Managing thousands of shifts across hundreds of event venues is no small feat. For Encore, a global leader in event services, the challenge was clear: streamline a high-volume, shift-based staffing operation spanning over 1,300 locations and 25+ suppliers. In a recent webinar hosted by JoinedUp, Meredith Wenger, Director of Workforce Operations Enablement at Encore, shared how her team tackled the chaos—and transformed it into control.
Tackling Operational Complexity
Before implementing JoinedUp, Encore’s shift fulfillment process was heavily manual. Meredith described the pre-JoinedUp reality as a world of “texts and phone calls,” lacking a centralized system to manage and validate labor at scale.
Empowering Field Teams with a Scalable Solution
Encore’s implementation of JoinedUp helped bridge the gap between centralized workforce planning and on-the-ground execution. Meredith emphasized the importance of empowering divisional managers across the U.S. and Canada, supported by an internal workforce management team that could help with training and tools.
“Now it’s really just when new people join the organization,” Meredith explained. “Other than that, people are just really using the system themselves.”
This decentralization—backed by a reliable platform—enabled speed, autonomy, and transparency at scale.
Real-Time Verification in Live Event Settings
A key challenge in event-based staffing is verifying shift completion in real-time. Meredith explained Encore’s hands-on approach:
“We are there, physically in a space… the managers who procured the labor from suppliers are responsible for verifying attendance. They’re on site, with the staff, as those needs are being met.”
JoinedUp’s support for features like QR or facial recognition-based time and attendance tracking further helped enhance verification, adding another layer of confidence and auditability.
Lessons for the Industry
The conversation closed with a powerful takeaway for operations and staffing leaders in any shift-based industry:
“You just have to start. Start using the system—and the efficiencies and visibility will follow.”
Meredith’s message was clear: transformation doesn’t happen overnight, but with the right tools and a phased approach to implementation, even large, complex staffing ecosystems can become streamlined, responsive, and ready for scale.
Watch the whole webinar here.
Looking to optimize your workforce? Discover how JoinedUp can streamline your shift-based workforce management. Book a demo today.
