Method and apparatus for real time automated intelligent self-scheduling
AssigneeWorkFlex Solutions, LLC
InventorsLarry S. Schwartz, Mitesh D. Desai
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A business can use an improved workforce management system which includes capabilities for supporting intraday dynamic staffing. This dynamic staffing can include identifying wages which should be offered to workers to induce them to meet the business' needs, based on, for example, historical information stored in a database. Systems which include dynamic intraday staffing can be run using remote servers and interfaces accessed through various types of devices, such as internet enabled personal computers.
Claims18
A method for allowing staff members to submit pre-authorized schedule modification requests, the method comprising a set of tasks performed by a computer, the set of tasks comprising:
- a) generating a schedule for a staff member, wherein:
- i) the schedule comprises a time span covering a plurality of future time periods;
- ii) the schedule is generated based on demand information from a workforce management system comprising, for each future time period from the plurality of future time periods, a projection of demand for work by the staff member during that future time period;
- and
- iii) the plurality of future time periods comprises a set of scheduled time periods during which the staff member is contractually obligated to perform tasks for an employer;
- b) after the schedule is generated, identifying one or more selectable activities for the staff member, wherein:
- i) for each of the identified one or more selectable activities there is a set of one or more available time periods;
- and
- ii) the computer identifies the one or more selectable activities by performing acts comprising:
- A) determining which rules from a set of rules specified by the employer should be applied to evaluate potential schedule changes for the staff member;
- and
- B) applying the rules determined for evaluating potential schedule changes for the staff member with information corresponding to parameters specified in the rules using a rules engine;
- c) generating and sending a set of data operable to configure a remote computing device associated with the staff member to present a schedule modification interface, wherein the schedule modification interface:
- i) indicates one or more time periods from the plurality of future time periods, wherein each of the indicated one or more time periods is an available time period for a selectable activity from the identified one or more selectable activities;
- and
- ii) is operable by the staff member to generate a schedule change request;
- d) after sending the set of data operable to configure the remote computing device associated with the staff member to present the schedule modification interface:
- i) obtaining updated information corresponding to parameters in the rules specified by the employer;
- ii) selectively, based on concurrency controls, sending a new set of data to the remote computing device associated with the staff member, the new set of data operable to configure the remote computing device associated with the staff member to indicate whether at least one of the one or more time periods indicated in the schedule modification interface was no longer an available time period.
A system for allowing, after generation for a staff member of a schedule comprising a time span covering a plurality of future time periods comprising a set of scheduled time periods during which the staff member is contractually obligated to perform tasks for an employer based on, for each future time period from the plurality of future time periods, a projection of demand for work by the staff member during that future time period, submission of pre-authorized schedule modification requests, the system comprising:
- a) a staff member computing device;
- and
- b) a computer located remotely from the staff member computing device, wherein the computer is configured to perform a set of acts comprising:
- i) identifying one or more selectable activities for the staff member, wherein:
- A) for each of the identified one or more selectable activities there is a set of one or more available time periods;
- and
- B) the computer identifies the one or more selectable activities by performing acts comprising:
- I) determining which rules from a set of rules specified by the employer should be applied to evaluate potential schedule changes for the staff member;
- and
- II) applying the rules determined for evaluating potential schedule changes for the staff member with information corresponding to parameters specified in the rules using a rules engine;
- ii) generating and sending a set of data operable to configure the staff member computing device to present a schedule modification interface, wherein the schedule modification interface:
- A) indicates one or more time periods from the plurality of future time periods, wherein each of the indicated one or more time periods is an available time period for a selectable activity from the identified one or more selectable activities;
- and
- B) is operable by the staff member to generate a schedule change request;
- iii) after sending the set of data operable to configure the staff member computing device to present the schedule modification interface:
- A) obtaining updated information corresponding to parameters in the rules specified by the employer;
- B) selectively, based on concurrency controls, sending a new set of data to the staff member computing device, the new set of data operable to configure the staff member computing device to indicate whether at least one of the one or more time periods indicated in the schedule modification interface was no longer an available time period.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.