How to Use Microsoft Teams Shifts [User Guide 2024]

Creating and scheduling schedules can sometimes feel like an endless process.

But with Shifts in Microsoft Teams, you can spend less time on scheduling and more time focusing on the real work.

In this article, I’ll explain what Shifts can do and how you can use Shifts to create, update & manage your team on Teams. Let’s begin!

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What is Shifts on Teams & Its Features?

The Shifts app in Microsoft Teams is a tool for schedule management that you can use to create, edit, update and manage timetables for your teams. This tool has features that can help you in any management scenario and for different sizes of teams.

Here are the different features of Shifts on Teams:

Groups: create different groups with different names to organize your teams more efficiently.
Time Clock: it allows you to clock in & out of a shift from your mobile.
Shifts: add shifts wherever you want on the schedule. Make one from the ground up, or copy one.
Open Shifts: create open shifts to your timetable that staff can request to claim.
Schedules: a shift schedule shows days on the top row, team members on the left column, and their shifts show up on the calendar. You can create new schedules and manage them from there.
Requests: frontline workers can send requests for shift swaps & time off, and the team owner can review those requests.
Tags: it helps you get in touch with a member on a shift quickly.

Now that you know what you can do with Shifts let’s create one.

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How to Create a Schedule in Shifts on Microsoft Teams

To make a new schedule using Shifts on Microsoft Teams from scratch, open the Shifts app in Teams, create & add people to different groups to keep your team organized. Then add activities to shifts, so everyone knows exactly what they are supposed to do.

But remember, to create a schedule with Shifts for a team, you need to be the team owner or make a new team in Microsoft Teams.

However, if you can’t create a new team, check out why can’t i create a team in Microsoft Teams? and follow the steps to fix the issue.

In case you are the team owner, follow the instructions below to make shifts in MS Teams.

Here are the steps to create a schedule in Shifts on Teams:

Launch Microsoft Teams on your computer or go to teams.microsoft.com.
Click on the 3 dots on the left sidebar and select Shifts. If you don’t see Shifts, add it from the App launcher.
Click on Choose or create a new schedule.
Select New schedule.
Click on the Create button beside the team you are making a schedule for.
Set the correct timezone and click on the Confirm button.
Select Add group to create a new group. It’ll help you organize team members by roles or departments.
Click on the ellipses of the newly created group and select Rename group.
Provide a suitable name for the group and click Save.
Select a group and click on Add people to include members in that group.
Enter the user’s Azure Active Directory ID or email address, or select them from the list in case they are already included in the team and click on Add.
Repeat this process as needed to add people to different groups.
Go to the row of the person you want to assign a shift to and on the correct date.
Click on the ellipses on the empty shift and select Add shift.
Give the shift a proper name, pick a theme color, provide the shift duration, and add shift notes, so your team knows what’s happening during that shift.
Select Add activity to explain what team members will be doing in that shift.
Provide the name and set the duration for the activity. Select Add new to include more activities and click on Done.
Click on the Save button when you are done making the shift.
Create shifts for all the members in different groups.
Go to the Open shifts row and double-click on an empty shift to create an open shift for others to take.
Select Share with team and choose the entire team, so everyone knows what to do.

Once you’ve shared the schedule, you can also easily manage it. Go to the following section, where I’ve explained how you can update and manage Shifts on Teams.

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How to Manage & View Your Teams Schedule with Shifts in Microsoft Teams

After completing a schedule using Shifts in Microsoft Teams, you can still modify it and manage different shifts. Use the View Options feature to maintain each shift and check team members’ availability. Share the schedule after updating it so your team stays informed.

Follow the steps below to understand the process of managing & modifying schedules in MS Teams.

Here’s how to manage & view your teams’ schedule with Shifts in Teams:

Open Microsoft Teams and select Shifts from the left menu.
Click on View beside the team whose schedule you want to view or modify.
Select Day and make sure there’s no overlap of shifts. Add day notes, so they appear when you share the schedule. Choose Week to check everyone’s hours quickly. Pick Month to view the schedule monthly.
Click on View and select Shift to ensure every shift is covered or to check everyone’s availability.
Select the Request icon to view time off and shift-swapping requests from your team.
Choose a request and Approve or Deny it.

Here’s the process to manage schedule settings & share them:

Go to the Settings tab, scroll down and select Turn on time clock in the Time clock section. It lets team members clock in & out of their shifts using mobiles.
Check the Include location detection for the mobile app box to ensure workers clock in & out from a specified work area and click on Turn on.
Go back to the Schedule tab and choose Share with team to share the schedule.
Click on the Print icon to print the schedule as a PDF, or click on the ellipses and select Export schedule.

With these steps, you can easily manage your team.

If you use Outlook regularly, there’s a similar feature called Shared Calendar. Simply Create A Shared Calendar in Outlook and send it to your contacts.

How to Use Shifts in Microsoft Teams for Workers

Managing shifts for work can be chaotic, especially when trying to manage your breaks, finding a colleague to take your shifts or checking who you are working with. But with the help of Microsoft Teams, you can manage your shifts right from your mobile device.

If you are a frontline worker, follow the instructions below to know how to use Shifts in MS Teams correctly.

Here are the steps to use Shifts in Teams for frontline workers:

Open Microsoft Teams on your mobile device.
Tap on More and select Shifts.
Press the Time clock option.
Tap on the Play icon to start your shift.
Select Team shifts to see your manager and team members for that shift.
Tap on your name to see if there’s any note for additional details and check your activities.
Choose Open shifts to see if any are available.
Tap on the shift you want to be assigned to and select Request.
Press the Plus icon, and you can select Swap or offer shift, Request time off or Set availability.