Bulk Operations

This guide covers all bulk scheduling operations in Shyfts: template-based creation, copying weeks, CSV import/export, and bulk editing.

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Who Can Use Bulk Operations?

Operation	System Admin	Company Manager	Staff
Template Create	Yes	Yes (own company)	No
Copy Week	Yes	Yes (own company)	No
CSV Import	Yes	Yes (own company)	No
CSV Export	Yes	Yes (own company)	No
Bulk Edit	Yes	Yes (own company)	No

note

Staff members cannot perform any bulk operations. Company Managers can only manage shifts within their own company.

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Accessing Bulk Operations

1. Navigate to Dashboard → Scheduling
2. Click the Bulk Scheduling button in the calendar header
3. A modal opens with three tabs: Template, Copy Week, Import CSV

For Bulk Edit, select multiple shifts in the calendar first, then click the Bulk Edit button that appears.

For CSV Export, use the Export function from the calendar view.

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Template Mode

What It Does

Generates multiple shifts from a pattern. You define a date range, time window, shift type, which days of the week, and which staff members — and the system creates all the individual shifts in one go.

Step-by-Step

1. Set the Date Range

Field	Default	Description
Start Date	Today	First day to create shifts
End Date	7 days from today	Last day to create shifts

2. Define the Shift Pattern

Field	Format	Description
Start Time	HH:mm (24-hour)	When the shift begins
End Time	HH:mm (24-hour)	When the shift ends
Shift Type	Dropdown	See shift types table below

3. Select Days of Week

Click the day buttons to toggle. Defaults to Monday–Friday.

Button	Day
Mon	Monday
Tue	Tuesday
Wed	Wednesday
Thu	Thursday
Fri	Friday
Sat	Saturday
Sun	Sunday

4. Select Staff Members

Use the searchable staff list to choose one or more active staff members. Options:

• Search by name or email
• Select All to add everyone
• Clear to deselect all

5. Select a Room (Required)

Choose the room these shifts will be assigned to. Only active rooms for your company are shown.

6. Review the Preview

The preview shows how many shifts will be created:

"Will create X shifts for Y staff members in [Room Name]"

The formula: (matching days in range) × (number of staff) = total shifts

7. Click "Create Shifts"

Shift Types

Type	Use Case
Regular	Standard working shift
Overtime	Extra hours beyond contract
On Call	Available but not on-site
Emergency	Urgent cover
Training	Training and development
Meeting	Team meetings, reviews
Break	Scheduled break period

Example

Scenario: Create shifts for 2 staff, Monday–Friday, for one week.

• Date Range: 23/03/2026 – 27/03/2026
• Time: 09:00 – 17:00
• Type: Regular
• Staff: Dr Sarah Smith, Nurse Amy Jones
• Room: Surgery 1

Result: 5 days × 2 staff = 10 shifts created

Limits and Behaviour

• Maximum 365 shifts per template creation
• Conflicting shifts are automatically skipped (not blocked)
• Overnight shifts are supported — if end time is before start time, the system adds 1 day to the end
• A progress overlay shows real-time creation status

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Copy Week

What It Does

Duplicates all shifts from a source week to a target week. Staff assignments, rooms, shift types, and notes are preserved. Status is always reset to Scheduled.

Step-by-Step

1. Select Source Week — the week to copy FROM (shows Monday start date)

2. Select Target Week — the week to copy TO (must be a different week)

3. Configure Conflict Handling

• Skip conflicting shifts (checkbox): When checked, shifts that overlap with existing shifts in the target week are silently skipped. When unchecked, if conflicts are detected, a Retry & Skip Conflicts button appears.

4. Optional Filters

Filter	Purpose	Default
Staff Filter	Only copy shifts for selected staff	All staff (empty)
Room Filter	Only copy shifts in selected rooms	All rooms (empty)

5. Review Copy Summary — shows the source and target week date ranges

6. Click "Copy Shifts"

What Gets Copied

Field	Copied?	Notes
Staff assignment	Yes	Same staff member
Room assignment	Yes	Same room
Start/End time	Yes	Offset by the week difference
Shift type	Yes	Preserved
Notes	Yes	Preserved
Requirements	Yes	Deep-copied
Status	No	Always reset to "Scheduled"
Recurring settings	No	Not copied

Conflict Handling

When conflicts are detected:

1. First attempt — if "Skip conflicts" is unchecked, you see a list of conflicting shifts with a "Retry & Skip Conflicts" button
2. Retry — click the button to re-run, this time skipping all conflicting shifts and creating only the non-conflicting ones

tip

If you know the target week already has some shifts, check "Skip conflicting shifts" before copying to avoid the two-step process.

