How to Manage Employees' Scheduling Conflicts

You have probably had scheduling conflicts with your coworkers if you work in HR or manage a team. If they have to work on the same day or take time off at the same time but cannot do so, it can be frustrating for everyone and harm the company. So, how do we deal with scheduling issues at work?

Calendar conflicts in the office have always existed, but the rise of work flexibility makes it even more difficult. For example, how do your employees know which days and times desks are available in the office? Can they be sure that a meeting room will be available whenever they require it?

These are the best ways to avoid scheduling conflicts as much as possible. 

Determine the various types of scheduling conflicts

First, it is critical to determine which types of scheduling conflicts are affecting your workforce. There are five types of calendar issues that you may encounter:

• Overlapping events: an employee is asked to attend two separate meetings that overlap.

• Double booking: Occurs when an employee is scheduled for two different tasks simultaneously.

• Employees confused about their work location: They are assigned an on-site meeting when they work from home.

• Last-minute changes: due to an unexpected event, the team calendar must be rearranged.

• Unofficial time slot swapping: An exchange of office or remote slots with other team members without official communication.

3 ways to solve scheduling conflicts

1. Create a hybrid calendar policy

Your workforce must be aware of the rules governing their schedule. For example: 

• How many hours are they supposed to work per week? 

• Can they work from home all the time, or must they come in a certain number of days per month? 

• Do you ask them to start working at a specific time or encourage them to work flexibly? 

All of these are issues that you must address with your workforce.

The lack of clear guidelines for how hybrid teams can arrange their schedules, in particular, creates a high risk of conflict. For example, the frustration caused by these issues can harm workplace culture and employee productivity in general. 

As a result, creating a policy outlining how your hybrid work model should operate is a wise move. Also, do not be hesitant to update it as needed.

2. Encourage team communication

If tensions rise, try to resolve the issue by encouraging your team members to discuss it constructively. Let everyone express their thoughts and work together to find a solution that satisfies both employees. Set a meeting time and location to discuss the situation and find a solution.

You can achieve this physically around a table, over a cup of tea when people come on-site, or virtually when people work remotely. If you want to solve the problem remotely, you can use a digital communication tool like Slack. However, remember that tone of voice and body language are extremely important in communication. Hence, video calls are a better option for resolving a conflict between two team members remotely.

3. Plan a backup plan

A backup solution is a great way to reduce scheduling conflicts in the workplace easily. Here are two approaches you can take in your team management process:

a) Set up a weekly backup system. 

Creating a backup rotating system is a fair and effective solution. Each week, you and your team assign one 'backup person.' This way, if there is a problem with your employees' agendas, the backup person can assist in resolving the issue.

For instance, on Wednesday, Amir works at the office while Elina works from home. Suresh works from home as well, but this week he is designated as the 'backup person.' Unfortunately, Amir's daughter is ill, so he must work from home. Elina cannot substitute for Amir because she has a medical appointment that day.

Since both need to work from home, asking Elina to come to the office and eventually forcing her to miss her appointment may cause tension and frustration.

To clear the air, and because Suresh is the 'backup person' that week, you ask him to come to the office even though it was not originally on his schedule.

b) Make it a requirement for your employees to have a backup plan. 

Another quick and easy way to resolve an employee scheduling issue is to ask your staff to always come up with an alternative that could work in their schedule.

Some people may not have specific plans for the week and are willing to swap home office and on-site days. Allowing their colleagues to know they do not mind switching days is a great way to foster a positive team environment and avoid scheduling conflicts.

You now understand the best practices for minimising scheduling conflicts that may arise when implementing a hybrid work model. Whatever methods you choose, remember to stay people-focused, as being employee-centric is the key to a successful business.

Source: deskbird