Planning rules: Tell the planner how you work
Indoor jobs belong in the morning. Ladder jobs go to Ole or Per. One particular customer must never be planned automatically. With Planning rules you write this kind of thing down once, and Clientflow follows the rules every time the week is planned.
What is a planning rule?
A planning rule has two parts:
- When: which orders the rule applies to. For example orders with the service Interior window cleaning.
- Then: what planning must do with them. For example be planned at 08:00–10:00.
Clientflow writes each rule as a sentence you can read out loud: "orders with Interior window cleaning must be planned at 08:00–10:00".
Every rule is a Must rule. The planner follows it when it assigns orders. It does not weigh it against driving or how busy the day is.
Where do I find the rules?
Go to Settings → Planning and find the Planning rules block. It sits just below Rules.
At the top you see how many rules you have. Below that come:
- Always applies before the rules: three fixed rows, explained further down
- your own rules, numbered from the top (#1, #2 …)
- Test an order, once you have at least one rule
The rules are shared by all units by default, and the Unit condition lets a shared rule apply to one unit. If you have several units, you can pick a unit at the top of the page and press Own rules for this unit. That copies the shared rules to the unit, so you can change them without changing the other units. From then on the planner follows only the unit's own rules for that unit, not the shared ones. Use the shared rules again deletes the unit's own rules, and the unit is planned with the shared rules from the next planning run.
How to create a rule
Step 1: Start from an example, or from scratch
If you have no rules yet, the block shows No planning rules yet and three examples you can start from:
| Example | What it sets up |
|---|---|
| Indoor jobs at 08–10 | A condition on the service and the time window 08:00–10:00 |
| Ladder jobs to those with the Ladder competence | A condition on the ladder icon and the effect Must have competence |
| First visit to a specific worker | The condition First visit and the effect Only these workers |
An example only opens the rule, filled in. Nothing is saved until you press Save yourself, so you can adjust it first.
To start from scratch, press New rule.
Step 2: Choose when the rule applies
Under When, press Add condition. Each condition has an is or is not, so you can choose both orders with the service X and orders without the service X.
| Condition | What it looks at |
|---|---|
| Service | The services on the order |
| Service group | The group the order's services belong to |
| Icon | The icons on the order's services, such as a ladder |
| Competence | The Competences the order requires |
| Requires presence | Whether the customer has to be home |
| Customer | One or more specific customers |
| Specific subscription | One particular subscription of a customer |
| Customer group | The customer's group |
| Customer tag | The customer's tags |
| Customer type | Business or Private |
| Worker at last visit | Who did the latest completed visit on the same subscription. If there is none, it looks at the customer's latest completed visit |
| First visit | Whether it is the customer's first visit |
| Unit | The unit the order belongs to |
| Subscription | Subscription type (Recurring, On demand or No subscription) and optionally Scheduling (optional) (Every N weeks, Every N months or Within a window) |
With several conditions, all of them must hold before the rule applies. With none, the rule applies to every order.
To pick a Specific subscription, first choose one customer in a Customer is condition. The customer's subscriptions then show up.
Step 3: Choose what should happen
Under Then, pick one effect:
| Effect | What the planner does |
|---|---|
| Time window | Places the order within the time span you choose. You can add more with Add time window. |
| Weekdays | Places the order on the weekdays you switch on. |
| Only these workers | Gives the order to one of the workers on the list. |
| Never these workers | Never gives the order to the workers on the list. |
| First listed worker who works | Each day, gives the order to the first person on the list who is working and can take it. Otherwise the next one. |
| Must have competence | Gives the order to someone who has the Competence. |
| Must not have competence | Never gives the order to someone who has the Competence. |
| Same worker as last visit | Gives the order to the worker who did the latest completed visit on the same subscription, or otherwise the customer's latest completed visit. With no earlier visit, the rule gives way. |
| Do not plan automatically | Leaves the order alone. It stays where it is and planning does not move it. |
A rule does one thing. To control both the time and the worker, make two rules. When several rules apply to the same order, the planner follows all of them.
Step 4: Name the rule and save
The Name (optional) field is for you, for example Interior window cleaning in the morning. Press Save. The rule is added at the bottom of the list.
You can have up to 200 rules.
The order decides
When two rules say different things about the same order, the one higher up wins. Move a rule up or down with the arrows, then press Save changes at the bottom of the page.
You can switch a rule off without deleting it. It then shows the Off badge, and the planner ignores it.
When two rules clash
When two rules can hit the same order and cannot both hold, the list shows a line under both rules. For example: Overlaps with #2 for orders with Interior window cleaning, #1 wins.
