WFM UK: Rotas: Setting Up Approval and Snapshot Functionality

What is Rota Approval & Snapshot Functionality?

Snapshot Functionality is the term used to describe the process of Rota Approval and the use of the Weekly Overview report. The process is designed for managers to be able to set their rotas as ‘Ready for Review’ by a certain point in the week, and then for operations managers to check that rota and approve or decline it.
 

When a rota is approved, the system takes a ‘snapshot’ of the forecasted costs (revenue, wage cost and hours scheduled) to then compare with the actual costs for that day and week. These costs are seen in the Weekly Overview report to analyse that week, and to improve forecasting.

Setting up Snapshot Functionality

Weekly Overview Report Set Up
 

Fourth Customer Success Managers or the Customer Care Team can be contacted to arrange to have Version 2 or Version 3 of the Weekly Overview report switched on for a portal. Examples of these can be seen in the article How to Use Snapshot Functionality.

Global Settings

• Go to Rotas > Administration > Global Settings
• Use the yellow arrow drop-down and select Edit Rota Settings

Fig.1 - 'Edit Rota Settings'

• Tick the setting called Allow Creation of Rota Snapshots
• If using the Weekly Overview Report Version 2, select Labour Extract from the snapshot version drop-down on the next line.
• If using the Weekly Overview Report Version 3, select Wage Function

Fig.2 - Global Settings of Rota Snapshots & Snapshot Versions

• Whilst in Global Settings please check that the setting Rota Report version to use for Analysis page is Version 5.
• If using any other version please speak to your Customer Success Manager before changing

Fig.3 - Global Settings, Rota Report Version 5

To label the Rota Approval Levels in the Rota Status Summary:

• Go to Rotas > Administration > Global Settings
• Scroll down to the 'Review Rota Work Flow Labels' section and select Review Rota Work Flow

Fig.4 - Global Settings, Review Rota Work Flow Labels

• Status Screen Label 1 is for the 'Ready for Review' level
• Status Screen Label 2 is for the 'Approval' level
• Amend/rename as appropriate and then Save

Permissions

To enable managers and operations managers to see the approval levels, the Weekly Overview Report, and the Rota Status Summary, a System Administrator will be able to amend the permissions for their access.

In the permissions templates in the rota module, there will be three Rota Review Levels

• Go to Rotas > Users > Templates
• Select the required Template and then Assign Permissions
• In the pop-up that appears, select Administration and then tick the relevant permissions
  • Rota Review Level 1 - this is 'Ready for Review' and should typically be given to managers who create and forecast the rotas
  • Rota Review Level 2 - this is 'Approved' and should typically be given to operations managers
  • Rota Review Level 3 - this is 'Declined' and should be given to the operations managers if they require the option to decline rotas

Fig.6 - Naming the Rota Approval Levels Permissions on the Rota Template for the Approval Levels

• Then, in the Reports section, assign access to the following reports:
  • Rota Status Summary
  • Weekly Overview Report v2 or Weekly Overview Report v3 (based on the version selected above)

Process & Communication

It is essential that the process of setting the rota ‘Ready for Review’ after the managers have forecasted the rota, and setting the rota ‘Approved’ once the operations managers have reviewed the rota, is communicated through the business.
 

The system will only take a snapshot of the forecasted costs when the rota is marked ‘Approved’ and saved. If no forecasted costs are taken, there will be limited information within the Weekly Overview Report.

 

Changing Weekly Overview Reports

If changed from one version to another, the new report’s “approval” values will be blank.
 

The current version's report can be exported for the current week and referenced to the new report version for that week. 
 

Once the following week is approved at the normal time in the approval process, the approved values will appear in the new version for that week and any future weeks if approved.

For example, if the approval deadline is on Thursday, you can run the report on the Friday and make the changes afterwards. 
 

• Go to Rotas > Administration > Global Settings
• Use the yellow arrow drop-down and select Edit Rota Settings
• Select the required option (see below) from the Select snapshot version drop-down
• Scroll down and Save

V3 - Wage Function
V2 - Labour Extract