Managing Personal Trainer Schedules: Add Shift Utility vs Templates And Positions

When setting up Personal Trainers (PTs) to manage their own schedules, the recommended starting point is to use the Add Shift Utility.

👉 For full setup steps, see: Add Shift Utility Set Up

Standard Setup: Add Shift Utility

Most teams will want to configure an Add Shift Utility template for their PTs.

This allows trainers to:

• Create their own shifts within defined rules
• Build schedules out in advance
• Stay within facility and payroll guidelines

This is the best option when schedules are relatively stable and don’t require frequent adjustments.

When More Flexibility Is Needed

If your PTs frequently adjust sessions (for example, rescheduling clients or making ongoing tweaks), you may want to layer in additional flexibility.

Option 1: Manager Access by Position

One approach is to:

• Create a dedicated position per trainer (e.g., “Personal Trainer - Jay”)
• Assign each trainer as a manager of their own position

This allows them to:

• Edit their own shifts without dropping and recreating
• Maintain a clear history of changes
• Have more control over their schedule

Think of this as giving them control over their own “lane” without affecting others.

Option 2: Shift Templates for Recurring Clients

For trainers working with recurring clients, shift templates can be a powerful tool.

They can:

• Create a template per client
• Build schedules from that template
• Update the template and apply changes to future shifts

This is especially useful when schedules change often.

Alternative: Duplicating Shifts

If templates aren’t being used, PTs can still create shifts “in a series” by:

• Duplicating shifts
• Using copy and paste

This works well for quick setup, but becomes more manual when edits are needed later.

Summary

• Start with the Add Shift Utility for most use cases
• Use manager permissions per position for more control and edit access
• Use shift templates when schedules change frequently
• Use duplication/copy-paste as a simple fallback