Executive Summary
Setting up interviewer availability windows and buffer times in PyjamaHR ensures that interviews are scheduled only during your preferred hours, prevents back-to-back bookings, and avoids time zone confusion for both interviewers and candidates. This guide explains how to configure these settings, addresses common pitfalls, and provides actionable solutions to the most frequent issues reported by real PyjamaHR users.
Detailed Overview
What are Availability Windows and Buffers?
- Availability Windows: The specific days and times you (or your interviewers) are open to conducting interviews.
- Buffer Times: The minimum gap you want between two interviews to prevent back-to-back scheduling and allow for breaks or overruns.
Why Use These Features?
- Prevents interviews from being booked outside your working hours.
- Reduces scheduling conflicts, especially when using calendar integrations (Google/Outlook).
- Ensures a smoother experience for both interviewers and candidates, minimizing rescheduling and confusion.
Integration with Other PyjamaHR Features:
- Works with the “Candidate Self-Scheduling” links.
- Syncs with Google and Outlook calendars (with some caveats—see Troubleshooting).
- Tied to the “Events” and “Timeline” sections in candidate profiles for tracking.
Business Impact:
- Saves time for recruiters and interviewers.
- Reduces candidate drop-off due to scheduling confusion.
- Improves professionalism and candidate experience.
Step-by-Step Guide: Setting Up Interviewer Availability and Buffers
Prerequisites
You must have a PyjamaHR account with interviewer or admin permissions.
For calendar sync, ensure your Google or Outlook calendar is connected.
1. Access Your Availability Settings
Go to Profile Settings:
- Click your avatar or initials in the top-right corner.
- Select Profile or Calendar Settings (as referenced in conversations:/profile#calendar).Locate the Availability Section:
- Look for “Working Hours” or “Availability Windows.”
[Screenshot suggestion: Profile > Calendar Settings > Availability section]
2. Define Your Working Hours
Set Days and Times:
- Specify which days you are available (e.g., Monday–Friday).
- Set start and end times for each day (e.g., 8:30 AM to 5:30 PM).
- If you need different hours for different days, adjust each day individually.
[Screenshot suggestion: Editable calendar grid with days/times]
Note:
- If you only want to allow interviews on specific days, only enable those days.
- If you want to restrict to a single slot per day, see “Advanced Usage” below.
3. Add Buffer Time Between Interviews
Set Buffer Time:
- Find the “Buffer Time After Events” or similar field.
- Choose the desired buffer (e.g., 15 minutes, 30 minutes, up to 5 hours).
- This buffer will be enforced between all interviews scheduled via PyjamaHR.
[Screenshot suggestion: Buffer time dropdown or input field]
Important:
- Buffer applies across all jobs and events scheduled via PyjamaHR.
- Buffer does not prevent manual bookings outside PyjamaHR or via direct calendar invites.
4. Save and Test Your Settings
Save Changes:
- Click Save or Update at the bottom of the settings page.Test Your Availability:
- Use the “Preview” or “Share Scheduling Link” feature to see what candidates will see.
- Ensure only your intended slots are visible and that buffer times are enforced.
[Screenshot suggestion: Candidate view of available slots]
5. (Optional) Set Up Interview Slot Duration
Choose Interview Duration When Scheduling:
- When creating an interview event, select the duration (e.g., 15, 30, 60 minutes).
- The system will break your availability window into slots of this duration, with buffers applied.
[Screenshot suggestion: Interview creation modal with duration dropdown]
Advanced Usage & Best Practices
Power User Tips
Multiple Slots Per Day:
By default, PyjamaHR divides your availability into as many slots as fit, based on your chosen duration and buffer. For example, a 2-hour window with 30-minute slots and 15-minute buffers yields 3 slots.Limiting to One Slot Per Day:
As of now, PyjamaHR does not support restricting to only one interview per day automatically.
Workaround:Set your availability window to a single one-hour period per day.
Once a slot is booked, others will not be available for that day.
Customizing for Different Days:
You can set different availability for each day (e.g., longer on Mondays, shorter on Fridays).Buffer Time Strategy:
Use longer buffers if you need time for notes or breaks. Short buffers maximize the number of possible interviews.Calendar Integration:
Ensure your Google/Outlook calendar is connected.
PyjamaHR will block out times where you have existing events (see Troubleshooting for Outlook-specific caveats).
Do’s and Don’ts
Do:
- Double-check your time zone settings.
- Preview your scheduling link before sending to candidates.
