Laying out a schedule does not have to take days and end in constant corrections. This article is a signpost: it shows how to prepare the account and the team, and then which method will spread the shifts out fastest in the Work schedule tool (you open it from the left icon bar, the calendar icon). Choose the way that suits your company, or combine several at once.

Before you start planning

A well set-up account and team are the foundation. Without them it is hard to lay out a sensible schedule, and the system will not watch over all the rules the way it should.

1. Think about how you want to work with the schedule: whether to see everyone in one view, or split the staffing into locations or departments. The structure in the system follows from that — and for the schedule to display at all, create the locations first. More in the Locations category.
2. Add employees and set their employment terms (contract type, full-time equivalent, limits). That way the system reads the labour law provisions correctly and counts the hours properly. We cover the subject in the Team management category.

If you are just starting out, get to know the basics of the schedule first:

• [Getting started with the Schedule tool](Pierwsze kroki w narzędziu Grafik)
• [A basic shift in the schedule – creating and managing](Tworzenie i zarządzanie zmianą)

Fast planning methods

Once the account is ready, you do not have to enter every shift by hand. Choose the method that matches how your company works:

• A fixed, recurring schedule — similar shifts every week. The fastest way is to copy the previous week or load a saved template: [Copying and schedule templates](Kopiowanie i szablony grafiku).
• Fixed demand, varying availability — you have a staffing template but want the system to pick the people itself, taking availability into account: [Automatic schedule from templates](Automatic schedule from templates).
• Shifts with nobody assigned — you first lay out the "skeleton" of the staffing as unassigned shifts, then distribute them among employees automatically: [Automatic schedule from unassigned shifts](Automatic schedule from unassigned shifts).
• Staffing to match traffic / sales — with metrics turned on, the system will work out the staffing needed from the demand forecast: Automatic schedule based on demand.

What automatic planning gives you

Automatic methods take the biggest load off day-to-day work:

• you save time — a schedule takes moments, not days,
• the system watches labour law — it catches breaches of the regulations for you,
• the system counts the planned hours itself, whether somebody is full-time, half-time or on a mandate contract,
• when distributing shifts and in the summaries it takes leave and absences into account,
• it helps avoid mistakes — it will not, for example, let you plan two shifts for one person at the same time,
• less stress and fewer last-minute corrections.

Not sure which method will work for you? Get in touch — your account manager will help pick a way of planning and, if you need it, will lay out your first Proplanum schedule with you.

Updated on: 07/08/2026