Deputy AI is a conversational assistant that helps you manage your team using natural language. Instead of clicking through menus, you can type requests into a chat interface to manage schedules and timesheets more quickly.

Before you read

• This article is for users with System Administrator, Location Manager, or Supervisor access.
• Deputy AI is currently in open beta

This article covers

• How does Deputy AI work?
• When should I use Deputy AI?
• How do I start using Deputy AI?
• What can't I do with Deputy AI?
• Troubleshooting Deputy AI
• How does Deputy AI handle my data?
• FAQs

How does Deputy AI work?

Deputy AI is a conversational assistant that helps you get things done in Deputy using everyday language. Instead of clicking through menus, you can simply ask questions or tell it what you want to do.

When you ask Deputy AI to take an action, it calculates the necessary steps and shows you a clear summary of what will happen. Nothing will change straight away.

You’re always in control. Deputy AI won’t act on its own or make changes without you. Think of it as a tool that helps you move faster. You review everything first, and Deputy AI only takes action when you choose to confirm.

When should I use Deputy AI?

You can use Deputy AI for everyday tasks related to Scheduling and Timesheets.

Scheduling tasks

You can build schedules from scratch or edit existing shifts by specifying names, dates, and locations.

• Build a schedule: Create a shift structure for a specific location and date range, or use existing templates and patterns.
• Edit shifts: Make bulk changes to start or finish times, delete groups of shifts, or change empty shifts to open.
• Assign and fill shifts: Identify team members with specific training, fill empty shifts based on availability, or assign replacements for absences.
• Add leave and unavailability: Add leave details, including leave type, and specify specific or recurring unavailability for team members.
• Add training: When your team members complete training or qualifications, add these to their profile individually or for multiple team members at once.
• Publish your schedule: Finalize a draft schedule and send it to your team members.

Click to learn more about how to manage your Schedule with Deputy AI.

Timesheet tasks

You can manage time tracking and leave requests directly through the chat.

• Check shift status: View who is currently on shift, see who is late, or check for missed clock-ins and breaks.
• Find timesheets: Ask to see a list of timesheets for specific team members, locations, date ranges, by status, and ask for any relevant details.
• Edit timesheets: Update start or end times, edit breaks, discard timesheets.
• Create timesheets: Add new timesheets with all the relevant details.
• Compare against the schedule: Compare how timesheets differed from the schedule.
• Approve timesheets: Approve records for specific people or locations, or auto-approve timesheets that match the schedule.
• Manage leave: Add and approve leave, create new leave requests or check if a team member has upcoming leave.

Click to learn more about how to manage your Timesheets with Deputy AI.

How do I start using Deputy AI?

To turn on Deputy AI for your business:

1. If you are logged in as a System Administrator or Advisor, you can access Business Settings from the drop-down menu under your name on the Deputy website.

   

2. In the left-hand menu, click Upcoming features, find the Deputy AI toggle, switch it to ON , and hit Save.

   

Deputy web

1. Find and click the Deputy AI icon along your top menu.
   Note: If you don't see the Deputy AI button, your System Administrator needs to enable this feature.
   

2. Type your question or instruction in plain English and hit send.
   
   Note: Use the @ symbol to easily identify team members, locations, and areas.

   

3. Review the Deputy AI’s proposed plan and either:

   • Reply with any changes or corrections until you're ready to confirm.

     

   • Click Confirm to allow Deputy AI to take the proposed action.

     

4. Receive a confirmation that the action has been completed.

Note: If you have multiple unrelated requests, click New Topic to start from scratch. This keeps Deputy AI focused on the topic and prevents it from pulling in context from earlier conversations.

Deputy mobile app

1. Click the Deputy AI button at the top of the home page.

2. To start a conversation from scratch, click New Topic. This keeps Deputy AI focused on the current requests and prevents it from pulling in context from earlier conversations.

3. Type your question or instruction in plain English and hit send.
   Note: Use the @ symbol to easily identify team members, locations, and areas.

4. Review Deputy AI’s proposed plan and either:

   • Reply with any changes or corrections until you're ready to confirm.

   • Click Confirm to allow Deputy AI to take the proposed changes.

What can't I do with Deputy AI?

Deputy AI is a specialized tool for scheduling and timesheets. It currently cannot perform the following tasks:

• Strategic analysis: It cannot make recommendations or predictions based on past data (e.g., "How many staff do I need for Christmas?").
• Complex multi-step actions: It cannot do multiple different tasks in one go, like adding leave and reassigning shifts at the same time.
• Very large bulk requests: It cannot handle very large requests, such as scheduling a team member for an entire year.
• Financial queries: It cannot answer questions about budgets, labor costs, or payroll reports.
• Employee settings: It cannot update personal details or change employment terms for team members.
• Pay rates: It cannot update team member pay rates.

Troubleshooting Deputy AI

If Deputy AI is not responding as expected, try these steps:

• Click New Topic: If Deputy AI seems confused or is referencing old data, click New Topic to clear the conversation context.

• Be more specific: Always use the @ symbol to include names, dates, and locations in your request. 

  

• Check permissions: If you receive an error when clicking Confirm, make sure you have permission to perform that task in Deputy.

How does Deputy AI handle my data?

Deputy AI is built with security and privacy as its top priorities.

• No model training: Your business data is not stored or used by any model providers to train the Large Language Model.
• Permission aware: Deputy AI respects existing role permissions and cannot perform actions a user is not permitted to do manually.
• Bias protection: Guardrail rules are used to prevent biased or unfair shift recommendations.

FAQs

To learn more about Deputy AI's privacy FAQs visit the Deputy Privacy Center, and to learn more about Deputy's security program visit the Deputy Trust Center.