New Rostering Systems in the post-SALT era

1. Church-wide availability: if you cannot do a roster on a particular day, you cannot do any roster on that day.
2. Any-day function. Rosters can be applied to anyday of the week, not just Sundays.
3. New web-based interface for entering availability.
   1. Single or multiple day (from-to) data entry.
   2. pull-down calendars
   3. Can specify "preferred days" and "preferred day/time"
4. Swap Mechanism - how organized?
5. Individual diary summary pages.
6. db backend for generality (not wiki, although perhaps wiki front-end)
7. Need a reward/penalty system for good/discouraged behaviours! (But what?)
   1. unavailability entered ahead of allocation time - drop allocation weighting.
   2. use of swap mechanism - increase allocation weight
   3. number of duties, increase reward points
   4. Number of short-term allocations, increase reward points
   5. Have annual prize for best "rosteree" (with backoff mechanism).
8. duties are "equivalent" according to some weighting formula (what?)
9. people have an allocation weight that varies with their willingness to step in at short notice.
10. People can trade flexibility for allocations.

A possible blurb

With the move to the New Church Structures, and an environment of Sharing And Loving Together, it is proposed to rebuild the clunky wiki-based rosters. This article sets out some of the design parameters, with the express intention of inviting comment, and of fostering some discussion and debate. You can contribute to the debate by visiting the wiki page RostersFutureOptions.

Firstly let me say that I hear the concerns about the use of the wiki. We are trying to make this as simple and as easy to use as possible. The goal is to make the system as easy to use as booking your next holiday or restaurant visit on-line (or at least, no worse than the best of these!) If you have any computer skills at all, you should be able to use the new rostering system. And if you don't? Several possiblities arise:

1. you can ask someone else to enter your preferences for you (David Morgan or John Hurst will always be willing to help you, and there are many others).
2. you can phone the office to let Heather know of your preferences.
3. you can learn how to use the system - if you don't have a computer, the one in the office window will be set up so that you can use it.

Secondly, I should point out the advantages of a computer-based rostering system:

1. It relieves each roster convenor from having to plan a new roster every month/three months/six months/year, or whatever you prefer.
2. It can send automatic reminders of when your duty is coming up.
3. It dramatically simplifies the work of the office in publishing the rosters (DON'T take my word for it, ask Heather!)
4. It can give flexibility to those that need it, and stability to those that prefer that.
5. It allows each of use to Share in the important work of discipleship, according to our gifts and our availability, and to support others as they go about their work of discipleship.

In short, it is Serving And Loving Together.

To participate in this debate, and to record your preferences for a new roster system, please visit this web page:

• http://???