Definition

Activity layers are the display order the scheduling grid uses when activities for one agent overlap in time. ZenOps assigns each activity to a layer from its Activity Type category; there is no separate layer selector. All three categories share the same time axis.

Context

Layers matter when an activity covers some or all of another activity, such as a break during scheduled productive work or time off during a shift. The grid draws the higher layer in front at the overlapping times. Each activity keeps its own start time, end time, and category.

Attributes

The three activity layers are ordered from front to back:

Overlapping activities share one agent timeline: Time Off is drawn in front of Auxiliary and Productive. When intervals are sequential, no block covers another.
  • Time Off is the top layer. It appears in front of Auxiliary and Productive activities.
  • Auxiliary is the middle layer. It appears in front of Productive activities and behind Time Off.
  • Productive is the bottom layer. It appears behind Auxiliary and Time Off.

In Activities view, shifts can also appear as pale outlines behind the activity blocks. A shift provides schedule context; it is not one of the three activity layers.

When intervals overlap, the higher activity layer is drawn in front. The lower activity remains part of the schedule underneath it. Activity category also matters to schedule totals: overlapping Auxiliary and Time Off intervals are netted against productive time.

Placement

Activities do not need to overlap. Place them in separate, consecutive time intervals when you want one activity to follow another.

Example: Sequential activities

Schedule Productive work from 09:00 to 10:00, an Auxiliary break from 10:00 to 10:30, then Productive work from 10:30 to 12:00. The activities follow one another without overlapping, so no layer appears in front.

Use layers when one activity overlaps another activity on a lower layer. The higher layer appears in front while the lower-layer activity remains part of the schedule underneath.

Example: Overlapping activities

Productive support work from 09:00 to 12:00 can overlap an Auxiliary break from 10:00 to 10:30. Time Off from 11:00 to 12:00 can overlap both and appears in front of the break and support activity.

The activity's type supplies its category. In the Add Activity dialog, choose the appropriate activity type and enter its start and end times. Times entered in the dialog are kept as entered. When you drag an existing activity on the grid, it moves in five-minute increments; the grid avoids overlaps with activities on the same or a higher layer, while a higher-layer activity can overlap one on a lower layer. For the steps to add an activity, see Add shifts and activities.

Note: Choose the category for the activity

Select Productive, Auxiliary, or Time Off to match what the event represents. Auxiliary and Time Off intervals are netted against productive time when they overlap, so category affects schedule totals as well as display.