Shift Selection Settings
Within an Event or Program’s Edit Detail page, you will find three important settings that control how volunteers select shifts on the sign-up page.
These settings allow your organization to define:
The minimum number of shifts a volunteer must select
The maximum number of shifts a volunteer can hold
Whether volunteers are allowed to select overlapping shifts
How to Access
From the menu, navigate to Events & Programs > Events & Programs
On the Events & Programs page, scroll to your Event/Program, click Edit Detail
Within Edit Detail, scroll to the Shift Selection Settings section
Shift Requirement (Minimum Shifts)
The top dropdown controls the minimum number of shifts a volunteer must select before they can complete the shift sign-up page.
By default, volunteers must select at least one shift for the page to submit successfully.
You can increase this number if your organization requires volunteers to sign up for multiple shifts at once.
Volunteer’s View
If the volunteer does not select the required number of shifts, a message will appear at the top of the page prompting them to adjust their selection before continuing.
Example:
Shift Restriction (Maximum Shifts)
The second dropdown controls the maximum number of shifts a volunteer is allowed to select within that Event or Program.
This is helpful if your organization limits how many upcoming shifts a volunteer can hold at one time.
Example:
If this is set to 3, a volunteer (such as Sally) can only sign up for three future shifts at a time.
Volunteer’s View
If the volunteer exceeds the allowed number of shifts, a message will appear at the top of the page instructing them to reduce their selection before proceeding.
Example:
Overlapping Shift Settings
This section controls whether volunteers can select shifts that occur at the same time, and how much time must exist between shifts.
These options help prevent scheduling conflicts or enforce buffer time between assignments.
Available Options
For registrations with overlapping shifts:
Do not allow overlapping shifts
Volunteers cannot select shifts that occur during the same time period.Allow overlapping shifts
Volunteers may select shifts that occur at the same time.Do not allow overlapping shifts, and enforce a gap of __ minutes between shifts
Volunteers cannot select overlapping shifts and must leave a required buffer of time between one shift ending and the next beginning.Allow overlapping shifts, but limit the overlap to __ minutes between shifts
Volunteers may select shifts that overlap slightly, up to the number of minutes you define.
Optional Shift Overlap Toggle
Notify users, during signup, when they have selected overlapping shifts (any overlap)
When enabled, volunteers will see a notification during signup if any of their selected shifts overlap, even if your settings allow it. This can be helpful as a courtesy reminder without preventing the signup.
Volunteer’s View
If the volunteer selects overlapping shifts:
Summary
| Setting | Controls | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Shift Requirement | Minimum number of shifts a volunteer must select | Volunteer must select at least 2 shifts |
| Shift Restriction | Maximum number of shifts a volunteer can hold | Volunteer can only have 3 future shifts scheduled |
| Overlapping shifts | Whether or not a volunteer can have overlapping shifts | Volunteer can have overlapping shifts but limited to 15 minutes |
These settings ensure volunteers sign up according to your organization’s scheduling policies while providing clear guidance during the sign-up process.