Public safety leaders face unique challenges when it comes to officer scheduling. A wide range of shift configurations and patterns, minimum staffing requirements, training, compliance, agency policies, and union rules are just some of the issues they deal with while also trying to balance a budget and control overtime costs.
Read how ScheduleAnywhere public safety executive, Lt. Steve Lynk's (Ret.), extensive law enforcement background helps him find the best officer scheduling software to address the specific scheduling challenges of public safety departments.
What is your background in law enforcement?
I served on the Fargo Police Department for 30 years, retiring in 2015. I held several positions within the department, including patrol officer for five years, sergeant for 16 years, and lieutenant for nine years.
What inspired you to become a public safety account executive with ScheduleAnywhere?
After retirement, I quickly realized that I wasn't quite ready for retired life. I like to keep busy, and I like to help people. I was familiar with ScheduleAnywhere as an officer scheduling tool, and when I saw an opportunity to get back into the workforce helping to provide the benefits of the software to public safety departments, I knew it would be a great fit for me.
What benefits does ScheduleAnywhere provide public safety departments?
ScheduleAnywhere works well for organizations that operate 24/7, so it's ideal for the public safety sector. Officers can see up-to-the-minute schedules and submit cover, swap, time-off and other schedules requests online. Administrators can review staffing needs anytime, from any location, so they always know whether they are properly staffed. The software also helps with communication. When an open shift needs to be filled, administrators can quickly email or text individuals, all employees, or a select group of officers based on credentials, shift, skill or availability. Officer scheduling software like ScheduleAnywhere also allows managers to share schedules with other sites or divisions so the entire organization has real-time schedule information.
What feedback have you gotten from ScheduleAnywhere public safety department customers?
One of the things I look forward to most is going to tradeshows because I always have officers who stop by to tell me their department uses ScheduleAnywhere and how much they love it. They appreciate the accessibility the mobile app provides, as well as the ability to make schedule requests remotely. These men and women aren't just sitting in an office all day, so having remote access to real-time schedule information is huge for them. Administrators like that it's easy to use and they are often surprised at how significantly the software reduces the amount of time they spend on scheduling. One of the things managers comment on a lot is the ability to copy schedule patterns and rotations so they don't waste time entering repeating information or schedules. They can also review total hours scheduled, which helps them reduce overtime costs.
How has your experience in law enforcement helped you in your role at ScheduleAnywhere?
My law enforcement background gives me a lot of insight into the pain points associated with officer scheduling. I have been an officer, as well as an administrator, so I can understand how staff scheduling effects everyone within the department. When someone contacts me about our software, I'm able to talk about their specific scheduling requirements and challenges, and easily explain which of ScheduleAnywhere's features can help them. I also can look at their schedules and determine the best way to schedule employee shifts and how set up their schedules in our system. When they have questions down the road, I understand their needs, which makes it easy for me to help them out.
Are you ready to streamline scheduling and improve communication? Contact Steve today and learn how ScheduleAnywhere officer scheduling software can save your public safety department time and money!
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