Abstract
Workforce-shift scheduling can be a complex task for hospitality managers, because many factors affect schedules. The chief goal is to schedule enough staff to serve customers without overstaffing the operation. In so doing, managers arrange shifts of different lengths, sometimes overlapping. Every change of shift or beginning or end of a break constitutes an "action time." Managers may wish to control the number of action times, either maximizing or minimizing them. Examining a quick-service restaurant, the author applied three mathematical models that accounted for different levels of staffing needs, peaks in staffing needs, length of operating day, shift-length intervals (i.e., in 15-, 30-, 60-minute units), and employee flexibility. By using newly devised mathematical models that contemplate the number of action times, a manager can set schedules to maximize or minimize that number, as appropriate to the operation without unduly inconveniencing the employees. Control of the number of action times can reduce a manager's scheduling burden when consumer demand is stable, while providing sufficient staff in situations of unstable demand.
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