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Round Robin Calendars: The Setup Guide

Round Robin Calendars in Stack help distribute appointments evenly among your team members, ensuring efficient and fair scheduling. This guide will walk you through setting up Round Robin Calendars, configuring distribution settings, and customizing team member assignments.

Table of Contents​

What Are Round Robin Calendars and How Do They Work?​

A Round Robin Calendar is a scheduling tool that automatically distributes appointments among assigned team members. It ensures fair workload distribution and optimizes availability by checking which team member is available at the requested time. Here's how it works:

  • Team Assignment: At least one team member must be assigned to the calendar.
  • Availability Check: When a customer requests an appointment, the system checks the availability of the first assigned team member.
  • Automatic Reassignment: If the first team member is unavailable, the system moves to the next until an available team member is found.
  • Booking Validity: If no team members are available at the selected time, the system prevents booking, ensuring customers only see valid options.

Key Benefit: Customers book appointments only when a team member is available, eliminating scheduling conflicts and reducing manual intervention.

Why Use Round Robin Calendars?​

Round Robin Calendars offer several advantages for teams that share appointments or handle client interactions collectively:

  • Efficient Scheduling: Automates appointment assignments, saving time and reducing manual effort.
  • Balanced Workload: Distributes appointments evenly, preventing overload on any single team member.
  • Faster Response Times: Ensures the next available team member gets assigned, enhancing customer experience.
  • Flexibility for Clients: Customers can choose any available slot, increasing scheduling convenience.
  • Ideal for Scaling Teams: Supports growing businesses in managing high appointment volumes without bottlenecks.

Creating the Round Robin Calendar​

To create a Round Robin Calendar that distributes appointments among your team, follow these steps:

  1. Navigate to Settings: Go to Settings → Calendars in Stack and click on Create Calendar. Select Round Robin as the calendar type.

  2. Calendar Name and Description: Assign a name and add a description to clarify the calendar's purpose and intended use.

  3. Select Team Members: Choose one or more team members who will receive appointments through the Round Robin system.

  4. Custom URL: Enter your desired custom URL. The system will check its availability, and you'll see a checkmark if it's ready to use.

  5. Meeting Duration and Booking Availability: Customize meeting durations and set up availability based on team preferences or company policies. Configure specific dates and exceptions for precise control.

  6. Accept Payments: Enable the Accept Payments option if you require payment during booking. Add a custom description to inform customers about payment terms and pricing details.

  7. Save the Calendar: Once all settings are customized, click Save to create your Round Robin Calendar. You can preview the calendar or edit settings as needed.

Additional Resources & Support​

Explore these resources for comprehensive support on setting up and managing calendars in Stack:

  • Calendar Setup & Customization: Learn about appointment distribution logic and team member assignments.
  • Calendar Availability & Scheduling: Adjust availability settings, including working hours and buffer times.
  • Payment Collection in Calendars: Enable payments for appointments and choose payment gateways.
  • Calendar Troubleshooting & Management: Identify and fix issues, and learn how to embed your calendar on websites.

Frequently Asked Questions​

Q: What happens if no team members are available?
A: The invitee will be prompted to select another date/time.

Q: Can I manually assign appointments to team members instead of using Round Robin?
A: Yes, you can override automatic assignments in the appointment settings.

Q: Can I prioritize specific team members for certain clients?
A: No, Round Robin supports availability-based or equal distribution settings only.

Q: Can I charge clients when they book an appointment?
A: Yes, enable Accept Payments to require payment when clients book a service.