Services and staff are connected through assignments. This article explains how these relationships work and why they matter for your business.

The Relationship Model

In Speako, services and staff have a many-to-many relationship:

  • One service can be provided by multiple staff members
  • One staff member can provide multiple services This flexibility matches how real businesses operate.

How It Works

Service Perspective

A service like "Haircut" might be provided by:

  • Emma (Senior Stylist)
  • James (Stylist)
  • Sophie (Junior Stylist) When a customer books "Haircut," any of these staff can be selected.

Staff Perspective

A staff member like Emma might provide:

  • Haircut
  • Color Treatment
  • Styling
  • Highlights When Emma is available, customers can book her for any of these services.

Visual Representation

Services              Staff
---------             -----
Haircut    ─────────  Emma
Color      ──┬──────  James
Styling    ──┼──────  Sophie
Highlights ──┘

Why Relationships Matter

For Booking Accuracy

The system only offers staff who can provide the requested service:

  • Customer wants "Deep Tissue Massage"
  • Only staff trained in deep tissue appear
  • No confusion or mismatched bookings

For Availability

Staff availability only applies to services they're assigned:

  • Emma works Monday-Friday
  • She appears for Haircut bookings Monday-Friday
  • She doesn't appear for services she's not assigned

For Your AI Agent

Your AI agent uses these relationships to:

  • Recommend appropriate staff
  • Filter availability correctly
  • Answer "who does [service]?" questions

Setting Up Relationships

From the Staff Side

  1. Open staff member's profile
  2. Go to Services tab
  3. Assign/remove services

From the Service Side

When viewing a service, you may see which staff can provide it:

  • Helps verify coverage
  • Ensures services aren't "orphaned" (no staff assigned)

Relationship Scenarios

Sole Provider

Only one staff member does a service:

  • "Microblading" → Only Lisa
  • If Lisa is unavailable, service is unavailable

Multiple Providers

Many staff provide the same service:

  • "Basic Haircut" → Emma, James, Sophie
  • Good availability coverage
  • Customers have options

Specialist Services

Advanced services limited to qualified staff:

  • "Keratin Treatment" → Emma only (certified)
  • "Basic Styling" → All stylists

Managing Changes

Staff Learns New Service

  1. Staff gets trained/certified
  2. Add service to their assignments
  3. They now appear for that service

Staff Stops Offering Service

  1. Remove service from their assignments
  2. Existing bookings remain
  3. No new bookings for that service with them

New Service Added

  1. Create the service
  2. Assign to qualified staff
  3. Service becomes bookable

Service Discontinued

  1. Remove from all staff (or deactivate service)
  2. Handle existing bookings
  3. Service no longer bookable

Common Questions

"Why doesn't [staff] appear for [service]?"

Check if:

  • Service is assigned to that staff member
  • Staff is active
  • Staff has availability
  • Staff is at the right location

"Why are there no staff available for this service?"

Check if:

  • At least one staff member is assigned the service
  • Assigned staff have availability at the requested time
  • Staff are active and at the right location

"Can a customer request a specific staff member?"

Yes, if:

  • The staff member offers the requested service
  • The staff member is available at the requested time

Best Practices

  1. Ensure coverage — Every service should have at least one staff assigned
  2. Match skills — Only assign services staff can competently perform
  3. Plan for absences — Multiple staff per service provides backup
  4. Keep current — Update relationships as staff skills change