Manage absence types

Basics of Absences in smenso

Absences in smenso represent periods during which a member is not available – for example due to vacation, illness, or other types of absence. They are automatically taken into account in calendars, the workload view, and resource planning, and they affect the capacity available to a member on a given day.

Types of Absences

Every absence belongs to a specific type of absence.
Administrators can define various types in the workspace settings, for example:

• Vacation

• Sick leave

• Special leave

• Parental leave

• Other company-specific categories

Absence types can be either limited (e.g. 30 vacation days per year) or unlimited.
It can also be configured whether an absence requires approval and who is responsible for the approval.

Public Holidays and Calendars

smenso supports multiple public holiday calendars, for different regions or locations.
Each member can be assigned their own calendar. Public holidays automatically impact capacity and do not need to be entered manually as absences.

Member Settings and Capacity

A member’s daily working time (e.g. 8 hours per day) is defined in the member settings.

This capacity affects:

• the duration of an absence,

• how absences are displayed in workload and capacity planning,

• how vacation quotas are calculated (if limited absence types are used).

For limited absence types (e.g. vacation), an individual quota can be assigned per member.

Validation Rules for Absences

To ensure absences are processed correctly, the following rules apply:

• No overlaps: A member cannot have two absences at the same time.

• Valid periods: Start date must be on or before the end date.

• Working time & public holidays: Capacity and public holidays are automatically considered.

• Approval logic:

  • Absence types with approval start in the status submitted.

  • Absence types without approval have no status.

These rules apply automatically throughout smenso (UI, planning, reports).

Summary

Absences in smenso...

• are managed via absence types,

• automatically consider public holidays and working hours,

• impact capacity, workload, and planning,

• can include approval processes,

• always apply to individual members,

• and follow clear validation rules to ensure consistent planning.

These basics help manage absences correctly and understand their impact in planning.

Absence Type Settings

The management of absence types can be found in your workspace's Settings. You can access it via the menu: Settings > Absence Types.

In your workspace settings, you can manage different absence types. Each absence type can be either limited or unlimited:

• Limited: With a defined absence quota (e.g., days per year).
• Unlimited: No fixed limit for absences. 

Absence Type Overview

The overview shows all created absence types. For each type you can see:

• Whether approval is required
• Who grants the approval

Create a New Absence Type

To create a new absence type:

1. Click on + New Absence Type.
2. Assign a title to the absence type.
3. Select the type (limited or unlimited).
4. For limited: Define the default quota (e.g., days per year).
5. Define whether approval is required and who grants it.

Edit Absence Type

You can edit existing absence types at any time:

1. In the list, click on the desired absence type.
2. In the edit window, you can change:
   • Title
   • Type (limited or unlimited)
   • Default quota (if limited)
   • Approval – whether it’s required and by whom