If your parish is part of a cluster, you and/or other schedulers can manage your schedules and volunteers in one place using the Plus Edition. Here are some tips from others who schedule as a cluster:
Use folders to separate locations
Folders are a great tool for being able to keep your parishes separate when needed, while still keeping all of the information you need for the whole cluster at your fingertips.
Doing so can help in the following ways:
- Organize the ministries by location in the Ministries pane
- Able to easily send emails to volunteers in the targeted group either at one parish or across all of them
- Focus on just one parish at a time when working on the schedule
Set service times for each location separately
When setting up service times, use the option to write in the description/location to let volunteers know where the service will be held. Then, use the required ministries from the proper location to populate the needed positions.
Use the "From" address to get replies in the right hands
Supplying volunteers with emails from the correct contact will help make sure any replies are sent to that person as well. You can set up emails to be sent from - and replies to be sent to - the correct person in each ministry by changing the "From" address on automatic emails.
Set a schedule length for your cluster
Ideally, all of the ministries within a cluster will schedule for the same amount of time, whether it is once a month, every other month, quarterly, or even based on your own set of requirements. However, if each church or ministry has its own needs that don't accommodate a common schedule length, you can schedule ministries over different schedule periods.
Allow everyone to get involved
If you have multiple schedulers, allowing everyone to meet the needs of their parish and the ministries within is easy. You can run the auto-scheduler for just one or several ministries at a time, and allowing Leaders to check the schedule before it goes out is a breeze!
Keep schedules separate for volunteers
When posting the schedule online, you can create separate Live Schedule Posts for each parish, or even for each ministry. Volunteers from the other locations can be kept from seeing these schedules to make it easier for them to find what they need.