- Use buffer times to prevent burnout and scheduling errors.
Don’t:
- Don’t assume buffer times will prevent all conflicts if you book interviews outside PyjamaHR.
- Don’t forget to update your availability if your schedule changes.
Troubleshooting & Common Issues
1. Time Zone Confusion
Symptoms: Candidates see or book slots outside your working hours, or confirmation emails show the wrong time zone.
Solution:
Double-check your time zone in Profile > Calendar Settings.
When scheduling, confirm the time zone displayed matches your intended zone.
If you see mismatches (e.g., “10:00AM GMT+2” becomes “10:00AM Asia/Kolkata”), contact support with screenshots.
2. Slots Showing as Available When Busy in Outlook
Symptoms: Outlook events are not blocking availability in PyjamaHR.
Solution:
Ensure your Outlook calendar is properly connected.
Be aware that Outlook integration may have syncing delays or issues (as of recent conversations).
If issues persist, contact support and consider using Google Calendar for more reliable syncing.
3. Candidates Booking Outside Set Windows
Symptoms: Candidates can book on days/times you did not select.
Solution:
Revisit your availability settings and ensure only desired days/times are enabled.
If the issue persists, it may be a bug—contact support and provide the event link and screenshots.
4. Buffer Time Not Honored
Symptoms: Interviews are scheduled back-to-back despite buffer settings.
Solution:
Confirm buffer time is set in your settings.
Note that buffer may not apply if interviews are scheduled across different jobs or by different users.
If the problem continues, report the specific scenario to support for investigation.
5. No Slots Showing / “No Availability”
Symptoms: Candidates see no available slots.
Solution:
Check if the event date has already passed.
Ensure you have enabled availability for the relevant days/times.
Confirm that your calendar integration is not blocking all slots due to existing events.
6. Limiting to One Slot Per Day
Symptoms: Multiple candidates can book on the same day.
Solution:
Currently, PyjamaHR does not support this natively. Use the workaround described above.
Comprehensive FAQ
1. How do I set my working hours for interviews?
Go to Profile > Calendar Settings, then set your available days and times.
2. Can I set different availability for different days?
Yes, you can customize each day’s hours individually.
3. What is buffer time and how does it work?
Buffer time is the gap enforced between interviews. Set it in your Calendar Settings.
4. Why are candidates able to book outside my set hours?
Check your time zone and availability settings. If the issue persists, it may be a bug—contact support.
5. How do I prevent back-to-back interviews?
Set a buffer time after each event.
6. Why does my Outlook calendar not block out busy times?
Outlook integration may have syncing issues. Ensure it’s connected and contact support if problems persist.
7. Can I limit bookings to only one slot per day?
Not natively. Restrict your availability window to a single slot per day as a workaround.
8. How do I set up 15-minute interview slots within an hour?
Set your availability for the hour, then choose 15 minutes as the interview duration when scheduling.
9. Why do candidates see the wrong time zone in invites?
Check your profile’s time zone and confirm during scheduling. Report mismatches to support.
10. What if no slots show up for candidates?
Check if the event is in the past, your availability is set correctly, and your calendar isn’t fully blocked.
11. Can I set up multiple slots in a day?
Yes, as many as fit within your availability window and buffer settings.
12. How do I track scheduled interviews in candidate profiles?
Once a candidate books a slot, the interview appears in the Timeline section of their profile.
13. Can I customize buffer time for different days or events?
Currently, buffer time is a global setting for your profile.
14. What if I need to reschedule an interview?
Use the reschedule option in the Events section. Confirm time zone accuracy.
15. How do I share my availability with candidates?
Send them the scheduling link generated when you set up the interview event.
Related Features & Next Steps
Calendar Integrations: Connect Google or Outlook for real-time syncing.
Candidate Self-Scheduling: Use scheduling links to let candidates pick from your available slots.
Events and Timeline Tracking: Monitor interview status in the Events section and candidate profiles.
Email Templates: Customize interview invites for your team.
Recommended Next Steps:
- Review and update your availability and buffer settings regularly.
- Test your scheduling links before sending to candidates.
- Explore related articles:
- How to Connect Your Calendar to PyjamaHR
- Managing Candidate Self-Scheduling Links
- Troubleshooting Calendar Sync Issues
Still have questions?
If you encounter issues not covered here, contact PyjamaHR Support with screenshots and a detailed description of your scenario for the fastest resolution.
Article based on real customer conversations and the latest PyjamaHR platform capabilities as of June 2024.