Manage special events for several skills
Some days, the historical data is not representative of the normal volume and distribution pattern. It is important to exclude those days to create a reliable set of historical data to use as the basis for long-term forecasting. Though, the historical data for those dates can still be useful when forecasting dates of the same type in the future. Use special events to fulfill both of those purposes. When using special events to forecast future dates, the forecast will be an average of the volume for the historical dates that belong to the same special event and the same skill.
The special events are useful for:
- Dates where the historical data is very different compared to a normal day and this difference will recur in a predictable way, such as New Year's Eve.
- Dates where something happened that had a big impact on the statistics, but what happened will not occur again in a predictable way. For example, days with a snow storm or days with extreme technical issues.
When you handle special events in the web Forecasts tool, you can use the same special events for several skills.
NOTE Special events created in the web Forecasts tool are shown in the Forecasts module in the WFM client, but can only be changed in the web Forecasts tool. If a date has special events added both from the client Forecasts module and from the web Forecasts tool, the special event added from the web Forecasts tool takes precedence. See the procedure below for information on how to convert special events created in the Forecasts module in the WFM client to new special events.
The special events must be maintained by adding new future dates regularly.
EXAMPLE If you create long-term forecasts for the next two years, the special event dates for the next two years must be added to the special events.
Prerequisites
- You have the Web > Forecasts permission.
- A skill is created.
Page location
WFM > Forecasts
Procedures
Create a new special event
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Click Manage and select Special event.
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Click New special event.
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Enter a Name for the special event.
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Select a Color for the special event. A square with this color is shown on each included date in the yearly overview. See Close days for several skills at once for more information.
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Select which dates that are connected to this special event. If this is a special event where you can predict the next occurrences, make sure to add future dates before forecasting for that period.
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Click Create.
Add special events to skills
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Click Manage and select Special event.
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Click in the Skills field and then click to select the skills for which you want to add special events.
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Click in the Special events field and select the special events to add to the selected skills.
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Click Add.
Add more dates to a special event
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Click Manage and select Special event.
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Click the Edit button for the special event.
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Select additional dates.
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Click Save.
Add dates and skills to a special event based on legacy special events
Convert special events created in the Forecasts module in the WFM client to new special events that you can apply to several skills.
NOTE If you convert legacy special events and connect them to a new special event which you already created, the dates from the legacy special events are not added to the new special event.
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Click Manage and select Special event.
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Select the check boxes for one or more special events to connect to one new special event.
EXAMPLE Select the legacy Midsummer's Eve special events from all skills to create a new Midsummer's Eve special event.
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Click Convert.
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Select Create new to create a new special event based on the selected legacy special events, or select to which previously created Special event to connect the skills.
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If you created a new special event, enter a Name and select a Color. If there are any dates which are connected to the legacy special event that you do not want to add to the new special event, click the X for those dates to remove them.
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Click Apply. The skill and dates from the legacy special events are then added to the selected new special event. The legacy special event is deleted when the conversion is complete.
NOTE The selected legacy special events are deleted when the conversion is complete.
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