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CSV Import

What It Does

Upload a CSV file containing shift data. Staff members are matched by email address or full name. Rooms are matched by name. All lookups are case-insensitive and scoped to your company.

CSV Column Reference

Your CSV must include these headers (case-insensitive, spaces and dashes are converted to underscores automatically):

Column	Required	Format	Description
date	Yes	DD/MM/YYYY or YYYY-MM-DD or DD-MM-YYYY	The calendar date of the shift
start_time	Yes	HH:mm (24-hour)	When the shift starts
end_time	Yes	HH:mm (24-hour)	When the shift ends
staff_email	No	Email address	Staff member's email — used for matching
staff_name	No	First Last	Staff member's full name — used as fallback
room_name	No	Text	Room name — matched against your company's rooms
shift_type	No	See types below	Defaults to regular if omitted
notes	No	Free text (max 500 chars)	Additional information

warning

At least one of staff_email or staff_name should be provided per row. The system tries email first, then falls back to name. Rows without a matched staff member are either skipped or flagged as errors.

Valid shift type values (lowercase in CSV): regular, overtime, on_call, emergency, training, meeting, break

Fields Set Automatically

These are handled by the system — do not include them in your CSV:

Field	Value
Company	Your logged-in company
Status	Always scheduled
ID	Auto-generated
Timestamps	Auto-set

Download the CSV Template

Click "Download CSV Template" in the Import CSV tab. The template is pre-populated with your company's actual rooms and staff members, so you can fill it in without looking up names or room labels.

The downloaded file includes:

• The correct headers in the right order
• Example rows using your company's real staff emails, names, and room names
• Future dates (next week's Monday onwards)

tip

Open the template in Excel or Google Sheets, replace the example rows with your shift data, and save as .csv before uploading.

Example CSV

date,start_time,end_time,staff_email,staff_name,room_name,shift_type,notes
18/03/2026,08:30,17:00,dr.smith@practice.com,Dr Sarah Smith,Surgery 1,regular,Morning surgery
18/03/2026,09:00,13:00,nurse.jones@practice.com,Nurse Amy Jones,Treatment Room,regular,Morning clinic
19/03/2026,18:00,08:00,dr.smith@practice.com,Dr Sarah Smith,,on_call,Overnight on-call

Key points:

• UK date format (DD/MM/YYYY) is fully supported
• Overnight shifts (18:00–08:00) are auto-detected — the system adds 1 day to the end time
• Room name left empty for on-call (room will be unassigned)
• Staff can be identified by email or name (email takes priority)

Step-by-Step Import

1. Download Template — click "Download CSV Template" to get the file pre-populated with your company data
2. Fill in your data — open in a spreadsheet, add your shifts, save as .csv
3. Upload — click the upload area or drag-and-drop your file
4. Review the preview — the system parses your CSV immediately and shows:
   • Green checkmark = valid shifts parsed
   • Red errors = rows with invalid dates, times, or missing columns (rejected)
   • Yellow warnings = unresolved staff/rooms, unknown shift types (may still import)
   • Preview table showing the first 5 parsed shifts
5. Configure options:
   • Skip rows with unresolved staff — silently skip rows where the staff member can't be found
   • Skip conflicting shifts — skip shifts that overlap with existing ones
6. Click "Import Shifts"
7. Review results — shows created, skipped, and failed counts with error details

Common Errors

Error	Cause	Fix
Missing required columns: date	Wrong header names	Use exactly date, start_time, end_time
Invalid date format	Non-standard date (e.g., "March 18")	Use 18/03/2026 or 2026-03-18
Invalid start time format	12-hour format (e.g., "9am")	Use 09:00 (24-hour)
Could not resolve staff member	Email/name doesn't match active staff	Check the email or use First Last format
Skipped due to scheduling conflict	Staff already has a shift at that time	Enable "Skip conflicts" or change the time

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CSV Export

What It Does

Exports shifts within a date range to a CSV file. The exported file includes staff names, emails, and room names (not just IDs).

How to Use

1. Open the Export function from the calendar view
2. Select a date range (maximum 90 days)
3. Optionally filter by specific staff or rooms
4. Click Export

Exported Columns

Column	Format	Example
Date	DD/MM/YYYY	18/03/2026
Day	Full name	Wednesday
Staff Name	First Last	Dr Sarah Smith
Staff Email	Email	dr.smith@practice.com
Room	Room name	Surgery 1
Start Time	HH:mm	08:30
End Time	HH:mm	17:00
Shift Type	Lowercase	regular
Status	Lowercase	scheduled
Notes	Free text	Morning surgery

All times are displayed in UK timezone (Europe/London).

