> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.radar.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Building a workforce management experience In this tutorial, we show you the Radar components to build a workforce management experience from end to end. You'll learn how to power the full shift cycle: shift creation, shift experience, and reimbursement workflows. The core shift experience we'll cover looks like this: 1. A shift is created 2. A professional gets assigned a shift 3. The professional starts traveling to the shift 4. The professional's live ETA and location updates are recorded 5. The professional automatically clocks in upon arrival 6. The professional automatically clocks out upon departure 7. The professional is reimbursed either by time onsite and/or trip mileage Each step in this flow maps directly to a Radar feature such as geofences, trips, and webhooks. Instead of building and maintaining location infrastructure from scratch, your team can focus on the product experience on top of it. ## Features used * [iOS SDK](https://docs.radar.com/sdk/ios) / [Android SDK](https://docs.radar.com/sdk/android) * [Geofences](https://docs.radar.com/geofencing/geofences) * [Trips](https://docs.radar.com/geofencing/trips) * [Webhooks](https://docs.radar.com/integrations/webhooks) * [Route matching](https://docs.radar.com/api#route-match) ## Shift lifecycle | Step | Trigger | Radar feature | | --------------------- | ------------------------------------------------ | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Shift created | A shift is created | [Geofences API](https://docs.radar.com/geofencing/geofences#api): create a geofence at the shift location | | Professional assigned | The professional is assigned or picks up a shift | Set user metadata with shift context | | Professional en route | The professional taps "Start route" | [Trips](https://docs.radar.com/geofencing/trips): start a trip with the shift geofence as the destination | | Live ETA tracking | The professional is traveling | `user.updated_trip` webhook | | Approaching alert | The professional is nearby | `user.approaching_trip_destination` webhook | | Auto clock-in | The professional enters the shift geofence | `user.entered_geofence` webhook | | Auto clock-out | The professional exits the shift geofence | `user.exited_geofence` webhook | | Mileage reimbursement | The shift is completed | [Route matching API:](https://docs.radar.com/api#route-match) calculates the trip's mileage | ## Getting started If you haven’t already, sign up for Radar to get your API keys. ### Initialize the SDK For full setup instructions, see the [iOS SDK](https://docs.radar.com/sdk/ios) and [Android SDK](https://docs.radar.com/sdk/android) docs. Once the SDK is installed, initialize it. ```swift theme={null} Radar.initialize(publishableKey: "prj_live_pk_...") ``` **Android (Kotlin)** ```kotlin theme={null} Radar.initialize(context, "prj_live_pk_...") ``` ### Set the user When a professional logs in, set their user ID and any relevant metadata. This links all location updates and events to the professional in your system. **iOS (Swift)** ```swift theme={null} Radar.setUserId("pro_user_456") Radar.setMetadata(["companyId": "company_abc123", "name": "John Doe"]) ``` **Android (Kotlin)** ```kotlin theme={null} Radar.setUserId("pro_user_456") Radar.setMetadata(JSONObject().apply { put("companyId", "company_abc123") put("name", "John Doe") }) ``` Setting `metadata`, like `companyId`, makes it easy to filter the data by company or team on the server side. ### Request location permissions This experience requires background location permissions so the SDK can track the professional's location when the app is not in the foreground. Following these docs to request background permissions for [iOS](https://docs.radar.com/sdk/ios#request-permissions) and [Android](https://docs.radar.com/sdk/android#request-permissions). ## Steps When a shift is created, create a geofence for its location. This will be used to detect when the professional arrives and departs. Use the [Geofences API](https://docs.radar.com/geofencing/geofences#api) to create a geofence server-side when a shift is created. Link the geofence to the shift using an `externalId` so you can reference it. Setting `deleteAfter` automatically deletes the geofence after the shift window, keeping your project clean without requiring a manual delete call.  ```shellscript theme={null} curl https://api.radar.io/v1/geofences/shift/shift_12345 \ -H "Authorization: prj_live_sk_..." \ -X PUT \ -d "description=123 Main St - Water Heater Repair" \ -d "type=circle" \ -d "coordinates=[-73.9911,40.7342]" \ -d "radius=100" \ -d "metadata[shiftId]=shift_12345" \ -d "metadata[customerId]=customer_abc" \ -d "deleteAfter=2026-01-01T00:00:00.000Z" ``` When the professional taps "Start route," start a Radar trip. Trips provide real-time ETA tracking, delay detection, and approaching signals - everything needed to power a live tracking view for a dispatcher or customer. **iOS (Swift)** ```swift theme={null} let tripMetadata: [String: String] = [ "shiftId": "shift_12345", "proName": "John Doe" ] let tripOptions = RadarTripOptions( externalId: "trip_shift_12345", destinationGeofenceTag: "shift", destinationGeofenceExternalId: "shift_12345" ) tripOptions.mode = .car tripOptions.metadata = tripMetadata Radar.startTrip(options: tripOptions) { status, trip, events in if status == .success { // trip started, begin showing live ETA to dispatcher and customer } else { // handle error } } ``` **Android (Kotlin)** ```kotlin theme={null} val tripMetadata = JSONObject() tripMetadata.put("shiftId", "shift_12345") tripMetadata.put("proName", "John Doe") val tripOptions = RadarTripOptions( "trip_shift_12345", tripMetadata, "shift", "shift_12345", Radar.RadarRouteMode.CAR ) Radar.startTrip(tripOptions) { status, trip, events -> if (status == Radar.RadarStatus.SUCCESS) { // trip started, begin showing live ETA to dispatcher and customer } else { // handle error } } ``` Setting `scheduledArrivalAt` enables Radar's delay detection: if the professional's ETA exceeds the scheduled arrival time, Radar will automatically surface a delay signal.  