Available On: Professional, Enterprise
While UpKeep offers a Smart AI Scheduler to automate assignments, you can also choose to schedule work orders yourself to set your schedules. This gives you total control to filter, plan, and assign tasks exactly how you want — no automation required. UpKeep also automatically defaults the start date to the current day’s date during the creation of a work order, unless a specific start date is manually provided. This ensures that unscheduled work orders have a clearly defined timeframe by default.
How to use the Scheduler
1. Open the Scheduler
Click Scheduler in the left-hand menu of your UpKeep account
2. Filter Work Orders
At the top of the screen, select Filter & Sort
Narrow down which work orders you want to see using filters like:
Priority
Location
Asset
Work Order Type (PM vs Reactive)
Parts availability
3. Choose Your Team Members
Click the Team Members dropdown to:
Select specific technicians
Or filter by team, location, or role
4. Set Your Time Range
Toggle between Day or Week view
Use the date picker or arrows to find your desired schedule window
5. Drag and Drop Work Orders
Drag a work order from the Unscheduled section at the top
Drop it directly into a time slot under a technician’s column
You’ll see it visually placed in the calendar at that time
6. Save Your Schedule
Once your assignments are complete, click Save Schedule in the top-right corner
Note: If you want to reset the schedule you've set, select the Reset Button
Note: Right Click the Work Order in your scheduled Work Order to show details and add a secondary assignments.
How to View Schedule Risks
With the Scheduler you can look at possible risks of overdue Work Orders as well as when the technician is double booked.
Go to the Scheduler
Select the ⚠️ symbol
Now you can view and take action on the flagged Work Orders
Best Practice Tip: Use Start Dates, Not Just Due Dates
In the Scheduler, a work order must have a Start Date and an assigned Technician to be properly scheduled. While Due Dates can help define when something must be completed, they’re not intended for planning when the work should actually begin. Additionally, ensure all required fields are properly filled, such as Primary Assignee, Team, or Additional Assignee if they are mandatory, to avoid issues in saving the work order.
Relying only on Due Dates can lead to last-minute work, missed SLAs, and poor workload distribution. By assigning a Start Date, your team can:
Ensure work is planned and visible well in advance
Avoid reactive fire drills close to the deadline
Balance technician workload across the week
⚠️ Work Orders without a Start Date will appear in the “Unscheduled Work Orders” panel on the left side of the Scheduler. From there, you can drag them into the calendar to assign a time and technician.
Troubleshooting Start Date Issues
If you encounter an issue saving changes to a work order’s start date, verify that:
All mandatory fields such as Primary Assignee, Team, and any additional required assignees are filled.
The Scheduler settings are correctly configured to accommodate the intended changes.
These checks ensure the smooth setup and adjustment of your schedules. This also happens because UpKeep automatically defaults any work order without an explicitly set start date to today’s date. However, until assigned within a specific schedule, these work orders remain in the unscheduled list for operational clarity.