That is not an error. It just tells you which rule wins. If it is the wrong one, swap their order.
Rules about different things never clash. A rule about time and a rule about workers both apply. But if together they leave no option, the order ends up under Unassigned orders.
What applies before the rules?
At the top of the block is Always applies before the rules, with three rows marked Fixed. They always sit above your own rules:
| What it means | |
|---|---|
| Locked orders | A locked order stays where it is. No rule moves it. The lock keeps what it locks: always the day, and depending on the lock also the worker and the time. What the lock does not keep, a rule can still decide. An order that is Locked to day still follows a rule about workers, for example. Do not plan automatically always gives way to a lock: a locked order is still planned. |
| The customer's own rules | Times and workers set on the customer or the subscription come before all rules. |
| Competence requirements | The Competences a service requires always apply. See Competences. |
When a rule wants something one of these three does not allow, the rule gives way on that order. Every other order the rule applies to still follows it.
When something in the rule is deleted
If you delete something a rule names, such as a worker or a customer, the rule shows the text Names something that has been deleted. That part no longer applies. Fix the rule or delete it.
If a rule about workers or Competences only points to workers who have been removed, or to Competences that have been archived, it gives way. It never means "everyone".
Test an order
Below the list you find Test an order. Search by order number or customer and pick the order. You then see every rule with a status:
| Status | Means |
|---|---|
| Applies | The rule applies to the order, and the planner follows it. |
| Does not apply | The order does not match the rule's conditions. |
| Gives way | The rule matches, but is not followed for this order. The reason shows under the rule, for example Gives way to rule 1, Gives way to the order's lock, that there is no earlier visit, that what the rule points to has been removed, or that the order's details are missing. |
| Cannot be judged | The rule uses something this version of the app does not know. The planner skips it. |
Under Outcome you see what the planner does, for example Planned at 08:00–10:00 or Not planned automatically. If no rule changes anything, it says No rule changes how this order is planned.
The test uses the same rules as the planner, so what you see is what happens. Press Pick another to test a different order.
On the order itself
When you open an order, you also find the Planning rules section. It stays folded until you open it, and shows only the rules that apply to the order or give way on it, plus the outcome. The office sees the section once you have at least one rule switched on.
Who takes the jobs when a worker is away?
When a worker is ill or on holiday, you can make a rule for it straight from Unassigned orders in the calendar. Press the Who takes the jobs when a worker is away? button and pick the worker.
A new rule then opens, filled in with the condition Worker at last visit is that worker and the effect First listed worker who works, with the worker themselves at the top of the list. That way the worker keeps their customers whenever they are at work. Add the people who should take over below them, in the order they should be asked, and press Save.
When an order is not planned
An order that a rule keeps out of the plan ends up under Unassigned orders with the reason Do not plan automatically. The description names the rule, for example The order is not planned automatically because of planning rule #3 (First visit).
That happens when:
- a rule says Do not plan automatically, and the order does not have a place yet
- a rule only allows certain workers, and none of them are working
- the rules together leave no time or no worker
If the order already has a place when a Do not plan automatically rule applies, it stays with the same worker at the same time.
You can always drag the order into the calendar yourself. To find out why, use Test an order.
When you move an order yourself
You can always move an order, even if it breaks a rule. The order is moved, but you get a yellow warning: Breaks a planning rule. It names the rule and says the next planning may move the order again.
If the worker is also missing a Competence, you get one combined warning: Missing Competence and breaks planning rules.
When does the planner use the rules?
| Planning | Follows the rules? |
|---|---|
| Planning the week and planning a day | Yes |
| Nightly optimization | Yes |
| Live replanning (Automatically adjust the rest of the day) | No. It rescues a day that is already under way. |
| The customer's own online booking | No. The rules do not limit which times the customer can choose. When the visits are planned again later, they follow the rules. |
Split orders
You can split a big job into several parts with Split order, for example a 24-hour job into three parts. At first the parts stay where the order was, back to back. When the week is planned again, the planner places each part on its own by default. The parts can then end up spread over several days.
With Keep parts together you decide how close together Clientflow keeps the parts.
Where do I find the setting?
Go to Settings → Planning and find the Split orders block. It sits just below Planning rules. Pick one of the four choices under Keep parts together, and press Save changes at the bottom of the page.
| Choice | What the planner does |
|---|---|
| Off | Places the parts independently. This is the default. |
| Same day | Plans every part on the same day, with several workers if needed. |
| Consecutive days | Plans the parts on working days in a row. A day when none of your workers work, such as a weekend or a closed public holiday, does not break the run. |
| As close as possible | Plans the parts as close together as possible, with no fixed rule about the days. A day in between is fine. |
The choice applies to every split order. Below it you see Strength: Must. That means the planner would rather leave the parts unplanned than spread them out. Prefer is coming later. Until then the setting always applies.