We recommend implementing [silent push](https://docs.radar.com/sdk/silent-push) notifications alongside trip tracking to ensure location updates continue even if the professional manually terminates the app. **Tracking frequency** Radar's SDK supports custom tracking options as well as three tracking presets: `EFFICIENT`, `RESPONSIVE`, and `CONTINUOUS`. You can [remotely set tracking options](https://docs.radar.com/sdk/remote-configuration) in the Radar dashboard, overriding any client-side specified tracking options. In addition to general [tracking options](https://docs.radar.com/sdk/tracking), Radar supports overriding tracking behavior during a trip or inside a geofence with a specified tag. As a professional is on their way to a shift, we recommend: * **On-trip tracking options**: increase tracking frequency while a professional is actively on a trip using a modified version of the`CONTINUOUS` preset, with `desiredStoppedUpdateInterval: 60` and `desiredMovingUpdateInterval: 60`. * **In-geofence tracking options**: increase tracking frequency to every 30s via the base `CONTINUOUS` preset when a professional is inside a `shift` geofence to ensure accurate clock-in/out detection while on-site. Trips stream real-time locations and ETA updates to your backend via webhooks. Use these events to power a dispatcher dashboard and/or customer-facing tracking view. Key trip events to listen for: | Event | Description | | ----------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------ | | `user.started_trip` | Professional is on their way | | `user.updated_trip` | Location or ETA updated | | `user.approaching_trip_destination` | Professional is within the approaching threshold | | `user.arrived_at_trip_destination` | Professional has arrived at the destination | | `user.stopped_trip` | Trip completed or canceled | **Offline behavior:** If the professional loses connection during a trip, the SDK will buffer location updates and replay them once connectivity is restored. Your backend will receive the replayed locations in order, so no location data should be lost. **No-show detection:** As the professional travels, `eta.duration` is updated on each `user.updated_trip` event. If the ETA continues to increase over time rather than decrease, this may indicate the professional is moving away from the shift. You can implement custom no-show logic on your backend by tracking ETA trends across successive events and marking a shift as a no-show after a configurable threshold. Example `user.updated_trip` payload: ```json theme={null} { "events": [ { "type": "user.updated_trip", "createdAt": "2026-05-12T14:30:00.000Z", "live": true, "trip": { "externalId": "trip_shift_12345", "status": "started", "metadata": { "shiftId": "shift_12345", "proName": "John Doe" }, "mode": "car", "destinationGeofenceTag": "shift", "destinationGeofenceExternalId": "shift_12345", "eta": { "duration": 8, "distance": 3200 } } } ], "user": { "userId": "pro_user_456" } } ``` When the professional enters the shift geofence, Radar triggers a `user.entered_geofence` event. Use `createdAt` from the webhook payload at the clock-in timestamp. ```json theme={null} { "type": "user.entered_geofence", "createdAt": "2026-05-12T14:32:00.000Z", "live": true, "location": { "type": "Point", "coordinates": [-73.9911, 40.7342] }, "geofence": { "tag": "shift", "externalId": "shift_12345", "metadata": { "shiftId": "shift_12345" } }, "user": { "userId": "pro_user_456", "metadata": { "companyId": "company_abc123", "name": "John Doe" } } } ``` Update the shift record in your system with the clock-in timestamp. When the professional exits the shift geofence, Radar triggers a `user.exited_geofence` event. Use `createdAt` as the clock-out timestamp and calculate the time onsite. ```json theme={null} { "type": "user.exited_geofence", "createdAt": "2026-05-12T16:15:00.000Z", "live": true, "location": { "type": "Point", "coordinates": [-73.9911, 40.7342] }, "geofence": { "tag": "shift", "externalId": "shift_12345", "metadata": { "shiftId": "shift_12345" } }, "user": { "userId": "pro_user_456", "metadata": { "companyId": "company_abc123", "name": "John Doe" } } } ``` **Time onsite** = `exitedAt` - `enteredAt` When the trip completes, pass it to Radar's [route matching API](https://docs.radar.com/api#route-match) to calculate the distance traveled for mileage reimbursement. **Request:** ```shellscript theme={null} curl "https://api.radar.io/v1/route/match" \ -H "Authorization: prj_live_pk_..." \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -X POST \ -d '{ "path": [ {"coordinates": "40.7128,-74.0060", "createdAt": "2026-05-12T14:00:00Z", "accuracy": 10}, {"coordinates": "40.7200,-73.9980", "createdAt": "2026-05-12T14:05:00Z", "accuracy": 10}, {"coordinates": "40.7342,-73.9911", "createdAt": "2026-05-12T14:12:00Z", "accuracy": 10} ], "mode": "car", "units": "imperial" }' ``` **Response:** ```shellscript theme={null} { "meta": { "code": 200 }, "matchedPath": [ {"latitude": 40.7128, "longitude": -74.0060, "originalIndex": 0}, {"latitude": 40.7200, "longitude": -73.9980, "originalIndex": 1}, {"latitude": 40.7342, "longitude": -73.9911, "originalIndex": 2} ], "distance": { "value": 7439.5, "text": "1.4 mi" } } ``` Use `distance.text` to display the trip mileage to the dispatcher and `distance.value` to calculate reimbursement.