William Steinberg Consultants Inc.

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

Q:

A:

With VSS PRO, you can schedule as far into the future as you need. There is no limitation on the schedule starting and ending date, so you can create a schedule file long enough for you to pre-schedule shifts, rotations, holidays and time-off requests.

Q:

A:

No. You do not need to create individual schedule files for different time frames. You can use one schedule file to enter all scheduling assignments and time-off information and print, publish or email schedules for a specific time period or a group of people, using VSS PRO’s many built-in functions that do the sorting and filtering for you.

Q:

A:

Yes. VSS PRO can help you remember when you have tasks to complete, such as e-mailing schedules, preparing reports, and scheduling time-off requests. You can indicate how many days prior to the due date you want to be reminded and whether the reminder is one-time or recurring.

Q:

A:

Yes. VSS PRO allows you to schedule split shifts. You can assign up to two non-conflicting shifts per employee.

Q:

A:

Yes. With VSS PRO, you can indicate how many people or hours you need scheduled by position, shift, department, or location, and see if you have over-scheduled or under-scheduled based on your requirements. If your staffing level is based upon external variables (i.e. patients, packages, units, etc.), you can use VSS PRO to perform staffing calculations. For example, if you schedule nurses based upon patients per hour, or acuity, VSS PRO will help ensure that you have enough people scheduled to meet your targeted level of care.

Q:

A:

Yes. VSS PRO can automatically calculate shift coverage and total hours scheduled and display this information in an easy-to-read table at the bottom of the schedule worksheet. You can also see the number of people working a specific shift or the number of employees scheduled time-off.

Q:

A:

Yes. In addition to being able to see the number of people scheduled by position, shift, or explanation (i.e. department, location, job, etc.), you can also track the number of hours scheduled.

Q:

A:

Yes. VSS PRO can show you a daily list of available employees sorted by name, position or number of hours already scheduled. This list is dynamically updated each time you schedule an employee.

Q:

A:

Yes. VSS PRO gives you an instant view of how many employees you have scheduled in one-hour, 30-minute or 15-minute increments. You will be able to see your labor distribution (by position, department, etc.) dynamically updated as you make schedule changes and select different days.

Q:

A:

Yes. You can use explanations to indicate a particular location, department or job and add this to a shift. You can then produce a schedule for each location, department or job you have scheduled.

Q:

A:

Yes. VSS PRO allows you to copy a schedule pattern and paste the pattern into a specified time in your schedule worksheet. For example, you can copy a seven-day schedule pattern, highlight the following three weeks displayed in your schedule worksheet, and paste the pattern. VSS PRO applies the entire seven-day pattern over the three-week period that was highlighted.

Q:

A:

Yes. VSS PRO lets you automatically copy a schedule rotation, and place it in future dates without having to manually enter the schedule information additional times.

Q:

A:

Yes. Once you’ve scheduled one employee, you can assign this same schedule information to many employees. Instead of making individual changes, you can copy shifts, explanations, and assignments to multiple persons in one easy step.

Q:

A:

Yes. VSS PRO gives you the flexibility to print customized individual schedules. You can print 1 to 42 day schedules, or a monthly calendar for any employee or group of employees.

Q:

A:

Yes. You can e-mail schedules and reports directly from VSS PRO. You can send personal schedules as text message or any schedule or report in a PDF format.

Q:

A:

Yes. You can publish any schedule or report as an .html file and post it to your web site or intranet. You can also e-mail them to your employees to view with their web browser.

Q:

A:

Yes. With VSS PRO, you can print a time-off report that lists all of your employees’ scheduled time off, plus days they’re not scheduled for any date range. You can quickly see when an employee has taken vacation, sick, or personal days, or days when an employee has not been scheduled.

Q:

A:

Yes. VSS PRO can calculate hours scheduled and provide an estimate of labor costs for a given work period.

Q:

A:

Yes. VSS PRO offers unbeatable flexibility when it comes to printing schedules and reports. You can run custom reports for just about any combination of schedule information, including shift, job, department or location.

Q:

A:

Yes. With VSS PRO, you can set up a password to restrict access to your schedule file, or if you have a multi-user version of VSS PRO, you can also set a password for read/write and read-only access.

Q:

A:

Yes. VSS PRO enables you to automatically export all schedule data. You can set up your export preferences and share data with time and attendance systems, database applications, spreadsheets and reports writers.

Q:

A:

Yes. For users of QuickBooks Pro/Premier 2003 or Enterprise 2.0 (or newer versions), employee names and e-mail addresses can be imported into VSS PRO schedule files from your QuickBooks company file. You can use the import feature to update VSS PRO at any time.

Q:

A:

Yes. VSS PRO gives you the option to track each scheduling session, including date and time, as well as a user’s network and computer name. You can also prompt a user to enter session comments prior to closing a schedule, which can be used as an audit trail and to help track schedule changes.

Q:

A:

Yes. VSS PRO can store e-mail addresses, phone numbers, pager numbers and even employee notes.

Q:

Does the product come with any learning resources?

A:

Yes. VSS PRO comes with a complete User Guide PDF. VSS PRO also has a comprehensive, built-in Help menu.

Q:

Can I contact someone if I have any questions?

A:

Yes. You can contact Technical Support by calling or emailing us between 8:00 AM and 5:00 PM, CST, Monday through Friday.

Q:

What's the difference between the single-user and multi-user versions?

A:

The programs operate similarly, however, multi-user versions are for those situations where companies have more than one person who would like access to VSS PRO (either through a stand-alone PC or via a network), or have access to the same schedule file. Multi-user versions offer read/write access, which limits access to schedule files. This ensures that two people cannot make changes to the same schedule file. In addition, the user always has the most up-to-date schedule, and only people you designate can edit your schedules. Multi-user versions, and their respective licenses, cover users either on single PCs, a network, or any combination thereof.

Q:

A:

The minimum software and system configuration you need to run VSS PRO includes:

• A personal computer with a Pentium Processor (75+ MHz, and at least 64 MB of memory)
• One CD-ROM drive and a hard disk with at least 20 MB of free disk space for VSS PRO files, plus additional disk space fo schedule files.
• Windows operating system: 98/2000/NT/XP.
• A mouse supported by Microsoft Windows is recommended.
• A compatible monitor supported by Microsoft Windows (VSS PRO supports VGA and Super VGA monitors; however, an SVGA monitor is recommended).
• An optional printer supported by Microsoft Windows.