When Keep parts together is on, the Split order window says so too, for example Keep parts together: Same day. Locked parts stay where they are.
What the planner does not move
Some parts always stay where they are. The planner gathers the other parts around them:
- Locked parts. If you split a locked order, every part is locked. The planner then moves none of them. Unlock the parts if the planner should keep them together.
- Parts the customer has been notified about. The time the customer was given holds.
- Parts outside what is being planned, such as a part in another week.
- Completed parts, with Consecutive days and As close as possible. With Same day the planner ignores them and puts the rest on one day.
If two locked parts already sit on days that do not fit the choice, for example Monday and Thursday with Same day, the planner gives way to the locks. The other parts are then planned from the first to the last of those days, as far as their own times allow.
Planning rules, the customer's own times and Competences still apply. The planner only picks days where each part is allowed to go under them. If the customer's times or the rules leave no days that keep the parts together, the planner plans the parts separately.
When the parts cannot be kept together
If the planner cannot fit every part the way you chose, it plans none of the other parts. Parts it may not move stay where they are. The part that could not be planned is under Unassigned orders with its own reason, for example Capacity. The other parts are there with one of two reasons:
| Reason | What it means |
|---|---|
| Keep parts together | One part could not be planned, or the parts could not be placed the way you chose. The description names the part and why, for example Split order: part 2 could not be planned (Capacity), so none of the 3 parts is planned (Must: on the same day). |
| Too few worker-days | There are not enough worker-days that can take the parts the way you chose, even with no other jobs that week. Working hours, Competences and the customer's times all count. The description says how many, for example Split order: only 1 of 2 worker-days can take the parts on the same day (Must). |
You can always drag the parts into the calendar yourself. Or pick a looser choice, such as As close as possible instead of Same day.
When you turn Keep parts together on, the next planning may move parts that are spread out today, or take them off the plan if they cannot be kept together. Parts it may not move stay where they are.
When you move a part yourself
You can always move a part. If the parts are then no longer together under Same day or Consecutive days, you get a yellow warning: Parts are not together. The warning comes when the part gets a new day. If the move also breaks a planning rule or misses a Competence, you get one combined warning under that title, for example Breaks a planning rule, with the sentence about the parts added to it. The part is moved anyway, but the next planning may move it again.
When does the planner keep the parts together?
When the week or a day is planned, and in the nightly optimization. Live replanning (Automatically adjust the rest of the day) does not keep the parts together.
Which plan do I need?
| Starter | Professional | Enterprise | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Planning rules | — | Included | Included |
| Competences in planning | — | Included | Included |
| Keep parts together (split orders) | — | Included | Included |
On Starter the examples are dimmed with a Go to subscription button. If you press New rule, you get a message saying it needs a different plan, also with Go to subscription. The Split orders block is dimmed with Go to subscription too. Splitting an order with Split order works on every plan.
If you move to a smaller plan
Your rules stay, and you can still see them. But the planner does not use them, and they cannot be changed. The block says so itself: Your subscription no longer includes planning rules.
The same goes for Keep parts together: your choice is saved, but the planner places the parts independently. The Split orders block shows Keep parts together is not in use, and you can only pick Off.
If you upgrade again, the rules and Keep parts together work as they did.
See the prices on the pricing page.
If something goes wrong
| Problem | Solution |
|---|---|
| A rule is not followed | Use Test an order. If the rule shows Gives way, it says why. If it shows Does not apply, the order does not match the conditions. |
| The rule is switched off | Check the switch on the rule and press Save changes. |
| Two rules say different things | The one higher up wins. Move the one that should win up. |
| An order sits under Do not plan automatically, but no rule says so | A rule about workers or time has ruled out every option. The description and Test an order show which one. |
| A locked order does not follow the rule | The rule wants to change something the lock keeps, such as the worker or the time. Then the rule gives way. Unlock the order if the rule should apply. |
| New rule shows a message with Go to subscription | Planning rules need Professional or Enterprise. |
| The parts of a split order are not kept together | Check that Keep parts together under Split orders is not set to Off, and that the parts are not locked. The planner never moves locked parts. |
| Every part of a split order is under Unassigned orders | The parts could not be kept together the way you chose. Read the description under the reason Keep parts together or Too few worker-days, and consider As close as possible. |
Related
- Competences: set up what the jobs require, and who has it.
- Calendar and route optimization: how to plan the week, and what the reasons under Unassigned orders mean.