Reception roster
A reception roster so the desk is never empty at 7 am
The front desk needs someone from the minute the doors open until the last client leaves. FairTurns shares the early starts, late finishes and Saturdays across your reception team and puts the week where everyone can see it.
Free, with no limit on people or dates. No card.
Everyone wants the middle shift
At Bayside Physio the desk opens at 7:00 for the before-work Pilates class and closes at 7:00 at night after the last appointment. Five part-time receptionists cover it between them, plus one Saturday morning. Left to sort it out among themselves, the 1:00 to 7:00 close kept going to whoever said yes last, and Saturdays went to the newest person on the team, who quietly started looking for another job.
The practice manager wanted two things: a desk that is always covered, and a way to show the team that the early starts, late closes and Saturdays are being passed around rather than parked on one person.
A shared roster with a visible count of turns does both. It also means a receptionist can check next week from the bus instead of messaging the manager at 9 pm.
How the front desk runs on FairTurns
Open, close and Saturday
Each kind of shift is its own team with its own colour and times, so “7 till 1” and “1 till 7” go to different people and are counted separately.
The awkward shifts passed around
Fill gives each empty shift to whoever has had the fewest turns on it. The Saturday desk doesn’t settle on the newest starter.
Part-timers’ days off
Someone who never works Wednesdays marks Away regularly once, and Fill leaves them off every Wednesday.
Holidays as a stretch
Two weeks in Bali goes in as Away for a stretch. Organisers see the days greyed and labelled Away.
Fix one week only
Closed on a public holiday? Cancel that one date and the rest of the pattern stays. It can be brought back if plans change.
The week at a glance
The week view shows open, close and Saturday side by side, each in its own colour, on any phone.
Set it up
- 01
Make a team per shift
Create the practice as an organisation and add teams called Desk open, Desk close and Saturday desk.
- 02
One person per desk
Give each team one position, Front desk, with a headcount of 1.
- 03
Add the receptionists
Invite each one by email so they can mark their own away days.
- 04
Set the opening hours
Click a weekday, set 7:00 till 1:00, choose “Every week on Monday”, and add the close and Saturday the same way.
- 05
Fill and print
Press Fill for the next 3 months, check the turns, and print the week for the desk drawer.
When you want it to run itself
Pro emails the reception team the week ahead on the day you choose and each person a reminder before their shift. If someone wakes up sick, they reply “I can’t make it” from the reminder, the team’s moderator is emailed, and the next receptionist in line is put on and asked. Emails go to people who have accepted an invitation.
A$1 a month per organisation, paid 1 to 5 years at a time. See Pro and pricing
Good to know
- Roster one person per shift and keep a reserve: someone casual who is ticked for Fill only when you need them.
- Receptionists don’t book their own shifts. The roster puts them on, and they mark the days they’re away.
- Marking away doesn’t take someone off a shift they’re already on, and nobody is told unless you have Pro. Ask the team to tell you directly for short notice.
- FairTurns rosters people, not appointments. Client bookings stay in your practice software.
Questions
How do I stop the same person always doing Saturdays?
Make Saturday its own team and let Fill hand it out. Each Saturday goes to whoever has had the fewest Saturdays, and the Turns booked chart shows the count for everyone.
One receptionist only works mornings. Can I set that?
Yes. Put her on the Desk open team only, and Fill will only ever give her opening shifts.
Can the clinicians see the reception roster?
Yes. Add them to the organisation as members of their own team, or share the public roster link, which shows names and dates only.
What about the Christmas close-down?
Cancel the dates the practice is shut. Each one can be brought back, and the regular pattern carries on in January.
Is there a cost?
The reception roster is free for any number of staff and dates. Pro, with the reminders and replies, is A$1 a month for the practice.
Free templates and guides
Weekly roster template
Names down the side, Monday to Sunday across: the one-page weekly roster for a small team.
A roster for a small team
Rostering three, four or five people: patterns that work, covering when one is away, and keeping it fair.
Fair fill
One button puts people into every empty place, fewest turns first. Free.
Similar rosters
Departments and teams
One calendar for every team in the organisation, each in its own colour, with team leads running their own.
Small business roster
A free, simple staff roster for a small business: who’s on, when, shared with the team on one link.
Duty rosters
Rotating duties like duty officer, lock-up or first aid, handed out by turns and visible to the whole office.