Drivers

To use Forecasting effectively, the system must use the operational signals that cause demands to rise and fall. Those signals are represented as drivers. Drivers are the structured data elements that the forecasting engine uses as inputs when predicting future workload or requirements.

Function of drivers

A driver is a factor that influences workload or demand, It functions as in input variable for the forecasting engine. It can represent a wide range of measurable business and operational conditions, such as overtime hours, vacant shifts, time offs, or sales volume. When you configure these drivers consistently, they provide a repeatable and time-based view of demand changes to the forecasting engine. This helps create forecasts that reflect accurate patterns instead of relying on generic assumptions.

Importance of drivers

Drivers provide the forecasting engine with the reason behind the demand. Instead of forecasting in isolation, driver values are used as independent variables that help predict future staffing needs and workload behavior. This is important in environments where demand is strongly correlated with operational metrics such as sales in retail or deliver volume in logistics.

Driver types

As you define drivers, you also have to define driver types. A driver type is an identifier used to group multiple drivers that share the same unit or conceptual category. This grouping supports consistency across drivers of similar measurement types. Driver types help administrators label and manage drivers that belong together, such as multiple sales-related drivers or multiple delivery-volume drivers. This enables administrators to maintain drivers in a structured way.