How the template works

When you are adding shifts to the template, they will automatically be copied to the rota. Therefore, the template can save you a lot of time and clicks when you have to make your rota.


In this guide, we will show you:


How to find the template

Start by locating the button “Rota Template”:

You get to choose how many weeks the template should be repeated over. If it should be two, four or even ten weeks, simply add more weeks to the template. You can add these by clicking on “Add week to template” below the rota:

If you accidentally add too many weeks to your template, do not worry. It is always possible to remove a week by clicking on “Remove week from template”:


Add shifts to the template

Once you have added the number of weeks your rota should contain, you can start adding shifts to the template.


Start by clicking on “Add Shifts”:

Now, you need to fill out the following details: When the shift begins and ends, if it is a closing shift and if the employee has a non-paid break. Furthermore, you can choose to simply add one shift to this period of time or you can add more shifts to the same period.

In this example, I have added a shift from 8am to 4pm and I have chosen that it is an accountant shift. I do not want to staff the shift yet, so for now it is an “Available shift”. If you need more shifts in this specific period of time, simply click on “Add another shift”.


If you have created all your shifts in one week and you want to use the same shifts in another week, it is possible to click on “Copy week”:

Now you can just click on the specific week, you wish to copy the shifts to:

As soon as you create all of your available shifts in the template, they will automatically be copied into your rota. If you click on “Rota”, you will be able to see all the shifts that have been copied from the template:


Staff your rota

If your staffing-need is repeated from one week to another but it is not always the same employees who should cover the shifts, you will have to staff the shifts under the banner “Rota” instead of the template.


You can easily staff the rota if you highlight an employee to the right and click on the “copy”-icon:

All the shifts, the employee can cover with his/her position, will now be highlighted and you can begin putting your employee on shifts by simply clicking on the shifts:

If you want the same employee to have the same shifts from one week to another, you can staff the rota within the template. Once again, you can easily put your employees on shifts if you highlight them, click on the copy-icon and click on the shifts the relevant person should cover:

The difference is that the template for week 1 in this case covers both week 35, 37 and 39 and therefore, Bente now has shifts in these weeks.



The template is merged with your rota

If you make changes within a period of time in the rota, the template will follow these changes.


Below, I have put Bente on a shift Thursday in the rota:

Afterwards, I have given the same shift to Henrik, but I have done this within the template:

The template does not overrule the rota and therefore, Bente still has the shift if I now reenter the rota:

If you want the rota to follow the template, simply click on “Revert to template” at the bottom of the relevant day:

If you would like more detailled information on in which cases the data of the template and rota are merged and in which cases not, take a look at this article: The logic of the template



Save the template

Sometimes you might want to reuse the template another time. If this is the case you can save the template by clicking on “Save template”:

Subsequently, a field will open where you can enter the title of your rota and click on “Save”:


Insert a saved template

Later, when you wish to add a previously saved template to a new rota, click on “View and import templates”:

In the list to the left you will see all the templates that have been created for your account. Find and choose the template you wish to use. Then, simply click on "Import template" to insert it into your current rota:

Please be aware that by importing a template from the Template Manager, any content that you may have created in the template tool beforehand, will be overwritten.


When using location division: In the case that the location division is set up on your account, your templates can be assigned to these locations, too. To assign a location, click on a template and choose the preferred location in the drop down for "Assigned locations".

You will then be able to choose the templates for each different location through the filter in the upper left corner of the Template Manager:

That also means that superusers will only have access to those templates, that are accessible for the whole account or those that have been assigned to the locations that they themselves are a member of.


Another thing to be aware of, is when you are trying to insert a template that has staffed shifts in it. If the employees of the template are not part of the location of the rota that you want to insert the template into, the staffing for the respective shifts will be deleted. This means that the staffed shifts will be shown as unassigned shifts in the template instead.


Edit templates in the Template Manager

If you want to edit a specific template, the first step would be to choose and open a rota that does not have a template yet. Within the template, click on “View & import templates” in order to open the Template Manager:

Your templates are grouped in three categories:

  • Named templates: These are the templates that you have consciously and deliberately given a name and saved for later use.
  • Unnamed templates: If you create a new rota and start a new template in it, but do not save it, it will still be saved in the background and appear in this category.
  • Archived templates: When you decide to archive a template in the Template Manager, it will not be completely deleted. You will find these archived templates in this 3rd category, where you can take a look at them again and restore them, if needed.

Choose the template that you want to make changes to. If all you want to change is the title of a saved template, you can easily do that within the Template Manager by choosing it and clicking on "Rename":

For all other changes, you have to import it to the template tool:

Now that you have imported the template, you can go ahead and change it as much as you want. This will not alter the original template at all. As soon as you are finished with your adjustments, you now have to decide between two ways of saving your changes.


"Save template"

The first option is to click on “Save template”:

This means that your edited version will be saved as the latest version of this template. Within the Template Tool, it will appear as the new original of this template.


By saving your changes as a new template version, you will be able to easily trace back, when exactly changes to the template have been made and what has changed in relation to the former version.


Additionally, it makes it possible for you to access and import your earlier versions at any time. When you preview the respective template in the Template Manager, you will also be able to see the different versions of that template. You will be able to import any of those versions by clicking on it and then on "Use the template":


"Save as new"

When you have edited a named/saved template, you do not necessarily have to save your changes as a new version of that template. You can save it as a completely new template as well. Just click on “Save as new”:

As with any new template, you now have to give it a title:

As soon as it is saved, it will appear in the category of named templates together with all the others that you have saved so far. It will be the first version of a completely new template.



How to archive a template

If you have certain templates, which are not in use anymore, you can move them to the template archive. Simply open the Template Manager, select the template you wish to archive and click on the "Archive" button in the upper right corner:

This step does not mean that the template will be fully deleted. You can always access it again, by going to the category "Archived templates" in your Template Manager. Here you can view your archived template and even import it into the template tool. If you have changed your mind about having archived the template, you can fully activate it again by clicking on "Restore":

Of course you can also delete templates completely. Simply click on "Delete permanently" to the right of the "Restore" button.

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