Shift Schedule Builder

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name: shift-schedule-builder
description: "Build a staff shift schedule that matches coverage to demand while hitting a labor-cost target. Use when asked to build a shift schedule, staff a rota, plan coverage for a restaurant/retail/shift-based team, or balance labor cost against service. Produces a day-part coverage plan mapped to forecast demand, role-by-role assignments, the projected labor cost vs. target, and the fairness/compliance guardrails (rest between shifts, overtime, availability)."
---

# Shift Schedule Builder Skill

A schedule is a bet on demand: overstaff and you burn margin, understaff and service (and your best people) walk. This skill builds coverage from the demand curve out — enough hands at the rush, lean in the lulls — then checks the labor cost and the human constraints before it's posted.

## Working from a brief

Given the team, hours, and demand pattern, **produce the full schedule** — infer the day-part demand shape from the business type if no forecast is given (label it). Respect stated availability and time-off; never schedule someone into a conflict you were told about.

## Required Inputs

Ask for (if not provided, else infer and label):
- **Team** — names/roles, pay rates or an average, and availability/time-off
- **Operating hours** and the **demand pattern** (covers by day-part, peak times, events)
- **Labor-cost target** (% of revenue or a dollar cap) and any rules (max hours, required rest, minors)

## Output Format

### Coverage plan
Demand mapped to required heads per role per day-part:

| Day-part | Forecast demand | Cooks | Servers | Support | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|

### The schedule
Person-by-person shifts across the week (start–end, role, station), with total hours per person.

### Labor cost check
Projected labor hours × rates → labor cost, as a % of forecast revenue vs. the target, with the gap and where to trim/add.

### Guardrails flagged
Overtime risk, insufficient rest between close/open ("clopening"), availability conflicts, minor-hour limits, and anyone over/under their expected hours.

## Quality Checks

- [ ] Staffing per day-part is driven by the demand pattern, not flat coverage
- [ ] Projected labor cost is computed and compared to the target
- [ ] No one is scheduled against stated availability or time-off
- [ ] Rest-between-shifts, overtime, and minor-hour rules are checked and flagged
- [ ] Hours are distributed with an eye to fairness, not just cost

## Anti-Patterns

- Flat staffing that ignores the rush-and-lull demand curve
- Posting a schedule without checking the labor-cost %
- Scheduling "clopens" or overtime by accident
- Ignoring stated availability (the fastest way to lose staff)
- Cutting so lean that service and food quality collapse at peak