This is the single decision that shapes everything else in your account: whether a category stands for a program or an event.
The part people do not see coming is that it also decides what a shift means. That is what determines whether you can later break one event into separate jobs, and changing your mind means moving every opportunity by hand.
This article is for administrators laying out categories and opportunities before they build.
The meaning of the word shift.
In one shape a shift is a task. In another it is a whole event. In a third it is just a date and a time. Everything downstream follows: how you name shifts, whether you need shift titles at all, and whether you can restrict a job to the people qualified for it.
There are three shapes, and it is worth reading all three even if one is obviously yours.
The opportunity is one specific event, and each shift inside it is a task or a role.
For example, a "Spring gala" opportunity with shifts titled "Registration desk", "Bar service" and "Setup crew". Somebody browsing sees the jobs, not a list of identical time slots.
This is the only shape that lets you split one event into separate jobs. If your events have distinct roles, pick this one.
A single opportunity holds every event you run, and each shift is a whole event.
For example, an "Events" opportunity with shifts titled "Spring gala" and "Summer fun run".
The trade is real and worth naming: the shift title is already used for the event name, so there is nowhere left to put the job. If you later need "Bar service" as its own bookable thing, you are restructuring.
The opportunity is one ongoing job, and each shift is simply a date and a time.
For example, a "Meals programme" category with a "Delivery driver" opportunity, and shifts every Tuesday and Thursday from 12:00 to 14:00. Someone approved for "Delivery driver" sees only the driving shifts.
Use advanced reservation restriction on that shift and match people by profile tag.
Tag the qualified profiles, restrict the shift to that tag, and it stays out of reach of everyone else. By default every shift in an event is open to anyone approved for the event, so this is the switch that changes it.
The restriction is per shift, which is the useful part. Leave the general jobs open and lock only the ones that need a licence, a certification or training.
Yes, and plenty of organizations do.
If you run ongoing programs plus a run of one-off events, keep them apart. Each program gets its own category with an opportunity per role. The events group together, either one opportunity per event or a single "Events" opportunity, depending on whether your events break into jobs.
Skip the calendar for it.
Some work has no shift attached. People do it and log the time afterwards. Turn on hour claims for those opportunities instead, and they submit their own time for your approval.
Because reversing it is manual.
There is no bulk action that converts one shape into another. Changing your mind means moving every opportunity into a different category by hand, one at a time, and renaming shifts as you go. Ten minutes of thought now saves an afternoon later.