# Skills: creating and assigning

> Define your team's skills to plan the right profile for the right position, and link an hourly cost to each of them.

Source: https://help.shyfter.com/en/settings/skills-creating-and-assigning  
Category: Settings  
Updated: 2026-06-30

## Why use skills

Skills qualify your employees according to their training or experience (for example Bartender, Kitchen, Checkout, Cleaning). When creating a shift, you indicate the skill or skills involved, which helps plan the right people for the right position and structure how the schedule reads. In some sectors, it is also a reference point for meeting qualification requirements.

## Creating a skill

Go to **Settings ⚙️ → Skills**, then click **New** at the top right. The "Add a skill" panel opens with the following fields:

- **Name**: the skill's label (for example Kitchen, Lobby/WC, Sales).
- **Employee cost (€/h)**: the hourly employee cost associated with this skill. It lets you refine the cost calculation of a shift based on the position actually held, rather than a single cost per employee.
- **Employer cost (€/h)**: the corresponding hourly employer cost.
- **Color**: the color that identifies the skill in the schedule.

Click **Save**. The skill appears in the list and becomes assignable.

## Assigning skills to an employee

You can assign a skill from an employee's profile (**Team → Users → the employee → Profile → Settings**, Skills field), or from the skills list using the assignment action to handle several people at once.

## Using skills in the schedule

When creating a shift, the Skills field lets you attach one or more skills to the slot. This clarifies the position held and, combined with the per-skill costs, refines the calculation of your schedule's real cost.