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Availability Assistant

The Availability Assistant is a smart scheduling system that helps you define when you're available for meetings and activities.

Overview​

What the Availability Assistant Does​

  • Define when you're available for meetings and activities
  • Block out vacation time and personal hours
  • See company-wide holidays automatically
  • Get warnings when scheduling during unavailable times
  • Find available times for scheduling activities with colleagues

Key Benefits​

For Everyone:

  • Control your own schedule
  • See when you're actually available before someone books you
  • Automatic vacation/holiday blocking
  • Get suggested times when your first choice isn't available

For Admins:

  • Centralized company holiday management
  • Consistent scheduling across the organization

Getting Started​

Your Default Schedule​

When the system was set up, you were given a default schedule:

  • Monday - Friday: 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM
  • Saturday - Sunday: Not available
  • Buffer time: 15 minutes after each meeting

This is just a starting point—you can customize it to match your actual working hours.

Accessing Your Settings​

To view or change your availability:

  1. Click on your profile menu (top-right)
  2. Select Settings
  3. Click Availability in the settings menu

Managing Your Personal Availability​

Understanding Schedules​

A schedule is a set of weekly working hours. You can have multiple schedules for different purposes:

  • "Regular Work Hours" (your default)
  • "Winter Hours" (if you work different hours seasonally)
  • "Sales Availability" (specific hours for client meetings)

Viewing Your Current Schedule​

On the Availability Settings page, you'll see:

  • Your schedules listed with their working hours
  • A star icon marking your default schedule
  • Your buffer time and booking preferences

Creating or Editing a Schedule​

To Create a New Schedule​

  1. Click Add Schedule button
  2. Enter a name (e.g., "Summer Hours")
  3. Select the days you're available
  4. For each day, set your time ranges:
    • Click Add Time Block to add hours
    • You can add multiple blocks per day (e.g., 9am-12pm and 1pm-5pm for lunch break)
  5. Click Save Schedule

To Edit an Existing Schedule​

  1. Click the edit icon next to the schedule
  2. Modify the name, days, or times
  3. Click Save Changes
Multiple Time Blocks

You can add multiple time blocks for the same day if you have breaks. For example:

  • Monday: 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM (morning block)
  • Monday: 1:00 PM - 5:00 PM (afternoon block)

This creates a 1-hour lunch break.

Setting Your Default Schedule​

Your default schedule is used when checking your availability. To change which schedule is default:

  1. Find the schedule you want to make default
  2. Click the star icon next to it
  3. That schedule is now your active schedule
note

You can only have one default schedule at a time.

Blocking Time Off​

There are two ways to block time off:

  1. Click Manage Overrides on your schedule
  2. Click Add Override
  3. Select the date(s) you'll be unavailable
  4. Choose Unavailable All Day
  5. Add a note (e.g., "Annual Leave")
  6. Click Save

Method 2: Create a Calendar Activity​

You can also create a regular calendar activity/appointment marked as "Out of Office" or "Vacation". The system automatically treats these as busy time.

When to use each method:

  • Overrides: Best for vacation days, recurring time off
  • Calendar Activity: Best for specific appointments, meetings, events

Configuring Buffer Time​

Buffer time prevents back-to-back meetings by blocking time before or after your appointments.

  1. Go to the Settings tab
  2. Set your preferences:
    • Buffer Before: Time to prepare before meetings (typically 0-15 minutes)
    • Buffer After: Time to wrap up after meetings (typically 15-30 minutes)
  3. Click Save Settings

Example: With a 15-minute buffer after meetings:

  • If you have a meeting 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM
  • You won't be available for booking until 3:15 PM

Setting Booking Constraints​

These settings control when others can schedule time with you:

SettingDescriptionExample
Minimum NoticeHow far in advance someone must book24 hours = Can't be booked for today or tomorrow
Maximum Booking WindowHow far into the future bookings are allowed60 days = Can't be booked for dates beyond 2 months

How Availability Checking Works​

When Scheduling Activities​

When you create an activity or appointment, the system checks availability in real-time and shows you helpful warnings.

What You'll See​

The system shows three types of alerts:

Company Holiday Alert (Red)​

⚠️ Company Holiday: Christmas Day
This date may not be suitable for scheduling.

What it means: You've selected a company-wide holiday. Everyone is unavailable.

What to do: Choose a different date, or proceed if you have a specific reason.

Available Alert (Green)​

✅ [User Name] is available during this time

What it means: The selected person is available and has no conflicts.

What to do: You're good to go! Proceed with scheduling.

Possibly Unavailable Alert (Blue)​

ℹ️ [User Name] may not be available during this time
Next available times:
• Tomorrow at 10:00 AM
• Tomorrow at 2:00 PM
• Friday at 9:00 AM

What it means: The selected time is outside the person's available hours, or they have a conflict.

What to do: Choose one of the suggested times, or contact the person directly.

How Availability is Determined​

The system checks availability in this order:

  1. Company Holidays (highest priority)

    • If the date is a company holiday → Everyone unavailable

  2. User's Availability Schedule

    • Is it within their weekly working hours?

  3. Date-Specific Overrides

    • Did they mark this specific date as unavailable (vacation)?
    • Did they set custom hours for this day?

  4. Existing Commitments

    • Do they have other activities, meetings, or appointments?
    • Includes calendar events from integrated calendars (Google, Outlook)

  5. Buffer Time

    • Is this within their required buffer time after another meeting?

If all checks pass → Person is available ✅ If any check fails → Person may not be available ⚠️

Tips for Better Scheduling​

  1. Check availability before scheduling - Look at the alerts before submitting
  2. Use suggested times - The "may not be available" alert shows alternative times
  3. Plan ahead - Respect minimum notice periods (default 24 hours)
  4. Update your schedule - Keep your availability current for accurate suggestions
  5. Block time off early - Add vacation days as soon as you know about them

Frequently Asked Questions​

General Questions​

Q: Can I have different schedules for different types of meetings?

A: Yes! You can create multiple schedules. However, only your default schedule is used for availability checking.

Q: How do I block out a recurring day off (e.g., every Friday)?

A: Remove Friday from your default schedule's available days. This makes you unavailable every Friday.

Q: What if I have irregular hours (shift work, part-time)?

A: You can create multiple time blocks for different days to reflect irregular hours. For shift work, you may need to update your schedule regularly or use date-specific overrides.

Availability Checking​

Q: The system says I'm unavailable, but I know I'm free. Why?

A: Check your availability schedule settings. You may have:

  • Time blocks that don't cover that time
  • A date-specific override blocking that day
  • An existing appointment you forgot about
  • Buffer time from a previous meeting

Q: Can I override the availability warning and schedule anyway?

A: Yes! The warnings are informational. You can still proceed with scheduling—the system won't prevent you from creating the appointment.

Q: Does this work with my Google Calendar?

A: If you have Google Calendar integration enabled, yes! The system includes your Google Calendar events when checking availability.

Technical Issues​

Q: I updated my availability but it's not reflected in scheduling.

A: Try refreshing the page (Ctrl+R or Cmd+R). If the problem persists, contact support.

Q: I get an error when trying to save my schedule.

A: Common causes:

  • End time is before start time (fix time order)
  • No days selected (select at least one day)
  • No schedule name entered (add a name)
  • Network connection issue (check your internet)