Weekly sales forecast

The sales forecast is the foundation: labor, dashboards, and variance all derive from it. This page takes you from an empty week to a published forecast.

Page: Forecasting -> Sales Forecast (/forecasting/weekly) · Role: general_manager or admin

Before you start

An admin must have completed the first-time setup checklist. Open Forecasting and confirm the Getting Started checklist is green for locations, hours, day parts, job positions, and labor matrix.

Step 1: Open the sales forecast page

1. In the left sidebar, click Forecasting.
2. Click Sales Forecast.

You see "Create a New Sales Forecast" with three options: Quick Forecast, Guided Wizard, and Copy from Previous.

Option	Use it when
Quick Forecast	You know the model you want; fastest path
Guided Wizard	First few weeks, or a new GM; explains each choice
Copy from Previous	The coming week looks like a week you already built

Step 2: Generate the forecast

1. Click Quick Forecast.

2. Fill in the form:

   Field	What to enter
   Location	Your store. Defaults to your profile's default location
   Week Starting	The Monday of the week you are forecasting
   Projection Model	Smart Forecast YoY is the recommended default
   Timezone	Auto-filled from the location

3. Click Generate Forecast.

UnitOps produces a 7-day forecast at 15-minute resolution and shows the weekly total, a day-by-day breakdown, and a Draft status badge.

Choosing a projection model

Model	How it works	Best for
Smart Forecast YoY	Year-over-year trend applied to last year's actuals, blended with a recent average	A year or more of history
Weighted Average	Recent weeks weighted more heavily	Stable trade
Trailing Average	Recent weeks weighted equally	New stores, thin history
Same Day Last Year	The same weekday last year	Holidays and events

Step 3: Review the week

1. The Week View lists all seven days. Each card shows the day, the projected total, and how many 15-minute slots carry data.
2. Click a day card to open the Day View: the 15-minute grid with projected dollars, colored by day part.

Look for days where the projection disagrees with what you know is coming. That is what step 4 is for.

Step 4: Adjust for what the model cannot know

Private parties, road closures, local events, and weather are not in the history.

1. In the Day View, click the value of the slot you want to change.
2. Type the adjusted amount, for example raise a lunch slot from 150 to 200 for a booked party.
3. The adjustment saves immediately.
4. Return to the Week View: the Adjustments line shows the net change and the forecast total becomes projected total plus adjustments.

Adjustments are tracked separately from the projection so accuracy reporting can tell the two apart.

Events move the whole day

Slot adjustments are for one-off tweaks. When a whole day is not normal - a holiday, a local game, a promotion, a closure - record it on the Events page (/forecasting/events) instead.

• An event carries an expected impact percentage. The impact is applied to that day's projection, so +20% raises it and -30% lowers it. Two events on the same day compound.
• A closure, or an impact of -100%, produces no forecast for the day at all.
• An event with no stated impact is a note for the reader and changes nothing; give it a percentage if the day should move.
• An event attached to a location applies only there. An event with no location is org-wide, and only an admin can create one.
• Recording a past day as an event also excludes it from the history the projection averages, so last year's spike is not treated as the baseline.
• An event added after a week was generated only takes effect when you regenerate that week. Regeneration replaces the projection and keeps your saved slot adjustments.

Step 5: Submit for approval

1. On the Week View, click Submit for Approval.
2. Confirm.

The status changes from Draft to Pending Approval, the forecast locks against edits, and the approvers configured in approval settings are notified. With auto-approve on, it moves straight to approved.

Step 6: Publish

1. Once approved, click Publish.
2. Confirm.

The badge turns green and reads Published. A published forecast:

• is the official sales plan for that week,
• can generate a labor forecast,
• appears on the forecasting dashboard.

Other tools on this page

Tool	Page	Use
Forecast Home	/forecasting/workspace	Status of every week and location at a glance
Create Sales Forecast	/forecasting/workspace/create	The guided creation flow
GM Operating Day	/forecasting/gm	Today's operating view for a single store
Events	/forecasting/events	Record holidays, closures, promotions, and special events with an expected impact so they move the forecast, see Events move the whole day
Import Data	/forecasting/import	Bulk load history or actuals, see Actuals and variance

Troubleshooting

Symptom	Fix
Generate button is disabled	A required field is empty: location, week, or model
Forecast is $0 across every day	No historical actuals for the location; import history or pick Trailing Average
Location dropdown is empty	You have no access to any location, see Location permissions
Cannot edit slots	The forecast is Pending Approval or Published; it is intentionally locked
No slots on a day	Operating hours are missing for that weekday, see Location hours