What’s new as of 5/18/26 We’ve updated AssignIQ and RouteIQ to make intelligent scheduling and route optimization easier to review, adjust, and trust. AssignIQ helps decide who should be assigned to visits. RouteIQ helps decide the best order and timing when visits are already assigned. AssignIQ and RouteIQ are now clearer AssignIQ assigns sitters. RouteIQ optimizes already-assigned routes. Admins have more control Change sitter inline. Change arrival time inline. Locked values are respected. AssignIQ is more transparent Reasons explain why sitters are suggested. Notes and sitter schedules are accessible without leaving the workflow. Routing is more configurable Consolidation preference. Arrival increment. Staff segment filtering. Staff restrictions are more precise Animal-specific exclusions are now supported. How to Use AssignIQ Set Staff Scheduling Preferences You can configure sitter-specific scheduling rules under AssignIQ Behavior when editing staff accounts on Staff > Staff Accounts . These preferences help AssignIQ understand which sitters should or should not be considered for certain work. This includes availability-related rules, service restrictions, overnight preferences, and animal-specific restrictions. Animal restrictions are more flexible than simple “Dogs Only” or “Cats Only” rules, allowing more precise exclusions for allergies, fears, or other sitter-specific limitations. Select Visits to Assign In the scheduler, select one or more unassigned visits, click Assign , then choose AssignIQ . If you prefer to assign manually, use Direct Assign instead. Review Suggested Assignments AssignIQ generates optimized sitter assignments and suggested arrival times based on the selected visits and your configuration. Suggestions may include a short explanation showing why a sitter was recommended, such as: Primary or secondary sitter Recent sitter Closest sitter Has key Route fit Best available fit A more detailed popover is also available when you want additional context behind the recommendation. Review Notes and Sitter Schedules When relevant notes exist, AssignIQ shows a notes icon on the visit row so managers can review important scheduling context without leaving the workflow. A schedule icon may also appear near the suggested sitter, allowing you to quickly review that sitter’s day before accepting or changing the assignment. Make Adjustments You can edit directly in the AssignIQ results table. Change the suggested sitter Change or customize the arrival time Reset locked values when needed When you manually change a sitter or arrival time, that value becomes locked. Changing a sitter does not require AssignIQ to run again. Changing an arrival time can affect routing, so AssignIQ will prompt you to run it again before finalizing. Adjust AssignIQ / RouteIQ Preferences Use the Preferences button to adjust how AssignIQ and RouteIQ handle scheduling and routing. The preferences panel lets you control how much weight is given to factors like sitter relationship, distance, and route consolidation. You can also adjust timing behavior, such as arrival time increments, and limit AssignIQ to a specific staff segment when needed. These settings allow each business to tune AssignIQ to better match how they schedule in practice. Run AssignIQ and Finalize Click Run AssignIQ to generate or refresh suggestions. Once the assignments look correct, click Finalize Assignments to confirm the selected sitters and times. Sitters are notified the same way they are when visits are assigned normally. How to Use RouteIQ RouteIQ is used when visits already have sitters and you only want to improve the route order and timing. You can use RouteIQ in two places: From Route View , using the magic icon next to a sitter with enough visits From AssignIQ, when all selected visits are already assigned, by selecting the RouteIQ option in the bottom left RouteIQ keeps the current sitter assignments in place and optimizes the route order and arrival timing. It shows useful route context such as: Visit count Total drive time Total service time Time span Order changes Optimized arrival times When you finalize RouteIQ, sitter assignments remain unchanged. The visit timing/order is updated based on the optimized route.
