Relaxing one
How to test a constraint, price it, choose which to move first, and measure whether anything actually changed.
Writing the Constraint Down as a Sentence
Why a constraint has to be written as a sentence somebody could disagree with before anything can be done about it, and the four tests a good one passes.
Pricing One Constraint
The two-hour method for working out what a single constraint costs, why a rebuilt fortnight beats a model, and the six numbers to compare.
Which One to Move First
How to order a list of priced constraints, the three criteria that matter, and why the most expensive one is usually the wrong place to start.
Who Has to Agree
How to work out whose agreement a rota change actually needs, the four parties usually involved, and why asking the wrong one first is the commonest way a change fails.
Testing It on One Shift
Why a trial beats a decision, how to design one that produces an answer, and the three ways rota trials are set up to fail.
Measuring Whether Anything Moved
The five numbers that show whether a rota change worked, why one of them should get worse, and how to read a result that goes the wrong way.
What to Do When It Will Not Move
The constraints that genuinely cannot be relaxed, how to work around one honestly, and why recording the attempt matters more than the outcome.
A Rota You Can Defend
What an organisation can say about its own rota once the constraint work is done, why that matters beyond scheduling, and what the whole collection adds up to.