4 Presentations

• 
  09:00 AM - 09:25 AM

  An Integer Linear Model for Multi-Department Scheduling Problems

  • Sana Dahmen, presenter, Université Laval
  • Guy Desaulniers, GERAD - Polytechnique Montréal
  • Monia Rekik, Université Laval
  • Francois Soumis, GERAD et Polytechnique

  We present an integer linear model for shift scheduling problems in multi-department contexts. The objective is to minimize labor costs under demand constraints and union rules. For each department, we aim to satisfy labor demands by using internal employees, and by moving, if necessary, other employees to the under-covered department.

• 
  09:25 AM - 09:50 AM

  Multi-Objective Activity Assignment to Work Shifts with Activity Preferences

  • Mahsa Elahipanah, presenter, GERAD - Polytechnique Montréal
  • Guy Desaulniers, GERAD - Polytechnique Montréal

  A two-phase heuristic method is proposed for multi-objective activity assignment to work shifts. Controlled by a parameter, the minimized under-coverings in the first phase can be slightly
  increased in favor of higher employees satisfactions in the second phase. This method practically
  outperforms the weigthing method in finding a desired range of pareto-optimal solutions.

• 
  09:50 AM - 10:15 AM

  Using Formal Language for Retail Store Workforce Scheduling

  • Marc Joliveau, presenter, Université de Montréal
  • Louis-Martin Rousseau, Polytechnique Montréal
  • Nicolas Chapados, Université de Montréal
  • Pierre L'Ecuyer, Université de Montréal

  Using a formal language, the presentation introduce a mixed integer program and a constraint program for retail store workforce scheduling. The main advantage of these models is that, unlike traditional approaches that minimize the operating cost, they allow directly maximizing the net incomes generated over a day or a week.

• 
  10:15 AM - 10:40 AM

  Staffing Hydro-Québec Call Center via Direct Search Algorithms

  • Walid Zegal, presenter, Institut de recherche d'Hydro-Québec
  • Louis Delorme, Institut de recherche d'Hydro-Québec
  • Stéphane Alarie, Institut de recherche d'Hydro-Québec

  The article addresses the staffing problem of a multi-skills call center, taking into account the available resources. Within this framework, we apply the black-box optimization algorithm (Nomad) in order to determine the required staffing per time step as small as 15 minutes throughout the day. Nomad interacts with the simulator (ContactCenters) to satisfy the constraints on service quality. Our approach is very flexible: it allows integrating different types of performance constraints. The results of a real case from the Hydro-Québec call center demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach.