Business Hours and Holidays are essential configuration features in Salesforce that help organizations define when they are available to serve customers and when they observe non-working periods. These settings directly impact case management, entitlements, and escalation rules.
Business Hours def…Business Hours and Holidays are essential configuration features in Salesforce that help organizations define when they are available to serve customers and when they observe non-working periods. These settings directly impact case management, entitlements, and escalation rules.
Business Hours define the operational schedule of your organization, specifying the days and times when your support team is available. You can configure multiple business hour records to accommodate different time zones, departments, or service levels. Each business hour record includes the time zone setting and the specific hours for each day of the week. Business hours are crucial for calculating case age, response times, and service level agreements (SLAs). When escalation rules run, they respect business hours to ensure cases are escalated appropriately during working periods.
To set up Business Hours, navigate to Setup, search for Business Hours in the Quick Find box, and create new records specifying your operational schedule. You can designate one business hour record as the default, which applies to cases when no specific business hours are assigned.
Holidays represent days when your organization is closed and not providing service. Holiday records include the name, date, and optionally the time range if it's a partial day closure. Once created, holidays must be associated with specific business hour records to take effect. This association ensures that SLA calculations and escalation processes account for these non-working days.
To configure Holidays, access Setup, search for Holidays, and create holiday records. Then associate them with the appropriate business hour records by editing the business hours and adding the holidays to the holiday list.
These features work together to provide accurate time tracking for customer service metrics. Entitlement processes and milestones rely on business hours and holidays to calculate deadlines correctly, ensuring your team meets service commitments while accounting for actual working time.
Business Hours and Holidays in Salesforce
Why Business Hours and Holidays Are Important
Business Hours and Holidays are essential configuration settings in Salesforce that ensure your organization's support processes, escalation rules, and case management align with your actual operating schedule. These settings determine when the clock runs for time-based calculations, such as case age, escalation milestones, and entitlement processes. Configuring these correctly ensures accurate reporting and proper automation timing.
What Are Business Hours?
Business Hours define the operational hours for your organization or specific locations. They specify: - The days of the week your business operates - The start and end times for each day - The time zone for the schedule
You can create multiple Business Hours records to represent different locations, teams, or service levels. Each record can have unique schedules reflecting regional differences or specialized support windows.
What Are Holidays?
Holidays are specific dates when your organization is closed or operating on a reduced schedule. Holidays are associated with Business Hours records and tell Salesforce to exclude these dates from time-based calculations. Key features include: - Name and description of the holiday - Start and end date/time - Recurring holiday options for annual events
How Business Hours and Holidays Work Together
When a case is created or an escalation rule runs, Salesforce checks the assigned Business Hours to determine: 1. Whether the current time falls within operating hours 2. If any holidays apply to the current date 3. How to calculate elapsed business time accurately
For example, if a case is created Friday at 5 PM and your business hours are Monday-Friday 9 AM-5 PM, the case age calculation pauses until Monday 9 AM.
Key Configuration Steps
Setting Up Business Hours: 1. Navigate to Setup and search for Business Hours 2. Click New to create a record 3. Enter a name and select the time zone 4. Define the hours for each active day 5. Save the record
Setting Up Holidays: 1. Navigate to Setup and search for Holidays 2. Click New to create a holiday 3. Enter the name, date, and time details 4. Check Recurring if the holiday repeats annually 5. Associate the holiday with appropriate Business Hours records
Features That Use Business Hours
- Escalation Rules: Time-based escalations respect Business Hours settings - Entitlement Processes: Milestone calculations use Business Hours - Case Age Calculation: Reports can show age in business hours vs. calendar hours - Assignment Rules: Can reference Business Hours for routing decisions
Exam Tips: Answering Questions on Business Hours and Holidays
Key Points to Remember:
1. Default Business Hours: Every Salesforce org has one default Business Hours record that is set to 24/7 initially.
2. Time Zone Significance: Each Business Hours record has its own time zone setting, which is critical for global organizations with multiple support centers.
3. Holiday Association: Holidays must be explicitly added to Business Hours records to take effect. Creating a holiday alone does not pause escalations.
4. Case Assignment: Cases can be assigned specific Business Hours that differ from the organization default, allowing for differentiated service levels.
5. Escalation Timing: When questions mention escalation rules and timing, consider whether Business Hours would affect when the escalation triggers.
6. Multiple Business Hours: Organizations can have multiple Business Hours records for different regions, products, or service tiers.
7. Recurring Holidays: For annual holidays like New Year's Day, use the recurring option rather than creating new records each year.
Common Exam Scenarios:
- A company wants escalations to only run during work hours: Configure Business Hours and apply them to escalation rules - Support teams in different time zones need separate schedules: Create multiple Business Hours records with appropriate time zones - Entitlement milestones should exclude company holidays: Add holidays to the Business Hours associated with the entitlement process
Best Practices for Exam Success
- Always check if the scenario involves time-sensitive processes when Business Hours questions appear - Remember that holidays are child records that must be linked to Business Hours - Understand that Business Hours affect calculations, not access to the system - Note that 24/7 default means all calendar time counts unless modified