Working hours: go Online and Offline on a schedule

Set your working hours

1. On the web, click Settings in the rail and open Profile. The Working hours section sits below your profile details. In the iPhone app, open More > Settings and tap Working hours.
2. Switch on Working hours.
3. Pick your Time zone. Until you save one, the time zone of your computer or phone is filled in. In the app you can search the list.
4. Switch each day on or off. A day that is off reads Not working. A new schedule starts with Monday to Friday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, and a day you switch on gets 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, or the times it had before you switched it off.
5. Set the start and the end of each time range. A day can have up to 3 time ranges, for example a morning and an afternoon shift. Add hours adds a range of 1 hour that starts 1 hour after the last one ends. Remove on the web, or the minus button in the app, deletes a range.
6. Click Save working hours.

Working hours are saved on their own, apart from the rest of your profile. They are stored with your account, so the web dashboard and the app show the same hours.

Rules for the times

• All times count in your time zone. On the web you type a time or pick one from the list. In the app you pick one from a list in steps of 15 minutes.
• Each range has to start before it ends, and the ranges of one day must not overlap.
• As an end, 12:00 AM means the end of the day: it is the last time in the list of ends. As a start, 12:00 AM is the beginning of the day. Monday 10:00 PM to 12:00 AM and Tuesday 12:00 AM to 6:00 AM count as one night shift without a break, so your status does not change at midnight.
• While working hours are on, at least one day needs a time range. Otherwise turn working hours off.
• When the clocks change for daylight saving time, your hours stay at the same local time.

When something does not fit, Deskwoot names the day, for example "The hours on Monday overlap.", and saves nothing.

What Deskwoot does with your status

• When a time range starts, your status turns Online. When it ends, your status turns Offline. Deskwoot checks this every minute.
• You can still pick a status by hand at any time, in the user menu of the rail, under Settings > Profile or in the app. If it differs from what your hours say, for example Away during your hours or Online in the evening, it stays until the next start or end. After that your working hours take over again.
• Turning working hours on or off never changes your status by itself. When you turn them on, a status that differs from your hours stays until the next start or end. When you turn them off, your status stays as it is.
• When your hours bring you Online, conversations that wait in the queue are handed out, just as when you switch to Online yourself.
• Your open dashboards and the app pick up the new status.

Once working hours are on and saved, the section shows what happens next, in the time zone of your hours: a line such as "Next change: Online from" with the day and the time. While a status you picked still holds, the line says until when it stays and that your working hours take over again after that. A change 6 days or more ahead also shows its date.

Working hours and round robin

Working hours only set your status. Round robin still gives you new conversations only while you are Online and Deskwoot is open on one of your devices: the dashboard in a browser or the app on screen. When your hours end, you are Offline, so a customer who writes again in one of your conversations goes to a teammate who is online, by the usual rules. More in Auto assignment and round robin and, for the app, in The Deskwoot iPhone app: answer customers from your phone.

Frequently asked questions

Does my status change as soon as I turn working hours on?

No. Your status stays as it is. If it differs from your hours, it stays until the next start or end, and then your working hours take over.

I picked Away during my hours. When do I go Online again?

Away stays until your current time range ends. Then your working hours take over: you turn Offline, and Online again when your next time range starts. To come back earlier, pick Online yourself.

Can I work past midnight?

Yes. End the time range on the first day at 12:00 AM, the last time in the list of ends, and start the next day at 12:00 AM. Both count as one shift, and your status does not change at midnight.

Can an administrator set my working hours?

No. Everyone sets their own working hours, on the web under Settings > Profile or in the iPhone app.

Are working hours the same as business hours?

No. Business hours belong to an inbox and are set in its settings, see Configuring business hours. Working hours belong to you and only change your own status.

My hours started, but round robin skips me. Why?

Your status is Online, but Deskwoot also has to see you: keep the dashboard open in a browser or the app open on screen. After 5 minutes without Deskwoot open on any of your devices, you count as Away for round robin.

Can I set my working hours in the app?

Yes, under More > Settings > Working hours. The web dashboard and the app show the same hours, because they are stored with your account.