Managing schedules and on-call duties is a daily challenge for organizations: associations, hospitals, rescue teams or companies. For a long time, Excel was the default tool for organizing schedules and tracking availability. However, faced with the complexity of teams and the need for mobility and collaboration, Excel quickly shows its limits.
In this article, we explain why Excel is no longer enough and how specialized software like eBrigade transforms the management of schedules and on-call duties.
The limits of Excel for managing schedules and on-call duties
1. Time-consuming and manual management
Creating a schedule in Excel requires many manipulations: copy and paste, complex formulas, conditional formatting… And every change can generate errors.
2. Collaboration difficulties
Excel schedules are often shared by email or on an internal server. As a result, several versions are circulating, which leads to errors and confusion.
3. Lack of real-time tracking
Excel does not allow you to know instantly who is available, absent or on call. Managers often spend hours checking availability by phone or email.
4. On-call complexity
For teams on call (firefighters, hospitals, emergency services), Excel does not offer any automation to distribute on-call hours fairly or alert employees.
Comparison: Excel vs eBrigade
| Functionality | Excel | eBrigade |
|---|---|---|
| Team planning | Manual, tedious | Automated, intuitive |
| Absence management | To be updated manually | Real-time update |
| On-call and rotations | Manual calculations | Automatic calculation according to defined rules |
| Collaboration | Multiple versions, emails | Real-time sharing, notifications |
| Mobile Access | Inconvenient | Dedicated mobile app |
| Skills tracking | Impossible | Skills management and availability |
Suggested screenshot:
- On the Excel side: a complex schedule with colored cells, manual annotations.
- On the eBrigade side: clear interface with dynamic planning, alerts and employee profiles.
Real-world use cases
Associations and rescue teams
Volunteers have varying availability and specific skills. eBrigade allows you to create schedules adapted to each member and to manage on-call duties automatically. Discover the eBrigade solution for associations
Hospitals and clinics
The rotations of doctors and nurses are complex, with legal constraints and hours of rest. eBrigade simplifies the creation of compliant schedules that can be shared in real time. See eBrigade for hospitals
Businesses and SMEs
Even for fixed teams, Excel quickly becomes too limited when absences and replacements accumulate. eBrigade centralizes all information and allows managers to plan in just a few clicks. Explore eBrigade for Business
Why switch to specialized software?
- Time saving : automatic scheduling and real-time updates.
- Reduced errors : Excel can cause schedule conflicts or duplicates.
- Mobility : access from computer, tablet and smartphone.
- Seamless communication : automatic notifications to teams for schedule changes.
- Analysis and reporting : statistics on attendance, absences and rotations.
Conclusion
Excel is still useful for simple tasks, but as soon as schedules become complex, with absences, on-call duties and various skills, it is no longer sufficient. Specialized software like eBrigade saves time, avoids errors and improves team satisfaction.
👉 Switch to smart schedule management with eBrigade today: Discover eBrigade.
