Allocation Set Up

Walkthrough: Setting up a duty allocation campaign

In the Allocation menu click Set Up.
Refer to the tables below for a description of each setting.
After making changes click Save Changes.
Cancel undoes any changes made since the last save.

General tab

Defines the overall allocation strategy and configures settings common to both allocation strategies.

Setting	Description
Overall Allocation Strategy	See Allocation Strategy
Opening Date Closing Date	Define the period during which members can choose their actual duties (First Come, First Served strategy), or the period during which duties available on the web for members to select their preferred duties and unavailable dates (Multiple Choice strategy). The period starts at 00:00 on Opening Date and ends at 23:59 on Closing Date.
Default Number of Duties	The default number of duties that any one member is expected to perform. You can allocate different numbers of duties, including zero, to individual members via the Members List. (Range 1 to 99).
Selectable Duties Factor	A member's number of duties is multiplied by this factor to give the maximum number of actual duties (First Come, First Served strategy) or preferred duties (Multiple Choice strategy) that the member can select. For example if a member's Number of Duties is 2 and the Selectable Duties Factor is 2.5 then that member can select up to 2 x 2.5 = 5 duties.
Optimum Duty Type Selection	Yes to allow members to select only their Optimum Duty Types; No to allow all duty types. Members without Optimum Duty Types can always select any duty. See also Optimum Duty Types

First Come, First Served tab

Settings specific to the First Come, First Served allocation strategy. To preview the allocation form go to any member's record in >Members >List and click the Open Allocation Form link in the Duty Allocation section.

The allocation form paragraphs commencing Please select the duties that you wish to do... and ending ...or you think that your number of duties is incorrect are the standard preamble provided by DutyMan.

Setting	Description
Introduction	Your text to appear at the top of the form. Can contain hyperlinks to external documents on the web. The documents open in their own browser windows. Start the hyperlink's URL with https:// and end it with a space.
Events on the same day are	Consecutive people can choose more than one event on the same day. Concurrent people can choose only one event on any one day.

Multiple Choice tab

Settings specific to the Multiple Choice allocation strategy.

Setting	Description
Maximum Selects	The maximum number of members who can select any single duty as one of their preferred duties. Range 1 to 99; leave blank for no limit
Maximum Unavailable Dates	The maximum number of unavailable dates that a member can select. Range 0 to 99.

Emails tab

All members who meet the DutyMan criteria for receiving emails and who do not have their Number of Duties set to None are automatically emailed early on Opening Date. Click the Preview button to see an example of the email. Optionally this email can be resent as a reminder.

Setting	Description
Your Message	Text to be included in the emails. You can change the text for any reminder email.
Email Hour	The earliest hour of the day (0-23, local time) when alloction emails are sent. Normally allocation emails and, when chosen, allocation reminders are sent at about the midpoint of this hour.
Send Reminder	Whether or not a reminder email is sent.
Days before Closing Date	The number of days prior to Closing Date that the reminder is sent. Range 0 to 99. Required only if Send Reminder is Yes.

Allocation Workbench tab

These settings apply when using the Allocation Workbench and are relevant only when, for example, members are required to do a certain number of duties per year but duties are allocated, say, quarterly.

Setting	Description
Count Duties in Current Roster	Yes to include duties in the current roster when counting duties already allocated to a member. No to ignore duties in the current roster.
Duty Count Start Date	The date from which to begin counting allocated duties in the current roster. If not specified then all duties are counted. Applicable only if Count Duties is Yes.

Reset

Pressing Reset removes all duties from the allocation roster and all associated member duty selections and preferences. Use it to prepare the roster for the next allocation cycle.

You are asked to confirm the reset by submiting your administrator's password.

A reset is also performed automatically 30 days after the allocation roster is published.