Re-Importing an Exported CSV

The export format cannot be directly re-imported because the column headers differ. To re-import, rename the headers:

Export Header	Change To
Date	date
Start Time	start_time
End Time	end_time
Staff Email	staff_email
Staff Name	staff_name
Room	room_name
Shift Type	shift_type
Notes	notes

Delete the Day and Status columns before importing.

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Bulk Edit

What It Does

Updates properties of multiple selected shifts at once. You can change the room, shift type, status, and/or adjust times.

How to Access

1. In the calendar, enter selection mode (click "Select Multiple")
2. Click on the shifts you want to edit (they highlight with a coral border)
3. Click the "Bulk Edit" button that appears
4. The Bulk Edit modal opens showing how many shifts are selected

Available Operations

Each operation is opt-in — tick the checkbox to enable it:

Change Room

• Select a new room from the dropdown
• Can also set to "No Room"

Change Shift Type

• Select from: Regular, Overtime, On Call, Emergency, Training, Meeting, Break

Change Status

• Select from: Scheduled, Confirmed, Cancelled

note

Only 3 statuses are available in bulk edit. To mark shifts as Completed, In Progress, or No Show, edit them individually.

Adjust Time

Field	Description	Example
Start Time Offset (mins)	Positive = later, negative = earlier	+30 moves start 30 min later
End Time Offset (mins)	Positive = later, negative = earlier	-60 ends shift 1 hour earlier

Common patterns:

• Move entire shift 30 min later: Start +30, End +30
• Shorten shift by 1 hour at the end: Start 0, End -60
• Start 15 min earlier: Start -15, End 0

warning

Time adjustment shifts each individual shift by the offset — it does not set all shifts to the same time.

Limits

• Maximum 100 shifts per bulk update
• All selected shifts must belong to the same company
• At least one edit option must be enabled

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Keyboard Shortcuts

Shortcut	Action	Condition
Escape	Close the modal	Not currently processing
Enter	Submit the current action	Focus not in an input field

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Best Practices

Template Mode

1. Start small — test with a single week before creating months of shifts
2. Check leave first — review approved leave in the target date range
3. Select the correct room — shifts cannot be created without a room assignment

Copy Week

1. Review the source week — ensure it represents the pattern you want
2. Use filters — copy only relevant staff or rooms to reduce conflicts
3. Check "Skip conflicts" if the target week already has some shifts

CSV Import

1. Always download the template first — it's pre-populated with your company's rooms and staff
2. Use UK date format — DD/MM/YYYY works naturally
3. Test with a small file — import 3–5 rows first to verify formatting
4. Enable both skip options — "Skip unresolved staff" and "Skip conflicts" prevent partial failures

Bulk Edit

1. Double-check your selection — review the count shown in the modal header
2. Use time adjustment carefully — it applies to every selected shift
3. Exit selection mode when done to avoid accidental selections

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Troubleshooting

Issue	Cause	Solution
No shifts created	All shifts conflicted with existing ones	Enable "Skip conflicts" and review which days are already filled
Template shows 0 shifts in preview	No matching days in the date range	Check the day selection (Mon–Fri vs specific days)
CSV import rejects all rows	Wrong column headers	Download the template and use it as a base
Staff not found during import	Email doesn't match or staff is deactivated	Verify the email in Staff Management
Room not found during import	Room name doesn't match exactly	Check room names in Settings → Rooms
Export is empty	No shifts in the selected date range	Expand the date range or remove filters
Bulk edit fails	Shifts belong to different companies	Only select shifts within your company

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Related Documentation

• Calendar Overview — Calendar interface guide
• Creating Shifts — Single shift creation
• Editing Shifts — Modify existing shifts
• Conflict Resolution — Handle scheduling conflicts
• Rooms & Facilities — Manage rooms

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Source Files:

• src/components/calendar/BulkSchedulingTool.tsx — Bulk scheduling modal (Template, Copy Week, Import)
• src/components/calendar/BulkEditModal.tsx — Bulk edit modal
• src/lib/utils/csv-parser.ts — CSV parsing and template generation
• src/app/api/scheduling/shifts/import/route.ts — CSV import API
• src/app/api/scheduling/shifts/export/route.ts — CSV export API
• src/app/api/scheduling/shifts/copy-week/route.ts — Copy week API
• src/app/api/scheduling/shifts/bulk-update/route.ts — Bulk update API