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Level 2: Vacancy Planning — Admin & Roster Builder Guide

Level 2: Vacancy Planning is where you define how many staff you need and what qualifications they need. This guide explains the concepts and workflow.

What Is Vacancy Planning?

After you've defined your streams (Level 1), you now say: "In my ED Day stream, I need 5 senior nurses and 3 junior nurses on each day."

Each needed position is a vacancy—a slot in the roster that needs to be filled by someone with specific qualifications.

Key Concepts

Vacancy

A vacancy is one position that needs to be filled. Example: "1 RN (Registered Nurse) on Tuesday in ED - Day shift."

Each vacancy specifies:

  • Stream: Which department/shift (e.g., "ED - Day")
  • Craft Group: The job role needed (e.g., "RN")
  • Scope of Practice: Optional credentials (e.g., "Trauma", "ALS")
  • Count: How many people with these qualifications are needed

Craft Group

A craft group is a job role or profession. Examples:

  • RN (Registered Nurse)
  • EN (Enrolled Nurse)
  • Doctor
  • Physiotherapist
  • Allied Health

Each organization defines its own craft groups based on the staff they employ.

Scope of Practice

A scope of practice is a clinical credential or specialization beyond the base job role. Examples:

  • Trauma
  • Advanced Life Support (ALS)
  • Pediatrics
  • Emergency Care Coordinator

Scopes are optional but help match staff with special skills to high-need areas.

Setting Up Level 2

Step 1: Ensure Streams Are Created (Level 1)

Before planning vacancies, you must have streams defined. If you haven't done this, start with Level 1: Streams & Patterns.

Step 2: Define Craft Groups

Craft Groups Setup

Screenshot placeholder: Admin Organization Settings → Craft Groups list

  1. Go to Organization SettingsCraft Groups
  2. Click Add Craft Group
  3. Enter the name (e.g., "RN", "EN", "Doctor")
  4. Click Save

Common craft groups:

  • RN (Registered Nurse)
  • EN (Enrolled Nurse)
  • NUM (Nurse Unit Manager)
  • Consultant
  • Allied Health

Step 3: Define Scopes of Practice (Optional)

Scope of Practice Setup

Screenshot placeholder: Admin Organization Settings → Scopes of Practice list

  1. Go to Organization SettingsScopes of Practice
  2. Click Add Scope
  3. Enter the name (e.g., "Trauma", "ALS")
  4. Click Save

Step 4: Create Vacancies

Create Vacancy

Screenshot placeholder: Level 2 Vacancy Planning interface with "Create Vacancy" button

  1. Go to Level 2: Vacancy Planning
  2. Click Add Vacancy
  3. Select:
    • Stream (e.g., "ED - Day")
    • Craft Group (e.g., "RN")
    • Scope (optional, e.g., "Trauma")
    • Count (how many people needed)
  4. Repeat for each type of position needed
  5. Click Save

Example: ED Stream Setup

Scenario: Your Emergency Department needs 5 RNs and 3 ENs per day shift.

StreamCraft GroupScopeCount
ED - DayRNTrauma3
ED - DayRN-2
ED - DayEN-3

This means:

  • 3 RNs with Trauma certification
  • 2 RNs without special scope
  • 3 ENs

Assigning Staff to Craft Groups and Scopes

Once vacancies are defined, you assign staff to craft groups:

  1. Go to Staff Management
  2. Select a clinician
  3. Click Edit
  4. Assign Craft Group (required)
  5. Assign Scopes of Practice (optional)
  6. Click Save

Example: Sarah is an RN with Trauma certification → Craft Group: RN, Scopes: [Trauma]

Key Rules

  • Every vacancy must specify a craft group
  • Scopes of practice are optional but recommended for specialized roles
  • Vacancies are per stream—ED Day and ED Evening are different
  • Staff must be assigned a craft group before they can be rostered

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Creating too many craft groups: Stick to real job roles (RN, EN, Doctor, not "Senior RN", "Junior RN")
Forgetting to assign staff to craft groups: Staff with no craft group can't be rostered
Over-specifying scopes: Use scopes only for real credentials (Trauma, ALS, not "Good at Communication")
Creating vacancies without understanding streams: Each vacancy must map to a real stream

Tips

  • Start simple: Create 2–3 craft groups, 0–2 scopes, then refine based on experience
  • Align with your payroll system: If your payroll has job codes, use those as craft groups
  • Document your scopes: Make a list (e.g., "Trauma = courses X, Y, Z completed") so staff understand what they need

Next Steps

  1. ✅ Define craft groups for your organization
  2. ✅ Assign staff to craft groups (in Staff Management)
  3. ✅ Create vacancies for each stream
  4. ✅ Move to Level 3: Master Roster to build repeating patterns

See the Getting Started guide for the complete setup checklist.

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