-labor ratio, so you'll instantly notice if your workforce is below or above average (and if you'll be understaffed or overstaffed).

As you progress through the next steps, you can keep checking the forecast sidebar to check if you've strayed too far from your goals.

Caption: Homebase's forecasting tool displays all of your predictive data in a sidebar at the bottom of each employee's schedule.

Now that you know how many employees you need, it's time to get into the details. Identify the roles, departments, and senior team members you will need for each shift. For example, if you run a restaurant, what chef to waiter ratio should you have? How many takeout orders does your delivery team receive on average? Are there any new hires that require close supervision from a manager?

As you build your list, you'll probably end up making changes as you go. If you're using pen and paper or a spreadsheet and constantly having to cross out or copy and paste things, your schedule will quickly become messy and confusing. Use Homebase to create a list of shifts at the top of your employees' schedule for each day with all the roles you need, along with shift hours and any relevant notes.

Caption: Create a color-coordinated shift list alongside your Homebase schedule to stay on top of the roles you need for each day.

The only thing left to do is review the state and federal laws so you can keep them in mind when writing your schedule. The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) regulates:

How many days employees can work in a week