About SocialSchedules
SocialSchedules is a free employee scheduling solution for managers and employees within the restaurant, hospitality and retail industries. The platform was designed for businesses that have hourly workers with scheduling/rostering needs, and helps promote open and timely communication between workers and managers.
SocialSchedules enables users to create a weekly schedule in minutes using schedule templates. Staff availability and hours worked are displayed in one place, helping managers to avoid scheduling conflicts, or accidental overtime. The budget view allows users to keep labour costs in line with the organization's budget. Employees receive published schedules directly to their mobile devices in real time.
Users can manage schedules while on the go using the native OpenSimSim mobile apps for iOS and Android devices. Managers can effectively communicate with staff in real time through the message board and chat functionality. They may also delegate schedule maintenance to staff by enabling shift giveaways and swaps through the platform. Notifications inform users of when an action should be taken or a schedule needs to be modified by exception.
Employees are able to see which co-workers are scheduled to work, as well as use the message board and chat feature to communicate with each other. Staff is able to send shift swap invitations, update their own availability, and submit time-off requests to managers. The opportunities feature enables users to pick up extra shifts by applying for available openings. OpenSimSim also comes with with advanced features for managing multi-location businesses and franchises.
Key benefits of SocialSchedules
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Reviews
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- Industry: Retail
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Weekly for 1+ year
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Review Source
Overall rating
- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support Software
- Likelihood to recommend 10.0 /10
Great for Small Business
Reviewed on 2019-02-18
We have appreciated the overall support from the OpenSimSim team.
We have appreciated the overall support from the OpenSimSim team.
Pros
I love the ability to love prior schedules and just paste to future weeks. We have been using OpenSimSim for more than 2 years and it was a huge improvement from the manual process we used. The ability to use the app for our associates has greatly improved our scheduling efficiency and reduced the errors in availability and scheduling.
Cons
We have had no issues with the software.
- Industry: Nonprofit Organization Management
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Weekly for 1-5 months
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Review Source
Overall rating
- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support Software
- Likelihood to recommend 10.0 /10
Compass-Non profit cafe using Open Sim
Reviewed on 2019-10-17
Easy to start and implement, staff loves it
Easy to start and implement, staff loves it
Pros
It's free! We were using an app called Deputy, and we had to pay for what open sim offers for free and its great as a manager, and our staff loves it! '
Cons
There is no direct message board for all staff notes, id love to be able to communicate with my team throughout a week this way
- Industry: Retail
- Company size: 11–50 Employees
- Used Daily for 6-12 months
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Review Source
Overall rating
- Ease of Use
- Likelihood to recommend 6.0 /10
Great, but slow
Reviewed on 2019-08-16
So far OpenSimSim has been a mixed bag. When it works well it's a fantastic software. When it...
So far OpenSimSim has been a mixed bag. When it works well it's a fantastic software. When it doesn't work well it's absolutely frustrating to deal with. We used OpenSimSim so that way if people needed to be able to switch shifts or request time off there was a place where these requests were stored and could be accepted or declined. Our old program was all manual so it's a big help being able to see who can work and who can't all at once.
Pros
I like that it's easy to see when you and/or your peers work on the web version of opensimsim. It's easy to set-up for your work weeks too so it'll accurately show how many hours you're getting in a week, and it being easy to customize is a nice feature too.
Cons
Sending messages to your peers is really slow. Even with a perfect connection it might take serveral (1-5 minutes) to send a message. Also, there was a problem my peers and I had with signing into OpenSimSim. I wish they had a feature to upload your schedule to a third party app such as Google Calendar or being able to do it on your phone using your Apple calendar. So that way my spouse and I can plan around my schedule. Another con is that it'll automatically sign you out every week. We had assigned computers at work so having to sign into my computer every single day is a waste of time.
- Industry: Retail
- Company size: 11–50 Employees
- Used Daily for 1-5 months
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Review Source
Overall rating
- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Likelihood to recommend 10.0 /10
Just what I need, all in one place
Reviewed on 2019-05-31
The biggest benefit to myself is managing time off requests, I no longer need to remember when a...
The biggest benefit to myself is managing time off requests, I no longer need to remember when a colleague has asked for time off. They use the app, submit request, I review and there it is in the schedule. No more allowing too many colleagues off at same time and mistakingly scheduling on time off.
Another benefit is less pressure to complete a schedule, I do my schedules at home so I no longer need to rush to ensure all staff see it in store, I have a little extra breathing space because as soon as I hit publish, my colleagues instantly have the schedule in their hands.
Pros
Communication feature - direct messages to specific colleague(s)
Manage time off requests which then show in schedule
Mobile version - inc notifications on shifts
Coverage graph (able to see how many colleagues scheduled per hour/per day)
Best of all, it has a FREE version
Cons
Some limited functionality on mobile version.
For example, can only manage/create schedules on pc version.
Time off requests need to be managed on pc version as this way allows to view existing time off to prevent allowing too many staff off. On mobile version, this is difficult to manage.
Can't track holiday allowances - possibly icing on the cake
Generally though, con's are hard to argue because it is free and it does just what I need it to do
- Industry: Restaurants
- Company size: 501–1,000 Employees
- Used Daily for 2+ years
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Review Source
Overall rating
- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support Software
- Likelihood to recommend 10.0 /10
Great product and great company
Reviewed on 2019-05-28
Was looking for an alternative to excel schedules that we've used for 20 years. Found OpenSimSim...
Was looking for an alternative to excel schedules that we've used for 20 years. Found OpenSimSim on a search, tested it out and loved it. Our search criteria was mainly, what will benefit the employee and the store the most.
Pros
Easy to use and navigate. Support is always quick to help when we have an issue. They gladly take our feedback on improvements and listen when we make suggestions.
Cons
That we can't incorporate all of it into our system. They have a time/attendance but since we have a POS system that does that, we haven't used that portion.
SocialSchedules FAQs
Below are some frequently asked questions for SocialSchedules.Q. What type of pricing plans does SocialSchedules offer?
SocialSchedules offers the following pricing plans:
- Starting from: US$15.99/month
- Pricing model: Free Version, Subscription
- Free Trial: Available
Basic: Free (up to 10 employees) Starter: $15.99 mo / location Premium: $39.99 mo / location Enterprise: Contact OpenSimSim
Q. Who are the typical users of SocialSchedules?
SocialSchedules has the following typical customers:
2–10, 11–50, 51–200, 201–500, 501–1,000, 1,001–5,000
Q. What languages does SocialSchedules support?
SocialSchedules supports the following languages:
English, French, Spanish
Q. Does SocialSchedules support mobile devices?
SocialSchedules supports the following devices:
Android (Mobile), iPhone (Mobile), iPad (Mobile)
Q. What other apps does SocialSchedules integrate with?
SocialSchedules integrates with the following applications:
Future POS, Harbortouch POS, Heartland Payroll, Heartland Restaurant, POSitouch POS and ZOOM POS, Payroll System, Restaurant Manager
Q. What level of support does SocialSchedules offer?
SocialSchedules offers the following support options:
Email/Help Desk, FAQs/Forum, Knowledge Base Software, 24/7 (Live rep), Chat
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