Excel spreadsheets are one of the most underrated forensic and investigative tools. They can help investigators, prosecutors, and forensic examiners sort, organize, filter, simplify and normalize large datasets to find evidence relevant to their investigations.
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PlanIt Schedule
PlanIt Schedule is an online police scheduling software designed to make personnel scheduling easier for public safety organizations. The system was created in 2005 by Ragnasoft, Inc., a software development company that previously worked on projects with companies such as Ace Hardware and QVC.
Since then, hundreds of departments have started using the system. The software is designed to manage 24/7 schedules, monitor minimum staffing levels, and track overtime hours.
Aside from the scheduling tools, PlanIt also offers communication tools that can be used to keep your officers, and department members informed about their shifts. These include email/text blasts, internal messages, and dashboard announcements.
Another benefit of using PlanIt is that the schedule can be accessed anywhere at any time. Employees can request time off, submit their overtime hours, and bid on open shifts from their mobile devices.
Access to these features is critical for maintaining efficient communication within the department. This ensures that employees are always on the same page to reduce scheduling errors.
Shift Bid Templates
Shift bidding is a common practice in law enforcement excel spreadsheets. It allows schedulers to give workers more control over their shifts and keep a close eye on overtime.
The process can be automated to ensure that police officers and sheriffs only see the shifts they qualify for. These systems also ensure no favoritism within the public safety community.
Depending on the agency and its rules, seniority, safety regulations, compliance training, and union agreements, shift bidding can occur at different times of the year. Regardless of the cadence, one universal rule is that seniority usually plays a big role in shift bids.
Using shift bidding to deal with last-minute absences and emergencies is more efficient than relying on shift swaps, but getting the best results from this method cannot be easy. The right method for your company depends on several factors, including how you run your business and the level of control you prefer over employee scheduling.
Shift Scheduling Templates
A well-planned shift schedule can help you improve employee satisfaction and retention and deliver an excellent customer experience. It also helps you avoid the common issues with unbalanced shifts, such as late arrivals and absenteeism.
Shift templates allow you to define a standard shift with a specific start and end time and segments for breaks and lunch. These standard shifts can be assigned to one or more employees based on their availability preferences.
These shifts will be automatically sorted into the appropriate groups for a user based on their position assignment within their profile. They can be viewed as Qualified when assigning a new shift, or they can be viewed as Less qualified or Other.
Using these templates is a great way to ensure that everyone on your team has the opportunity to work their shifts fairly and evenly, as well as manage their schedules and off-duty obligations. It also helps you stay compliant with predictive scheduling laws and keep your team organized and ready for the next day’s work.
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Shift Schedule Templates
Law enforcement excels spreadsheets are an effective tool for managing shift schedules and scheduling minimum staffing. These templates include various features that make it easy to create 24/7 schedules, manage overtime hours, and more.
Shift work schedules have become popular because they allow employees to work in timed blocks throughout specified workweek days. However, the best type of schedule depends on your industry, the number of employees needed, regulations and other factors.
For example, many police departments use a 12-hour shift rotation for around-the-clock coverage. This is ideal for many 24-hour operations and allows employees more time off.
Once you have created a shift rotation, copy and distribute the schedules to your teams, so everyone knows when their shifts are scheduled. This can help reduce late arrivals, absenteeism, and no-shows. It also helps ensure that your business meets any predictive scheduling laws you might be subject to.