Best Practices for Building Reservations

[aebrown]

Shouldn't that be a stake calling if the building in question is used by more then one ward? Or is it a case where the Agent Bishop simply delegates that responsibility? But then how do you transfer to the other ward?

We're talking about ward calendar administrators. Those are all ward callings (bishopric, clerks, etc.). It look like you were thinking about the building scheduler, who would also be an editor of the private calendar in the scenario being discussed, but setting him or her up based on calling is not all that practical, either. In our stake, we don't make building schedulers a stake calling -- it's just an assignment the agent bishop makes and lets the stake know about. And you'd have to have a unique stake standard calling for each scheduler. There do seem to be 5 callings set up for this purpose, but they are rather lame: they just have a building number.

[russellhltn]

Maybe what we could do is go back to the idea of the agent bishop's ward ultimately being in charge of the events in the building for the year that they are the agent ward. That ward's person can be the building scheduler for the ward and he can be the one who keeps the private calendar with the rest of the ward's admins of course able to edit. At the end of the year, the stake could designate the other ward's building scheduler to take over the task.

But how would you hand off the calendar if it's a ward calendar?

but... wouldnt scheduling the building still require that the person who wants to use the building contact the building scheduler from the agent ward?

I don't think you'd want "distributed scheduling" in the case of private events. The general membership still has to contact someone.

Church events get placed on the calendar by the appropriate editor and the building is scheduled as part of the resources of the event. No need to involve the BldSch.

[dbshapiro]

You are right. The hand off would have to be a year at a time with the new ward taking the reins when they become the agent ward by then creating their pvt calendar. I think i will go with making it a stake calendar and the agent ward admins will be editors with the editors changed as a new ward becomes the agent ward.

[aebrown]

If designation cant be by ward level callings, that would make it cumbersome. Maybe what we could do is go back to the idea of the agent bishop's ward ultimately being in charge of the events in the building for the year that they are the agent ward. That ward's person can be the building scheduler for the ward and he can be the one who keeps the private calendar with the rest of the ward's admins of course able to edit. At the end of the year, the stake could designate the other ward's building scheduler to take over the task.

But you avoid all those hassles if you just let ward administrators schedule personal events for the people in their ward who want such events. There's no need for handing off a stake-level private calendar when the building scheduler changes because with this approach a stable calendar remains in the ward, and that calendar can specify its editors by ward-level callings. People who want to schedule personal events work with someone they know in their ward. This is the model we use in our stake, and it's really quite simple.

So long as others can view the building availalbilty in the week view, there shouldn't be too much hassle for the non agent ward in seeing if the building were available for the private event but... wouldnt scheduling the building still require that the person who wants to use the building contact the building scheduler from the agent ward? I thought the idea of this calendar model was to try to minimize the centralized aspect of one contact person in charge of everything.

There's no requirement that the building scheduler be contacted as long as someone in the ward can schedule the building (which any ward administrator or calendar editor can do). Doing what I suggest embraces the distributed scheduling module inherent in the design of the calendar system.

I guess I am confused as to what the designers had in mind as they created this system and would like to set it up to work as well as possible for our people.

Although there are clearly some design principles that control the calendar, you don't really need to outguess the designers. There is enough flexibility for a variety of approaches. That's why RussellHltn can argue for making building schedulers editors of a private calendar and sending all personal events through them, and he can be right for his stake; I can argue for scheduling personal events through a ward administrator and be right for my stake. There are rarely "right" and "wrong" answers.

[dbshapiro]

If I understand your solution correctly, each ward has a pvt event calendar. When any of the admins is contacted, they try to schedule the building and if there is a conflict, an alert pops up. If someone from the other ward wants to do the same, they contact their ward person and ask to schedule the building. First come first served. If the building is being used, they get an alert. If the two wards each want the same time (maybe one for a party and the other for a ward event for example), only then does the building scheduler (who would I guess be changed yearly with the agent ward) have to make a call (after consulting with the agent bishop probably) as to who gets the time slot. -- I can see how that would make sense.

By the way, any idea why I am able to schedule two items on top of each other? I was testing out the calendar and reserved the building for a family's thanksgiving dinner and then tried to reserve the kitchen for the cub scouts at the same time and was able to do it without even an alert popping up. Is that because I have building scheduler permission that it will let me do that?

Thanks both of you RussellHltn and aebrown for your help with this question. It is helping me understand how this calendar works.

[aebrown]

If I understand your solution correctly, each ward has a pvt event calendar. When any of the admins is contacted, they try to schedule the building and if there is a conflict, an alert pops up. If someone from the other ward wants to do the same, they contact their ward person and ask to schedule the building. First come first served. If the building is being used, they get an alert. If the two wards each want the same time (maybe one for a party and the other for a ward event for example), only then does the building scheduler (who would I guess be changed yearly with the agent ward) have to make a call (after consulting with the agent bishop probably) as to who gets the time slot. -- I can see how that would make sense.

Yes. What you described is essentially the process for scheduling any event. Basically, we take the approach that personal events are handled exactly like other events -- first come, first served. There's no need to create a separate process. There's the little detail of priority (church events are more important than personal events) but we run into that every once in a while with church events. A funeral may need to bump other events. A regional training meeting for which our building is selected will bump all sorts of things. You're right that the building scheduler steps in to help resolve conflicts when they happen, regardless of the type of event.

By the way, any idea why I am able to schedule two items on top of each other? I was testing out the calendar and reserved the building for a family's thanksgiving dinner and then tried to reserve the kitchen for the cub scouts at the same time and was able to do it without even an alert popping up. Is that because I have building scheduler permission that it will let me do that?

Pay careful attention to whether you are talking about Reservations or Events (you used the word "reserve" in a casual way when I think you meant "schedule event"). A building scheduler can schedule or move or change an event such that it "conflicts" with a Reservation -- that is one of the building scheduler's unique and powerful abilities. But no one can create two events that truly conflict in date/time and room booking.

Or it's possible that you got hit by the bug for which I have given a detailed description. But that only happens with a reservation and two events.

[bgtaylor4]

If designation cant be by ward level callings, that would make it cumbersome. Maybe what we could do is go back to the idea of the agent bishop's ward ultimately being in charge of the events in the building for the year that they are the agent ward. That ward's person can be the building scheduler for the ward and he can be the one who keeps the private calendar with the rest of the ward's admins of course able to edit. At the end of the year, the stake could designate the other ward's building scheduler to take over the task.

So long as others can view the building availalbilty in the week view, there shouldn't be too much hassle for the non agent ward in seeing if the building were available for the private event but... wouldnt scheduling the building still require that the person who wants to use the building contact the building scheduler from the agent ward? I thought the idea of this calendar model was to try to minimize the centralized aspect of one contact person in charge of everything. I guess I am confused as to what the designers had in mind as they created this system and would like to set it up to work as well as possible for our people.

That is how it is done -- by agent ward. However, in our two ward building, it was decided that I'd remain building PFR and Scheduler after 2010 (our ward) through 2011 (their ward) and again in 2012 (our ward)... and unless something drastically changes, we'll likely keep me doing both callings regardless of agent ward due to my living proximity to the building and what used to be (before this Calendar) two simple callings in addition to my other two regular callings.